Members and friends of the Penrith Museum of Printing – which now calls itself the Australian Museum of Printing at Penrith – joined former politician Bob Carr on Tuesday to celebrate the museum’s 25^th anniversary... and its change of name.

Carr held offices including NSW premier and federal foreign minister, but started his career as a copyboy and then journalist on The Bulletin, and was later involved in Sydney printing company Merritt Madden, which his late wife Helena co-owned with Max Turner.

Guest of honour at the celebration, he emphasised the importance of preserving all aspects of Australian history, such as the AMOP. He now also heads the Australian Heritage Council.

With Lord Mayor of Penrith Todd Carney, and museum co-founder Graham Elphick also present, the proceedings were introduced by recruiter and sponsor James Cryer. Museum president Bob Lockley (above) stressed that all equipment was in working order, and included the finest collection of letterpress and Linotype equipment in the southern hemisphere. It is now also home to the Walkley Photo Awards collection (1945-95).

Also on display were a facsimile copy of the Gutenberg 42 line Bible, and first copies of the Sydney Morning Herald and The Australian.

The museum also houses the last letterpress machine used for newspaper printing in Australia. Restored and working again, the 1938 Heidelberg Zylinder came from the Dorrigo Gazette, having been stored during World War II and brought to Australia in the early 1950s.

-with thanks to Andy McCourt

Pictured are (top) Bob Carr cuts the cake; (above) Bob Lockley; some of the Walkley Photo collection; and members with the museum’s Columbian press, galleys and other equipment. Look out for the picture behind Lockley of Albert Einstein trying to operate a Linotype – in which, we’re told, he was only “relatively” successful; and the poster for the film ‘Ladies in Black’, for which typesetting scenes including actor Shane Jacobson were filmed at the museum).