Crandall Printing Museum

Thursday night I went to the Crandall Printing Museum and The Joseph Smith Papers and doctrine of our church came into perspective even more. From the minute I entered the museum my senses came alive—different grains of wood, ink ingredients, the smell of paper, aroma of a working shop, freshly inked paper being pulled from the press, oozing globs of thick black ink, a grunt from the puller, clink of type being placed back in the case, squints from typesetters, documents strung on string from the ceiling, slice of paper cutting, hum of a modern typesetter, the jokes of the museum hosts.

There is no doubt in my mind that Johannes Guttenberg was inspired by God. To discover ink or the press or the process of making type individually would be an accomplishment in itself, but to pioneer all three and have a well-known printing business is absolutely incredible! The printing process reaffirms the sacredness of the Bible and Book of Mormon and helped me see how much God and religion governed the lives of people back then. Isn’t it interesting that once things become “easier” and “more casual” with modern technology and society we begin to pull away from God? So sad. No wonder humility is something we should always strive for.

When stories were being told by the curators of when their generation was paid to reset the type in the appropriate case, it hit me how recent the press was actually used. So many advances in every aspect of life have occurred since 1900, even in the last fifty years! Even our current Prophet, Thomas S. Monson, first swept the floor of a printer when he was a boy.

The way for the gospel to be restored on the Earth has been prepared by God. It strengthens my testimony to know that from the original press created by Guttenberg in the 15th century until the printing of the Book of Mormon, hardly anything changed. Once the gospel was restored, discovery and intelligence took off! For over four hundred years humanity lives within the bounds of basic survival necessities and since the restoration of the gospel advancements have increased tenfold!

I like attending extra things like this for class because in reality, life goes beyond the textbook and just words on a page. To fully understand something you must learn more about the process, people, and situation of the time it came forth. I really liked going to the Crandall Printing Museum—I only wish it had been a little faster-paced. I feel like the same information could have been given in about half the time; however, maybe slow-pace taught me a little more patience, the key characteristic of the printer’s trade.