2023/03/03 by Como, David R.
#George Thomason #Thomason Tracts
paper · doi:10.23636/jv8t-ks55
The Thomason collection is recognised as being vital for exploring the dramatic developments in print culture that accompanied the English Revolution, not least those that were made possible by the collapse of press censorship in 1641. Less widely appreciated is that it also sheds valuable light upon the attempts that were subsequently made to reimpose some kind of press oversight. This essay explores a range of unique items that Thomason preserved, which reveal his fascination with, and intimate knowledge of, developments in the print trade, not least as recorded by his annotations on specific items. What emerges is a picture of the complex political machinations that surrounded cheap print during the revolutionary decades, and deeper understanding of the kinds of engagement and activism with which stationers became involved. As such, it highlights the possibilities that exist for integrating the history of print culture into the wider political history of the age.