Indices : Foundries : Johnson & Smith Foundry of Philadelphia

The Johnson & Smith foundry was a descendant of Binny and Ronaldson, one of the first American type foundries. It was formed in 1833 when Johnson & Smith took over the James Ronaldson foundry. Johnson introduced electrotyping in Philadelphia and was a tireless worker. In 1843 it became the Johnson foundry after Smith's retirement. Johnson passed away in 1860 and the firm was taken over by his three partners at the time and became MacKeller, Smiths & Jordan foundry, one of the most important American foundries of the 19th century. In 1834 the company published a specimen book showing the first American sans serif type in both upper and lower case.