Century Schoolbook
The Century font family style was derived from the original Century Roman font designed by Linn Boyd Benton,1894.
“Century Schoolbook is a Transitional classification serif typeface designed by Morris Fuller Benton in 1919 for the American Type Founders (ATF) at the request of Ginn & Co., a textbook publisher, who were looking for an especially easy-to-read face for textbooks.” Century Schoolbook italic was created in 1921 and to complete the century schoolbook series, Century Schoolbook bold was created in 1923.
“Century Schoolbook is a Transitional classification serif designed by Morris Fuller Benton in 1919 for the American Type Founders (ATF) at the request of Ginn & Co., a textbook publisher, who were looking for an especially easy-to-read face for textbooks.” Century Schoolbook italic was created in 1921 and to complete the century schoolbook series, Century Schoolbook bold was created in 1923.
Morris Fuller Benton (1872-1948) was a very influential American typeface designer of his day. Benton headed the design department of the American Type Founders and was their top designer from 1900-1937. During this time he created 221 typefaces by either adding or subtracting from typefaces that already existed, to creating his own original designs. Benton’s style was known as “gothic” which was considered the norm of the day.
“The rugged simplicity of the Century family of types has made it an enduring favorite of American typographers for almost one hundred years. Beginning as foundry type, Century has withstood a series of technical transformations into Linotype, Monotype, Ludlow, phototype, transfer type, digital type, and Xerox-like ‘toner type’.” — Charles Bigelow.
Obviously after learning about the history of this typeface, I believe that I have made a good choice for my e-book type. I will use a mixture of the Century School book series varying from the standard to the bold. The size of my font will also vary depending on if its body text or a heading.
Below is a list of all of Benton’s typefaces, which were all cut by the American Type Founders:
Roycroft (c. 1898), inspired by lettering in the Saturday Evening Post and often credited to Lewis Buddy, though (according to ATF) designed “partly” by Benton.
Century series, based on the original Century Roman cut by Linn Boyd Benton.
Century Roman sub-series
Century Expanded (1900)
Century Italic + Century Bold (1905)
Century Bold Condensed (1909)
Century Bold Extended (1910)
Century Oldstyle sub-series
Century Oldstyle + italic + bold (1909)
Century Oldstyle Bold Italic (1910)
Century Oldstyle Bold Condensed (1915)
Century Catalog sub-series
Century Catalog (1917)
Century Schoolbook sub-series
Century Schoolbook (1918), commissioned by textbook publishers Ginn & Company for maximum legibility.
Century Schoolbook Italic (1921)
Century Schoolbook Bold (1923)
Globe Gothic (c. 1900), a refinement of Taylor Gothic, designed by ATF vice-president Joseph W. Phinney in 1897 for Charles H. Taylor for the exclusive use of the Boston Globe.
Globe Gothic Condensed + Extra Condensed + Extended (c. 1900)
Globe Gothic Bold (1907), credited to Benton, though Frederic Goudy claims Phinney commissioned him to do it.
Globe Gothic Bold Italic (1908)
Card Mercantile (1901), a redesign of the two smallest sizes of an 1890’s Dickinson Type Foundry design that ATF had acquired when the companies merged in 1896.
Wedding Text (1901)
Wedding Text Shaded (1913)
Cushing Antique (1902)
Typo Script + extended (1902), originally ‘‘Tiffany Script’’.
Engravers Bold (1902, also cast by Barnhart Brothers & Spindler)
Franklin Gothic series, the patriarch of American sans-serif faces, named for Benjamin Franklin, America’s greatest printer.
Franklin Gothic (1903)
Franklin Gothic Condensed + Extra Condensed (1906)
Franklin Gothic Italic (1910)
Franklin Gothic Condensed Shaded (1912)
Alternate Gothic, Nos. 1,2,3 (1903)
Cheltenham series, based on the original Cheltenham designed by Bertram Goodhue.
Cheltenham Bold (1903)
Cheltenham Bold Condensed (1904)
Cheltenham Bold Italic + Cheltenham Bold Condensed Italic + Cheltenham Wide + Cheltenham Bold Outline (1905)
Cheltenham Bold Extra Condensed + Cheltenham Bold Extended (1906)
Cheltenham Inline + Cheltenham Inline Extra Condensed'
Cheltenham Inline Extended (1907)
Cheltenham Oldstyle Condensed + Cheltenham Medium (1909)
Cheltenham Medium Italic + Cheltenham Extra Bold (1910)
Cheltenham Bold Shaded + Cheltenham Bold Italic Shaded + Cheltenham Extra Bold Shaded (1912)
Cheltenham Medium Condensed + Cheltenham Medium Expanded (1913)
Bulfinch Oldstyle (1903), commissioned by the Curtis Publishing Company and prepared by Benton for production from original designs by William Martin Johnson. The “house face” of Ladies’ Home Journal from 1903, offered for general use in 1905.
Bold Antique (1904)
Bold Antique Condensed (1908/9 ?)
Re-issued as Whittin Black and Whittin Black Condensed (1960)
Cloister Black (1904), usually credited to Joseph W. Phinney, but many authorities give full credit to Benton. It is an adaptation of Priory Text, an 1870’s version of William Caslon’s Caslon Text of 1734.
Miehle Extra Condensed + Title (1905)
Typo Upright (1905), originally Tiffany Upright.
Engravers Shaded (1906)
Norwood Roman (1906), made for J. S. Cushing’s Norwood Press.
Engravers Old English (1906), based upon Caslon Text and designed in association with "Cowan" or perhaps Joseph W. Phinney.
Engravers Old English Bold (1910)
Clearface series , designed with the help of his father, Linn Boyd Benton.
Clearface (1907)
Clearface Bold + Italic
Clearface Heavy + Italic
Clearface Italic
Monotone Gothic (1907)
News Gothic series
News Gothic (1908)
News Gothic Italic
News Gothic Condensed
News Gothic Extra Condensed
News Gothic Extra Condensed Title
News Gothic Bold
News Gothic Condensed Bold
Lightline Gothic (1908), essentially a News Gothic ultra light.
Commercial Script (1908)
Bodoni series, first American revival of the faces of Giambattista Bodoni.
Bodoni + Italic (1910)
Bodoni Bold + Italic (1911)
Bodoni Bold Shaded (1912)
Bodoni Open (1918)
Card Bodoni + bold (1916)
Ultra Bodoni + italic(1928)
Ultra Bodoni Condensed + extra condensed (1933)
Engravers Bodoni (1933)
Hobo (1910)
Light Hobo (1915)
Clearface Gothic (1910)
Venetian + Italic (1911)
Venetian Bold (1913)
Copperplate Gothic Shaded (1912), an addition to Goudy’s Copperplate series.
Cloister series
Cloister Old Style (1913), based on the 1470 Venetian face of Nicolas Jenson.
Cloister Italic (1913) , based on the 1501 italic face of Aldus Manutius.
Cloister Bold Condensed (1917)
Cloister Cursive (1922)
Cloister Lightface (1924)
Cloister Lightface Italic (1925)
Cloister Cursive Handtooled (1926), with Charles H. Becker.
Della Robbia Light (1913), based on T.M. Cleland’s Della Robbia. Later copied by Damon & Peat as Armstrong. [1]
Cromwell (1913), uses capital letters from Benton’s Cloister Old Style.
Packard (1913), based on lettering by Oswald Cooper
Packard Bold (1916)
Antique Shaded (1914)
Lithographic Shaded (1914), a half-shaded version of Engravers Shaded by W. F. Capitian.
Adscript (1914)
Souvenir (1914), later Ed Benguiat’s photo-type versions of this type would achieve huge popularity.
Light Oldstyle (1916), possibly an old front from Inland Type Foundry, but sometimes credited to Benton.
Invitation Shaded (1916)
Invitation (1917)
Goudy|Goudy Bold (1916), based on Goudy’s Goudy Old Style.
Goudy Title (1918)
Goudy Bold Italic + Goudy Catalog (1919)
Goudy Catalog Italic (1922), credited to Benton, Charles H. Becker, or Wadsworth A. Parker by varying authorities.
Garamond series, based upon the designs of 16th-century type founder, Claude Garamond.
Garamond (1919), with T.M. Cleland
Garamond Bold (1920)
Garamond Italic (1923), with T.M. Cleland
Garamond Open (1931)
Baskerville Italic (1915)
Motto (1915)
Sterling (1917)
Sterling Cursive (1919)
Freehand (1917)
Rugged Roman (1917?), designed 1909-11, patented in 1915, earliest showing 1917.
Card Litho + Card Light Litho (1917), a modification of a 1907 Inland Type Foundry design that ATF had acquired when the companies merged in 1912.
Announcement Roman + Italic (1918)
American Caslon (1919), a version of the face originally cut by William Caslon in the 18th century.
Pen Print Open (1921), based on the Inland Type Foundry design of 1911.
Civilité (1922), a modern adaptation of Robert Granjon’s face cut in 1557.
Typo Roman Shaded (1924)
Schoolbook Oldstyle (1924)
Schoolbook Oldstyle Italic (1928)
Card Roman (1925)
Typo Roman (1926)
Canterbury (1926)
Greeting Monotone (1927)
Gravure (1927)
Broadway (1928), capital letters only. Lower case letters were later cut by Sol Hess for the Lanston Monotype copy.
Broadway Condensed (1929), capitals + lower-case
Modernique (1928)
Novel Gothic (1928), completed from drawings by ATF matrix cuter Charles H. Becker.
Bulmer Roman + Italic (1928), based on a face cut by William Martin for the printer William Bulmer in 1790.
Chic (1928)
Parisian (1928)
Louvaine series
Louvaine (medium) + Italic (1929)
Louvaine Light + Italic
Louvaine Bold + Italic
Paramount (1929)
Bank Gothic series (1930–33)
Bank Gothic Light (1930)
Bank Gothic Medium
Bank Gothic Bold
Bank Gothic Light Condensed
Bank Gothic Medium Condensed
Bank Gothic Bold Condensed
Dynamic Medium (1930)
Piranesi series, roman by Willard T. Sniffin.
Piranesi Italic (1930)
Piranesi Bold Italic (1931)
Piranesi Bold (1933)
Engravers Text (1930)
Rockwell Antique (1931), an updating of Inland Type Foundry’s Litho Antique, later revised yet again as Stymie Bold.
Stymie series , cast up to 288 point, Stymie is believed to be the largest type ever to be cast in regular molds. The “W” alone weighed two pounds!
Stymie Bold + Light + Medium + Light Italic + Medium Italic (1931)
Stymie Bold Italic
Thermotype (1931), with three widths on the same basic design they prefigured the failed Univers. by some twenty years.
American Text (1932)
Raleigh Gothic (Condensed) (1932)
Agency Gothic (1933)
Agency Gothic Open (1934)
Tower (1934), similar to Stymie Medium Condensed.
Eagle Bold (1934), a variant of Novel Gothic, designed for the NRA, used on their Blue Eagle posters.
Poster Gothic (1934), essentially larger sizes (24 pt. +) of Bank Gothic Condensed Medium.
Agency Gothic Open (1934)
Benton (1934), reïntroduced in 1953 as Whitehall.
American Backslant (1934)
Othello (1934), a revision of an 1884 face issued by the Central Type Foundry of Saint Louis (merged with ATF in 1892), though just as probably a big F-U to Bauer type foundry for Futura Display.
Shadow (1934)
Headline Gothic (1935)
Phenix (1935)
Headline Gothic (1936), not to be confused with the Ludlow font of the same name.
Empire (1937), no lower-case.
