Accession Number: APHRG01
Scope & Content: Reports document the activities of the company and include financial statements. Printed annual reports of the American Printing House for the Blind (APH) include the first annual report issued by the company in 1866 to present. Also included is an 1860 report compiled by general agent Dempsey Sherrod, published by order of the Mississippi Board, listing donations (paid or subscribed) to APH from 1857-1860. Sherrod titled his report "First Annual Report of the American Printing House for the Blind;" and, at the back, included both the Mississippi and Kentucky charters for the company. Company reports for 1880 and later include a list of schools and agencies for the blind participating in the federal quota program, with student enrollment figures and the amount of quota funds available to each school. Company reports prior to 1930 contain a complete list of educational aids and publications produced or distributed by APH. An illustration of the APH building appears in the 1883 report as a frontispiece. The first black-and-white photo illustration (of APH building) appears as a frontispiece in the 1918 report. Report title varies. Some of the annual reports are in bound volumes that also include additional materials. Bound volumes for 1860-1877 contain two circulars, "Circular of the American Printing House for the Blind, to the Citizens of Kentucky" (1860) and "Circular of the American Printing House for the Blind, to the Friends of the Blind in the United States " (1870), describing the founding of APH and explaining the company's interaction with Dempsey Sherrod; "Report of S. P. Ruggles to the Committee of the American Association of Instructors of the Blind" (August 1872), regarding Ruggles' development of printing equipment and type; "Printing for the Blind. Reply to a Report of the Committee of the American Social Science Association by the Trustees of the American Printing House for the Blind, Louisville, Ky., 1875"; and "Acts of Legislation affecting the American Printing House for the Blind" (1888). Bound volumes for 1930-1972 reports also include APH product catalogs, Acts of Legislation, and various publications about APH produced in various annual report years. Missing from the single printed issues: 1891-1892, 1904, 1906, 1909, 1911-1913, 1916-1917, 1919 (museum has photocopies of these in the Reference Collection; or see bound volumes).
Creator: American Printing House for the Blind
Interview Date: / /
Collection: APH Archives / RG 01: Annual Reports
Subjects: Services for the blind and visually impaired -- United States Instructional aids, tools, and supplies Instructional materials Printing industry Annual reports
Rights: Contact museum staff regarding reproduction.