Elbert Hubbard
1856-1915

After meeting William Morris, and visiting Morris' Kelmscott Press in 1894, Elbert Hubbard returned home to establish the Roycroft Press at East Aurora, NY in 1895. They produced books having high-relief molded leather or limp chamois covers, and elaborately decorated pages. Stock in the corporation was owned by the workers, making this a true cooperative. The culmination of Hubbard's efforts several years later included the construction of a medieval manor, complete with a workers community. Roycroft workshops were a great success, producing a variety of Arts & Crafts items, including books, metalwork, and decorative items.

Mission-style chairs and tables bearing the Roycroft mark were first mentioned in the 1901 catalog. They later expanded their furniture offerings to include desks, lamps, library tables, picture frames, chest of drawers, serving tables and bedroom sets. The hardware was often copper or brass that was handcrafted in the shops.

Although Hubbard and his wife died with the sinking of the Lusitania in 1915, the Roycroft establishment continued successfully for number of years thereafter.

As publisher and writer for the Philistine (1895-1915) he penned the inspirational Message to Garcia (1899) which is still used in business schools today.