Auerhahn Press

A small fine printing press specializing in Bay Area poetry.

From the description of Auerhahn Press records, 1959-1967. (University of California, Berkeley). WorldCat record id: 26863520

Brief Company History

Of the beginnings of the Auerhahn Press in San Francisco, famed for its printing of the works of the new young poets, David L. Haselwood in his Deposition says, "During the summer of 1958 I drifted around San Francisco talking endlessly with painters such as Robert LaVigne and Jesse Sharpe and poets Lamantia, McClure, Wieners, and reading all the live poetry and prose I could get my hands on. It was at this time that it occurred to me that the press could mean a great many things ... "From this intense exposure to the active literary scene in the Bay Area grew the desire to see these writers published without the great delays imposed by larger printing establishments.

A short while later in 1959 appeared the first publication of the Auerhahn Press, John Wieners' The Hotel Wentley Poems. After this initial experience, in which the actual printing was done by a commercial printer, Haselwood was convinced that he should not only design all future books himself, but also print them. He stated his concept of printing in this manner "The first and final consideration in printing poetry is the poetry itself. If the poems are great they create their own space, the publisher is just a midwife during the final operation . . . " With this ideal in mind, Haselwood tackled the publication of Philip Lamantia's Ekstasis, and went on to the printing of Michael McClure's Hymns to St. Geryon. Though its limited financial resources were drained by this last publication, the press, augmented by Andrew Hoyem, continued its publication of controversial and avant-garde works, such as Lamantia's pamphlet Narcotica, until its dissolution in January 1965, and acquired a reputation for quality of printing and design.

From the guide to the Auerhahn Press Records, 1959-1967, (The Bancroft Library)