Zaner-Bloser Penmanship Exhibit Lecture Oct. 24

The Weinberg Memorial Library at The University of Scranton will host an exhibit on the career of Charles Paxton Zaner, penman extraordinaire and founder of the Zaner-Bloser Penmanship Co. The exhibit, titled “The World’s Best Penman: The Artistic and Business Career of 1864-1918,” will be on display in the fifth floor of the Heritage Room through to Friday, Dec. 14, during normal library hours.

The library will also host a reception and lecture by Special Collections Librarian Michael Knies on Zaner’s career and the profession of penmanship during his lifetime on Wednesday, Oct. 24, at 6 p.m. in the Heritage Room. The reception is free and open to the public.

The Weinberg Memorial Library has been the home of the Zaner-Bloser Collection since 2010, and the collection has been used in a number of exhibits. Zaner-Bloser, which is still in business, has been a leading publisher of penmanship instruction materials since 1888. However, 2018 marks the 100th anniversary of C. P.  Zaner's tragic death in an automobile collision with a train at the age of 54.

The exhibit will focus on Zaner's career and feature calligraphic alphabets, flourished birds, other artistic work and penmanship exercises. Zaner was more than a penman. He was a businessman, a publisher, an essayist and author of penmanship manuals. The exhibit will also display manuscript copies of his essays, copies of manuals he authored, accompanied at times by the original penwork and printing blocks, and material from the company he created.

For further information, call the University’s special collections librarian at 570-941-6341.