Throw up a hand if you watched “Jeopardy,” the popular game show on TV. “I’ll take Women Influencers in Printing for $1,000, Ken.” This 18th century woman worked behind the scenes casting hot metal type and assisting her future husband with printing Bibles. There’s also a typeface named in her honor.
“Who was Sarah Eaves.” Readers may be familiar with John Baskerville, the man who became Mrs. Eaves’s husband. A typeface is named for the printer, who famously reproduced Bibles (including the 1763 edition masterpiece) among other publications. Far less well known, however, is his wife, Eaves, who worked behind the scenes in a variety of ways, including casting hot metal type—the individual letters used on Baskerville’s press.
As Carol Cannata noted in her “Coffee with Carol” column about Women’s History Month, women working in printing date back to Europe in the 1480s. During the 19th Century, too, they played a prominent role. For example:
- In the early 1800s, Lydia Bailey took over her husband’s printing business in Philadelphia, so it became a family business much like many office technology dealerships.
- In San Francisco, Mrs. A.M. Schultz and her assistant, Hermione Day, began publishing a new woman’s literary magazine, The Hesperian, in 1858. The publication took on labor issues, including employment inequality, lack of opportunity, and lower wages for women. Within two years, Mrs. Day took over the business and expanded beyond magazine publishing to job, book, and “fancy” printing.
How women influencers paved my life, career paths
Like most of you, influence-wielding mentors have guided my career journey. We are no strangers to strong, integrous people: men and women. By strong, I’m not referring to my petite yet feisty Swedish aunt, who lived to be (almost) 99. Personally, I’ve been blessed by the presence of empowered women throughout my life.
Back in the day, as a decent concert and jazz trumpet player, the one person I could never out-perform was a girl musician from another high school’s band. I had mad respect for her because she was a really good horn player. That experience was only the beginning. Four more women:
- My sister, Gail, is an entrepreneurial business owner who was elected mayor of a northwest Illinois town (population: 35,000).
- A female friend was a decorated police officer—and ascended to become chief of police for a suburban municipality near Chicago.
- A college classmate worked her corporate way up at “Big Blue” (IBM) in New York City.
- A close friend’s grandmother was a tough lady who served as superintendent of a Honeywell manufacturing plant in the 1970s, when women in charge of workers on a factory floor definitely were in the minority.
I’ve had good and bad superiors who are men, and I did not mesh well with one micro-focused supervisor who is a woman, but we learn how not to manage from those experiences! Two female bosses stand out for teaching me so many valuable work lessons. a) Despite her Czech temper, which could run hot, Kathleen Ineman’s editorial integrity is unmatched. And, b) Diane Dunne’s passion and talent commanded the respect of top executives in the male-dominated printing industry.
Professionally, from writing interns to PR account executives, I’ve collaborated with numerous female colleagues. Vera Panchak, retired; Lisa Cross, now a principal analyst with NAPCO Research; and Kelley Holmes, former publisher of Printing News, are three who come to mind. This trio and nearly all the other women with whom I worked excelled because they were/are adept in their respective field. Kudos to them and to those featured as our latest influencers within the dealer/partner channel for 2025, which marks The Cannata Report’s 12th annual celebration of women’s increasing prominence in our industry!
