Ross Frederick George (11 March 1889 – 19 February 1959) was an American sign painter,

inventor An invention is a unique or novel device, method, composition, idea, or process. An invention may be an improvement upon a machine, product, or process for increasing efficiency or lowering cost. It may also be an entirely new concept. If an ...

, and

type designer Type design is the art and process of designing typefaces. This involves drawing each letterform using a consistent style. The basic concepts and design variables are described below. A typeface differs from other modes of graphic production su ...

who resided in

Seattle, Washington Seattle ( ) is the List of municipalities in Washington, most populous city in the U.S. state of Washington (state), Washington and in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. With a population of 780,995 in 2024, it is the List of Unit ...

. He learned to letter from William Hugh Gordon. George was born in Parker, South Dakota, to Francis Pierce George and Alice Carroll. George and Gordon were asked to design pens for ''Hunt Pen Company'' in 1913. By 1915 the pens were patented, and then put into production. The pens included A-style, B-style, C-style, D-style, and E-style nibs that reportedly cut the labor time of the lettering artist in half. George then proceeded to produce a periodical ''Speedball Text Book'' which was a way for him to provide insight to those who wished to learn the art of

lettering Lettering or Lettering design is an act or result of artfully drawing letters, instead of writing them simply. Lettering is considered an art form, where each letter in a phrase or quote acts as an illustration. Each letter is created with attent ...

and sign painting. He created numerous editions until his death in 1959. His last was the 17th edition, although he had some involvement with the 18th edition. In 1929, Ross F. George received a patent for a noiseless switch. He died in 1959 in Seattle.''Washington, U.S., Select Death Index, 1907–1960''

References

*Art Chantry, "Ross F. George: typographic man of mystery", pp. 125–129 in ''Art Chantry Speaks: A Heretic's History of 20th Century Graphic Design'', Feral House, 2015 .

External links

Ross F. George mentioned in the Hunt Manufacturing Company history under the Speedball® Pen

Ross F. George mentioned in the second paragraph "In the Early twentieth century"

Ross F. George Story by Luc Devroye, McGill University, Montreal, Canada

Scroll or Search for George, Ross F. mentioning a 1932(c) Speedball copy book {{DEFAULTSORT:George, Ross F American calligraphers American graphic designers 1889 births 1959 deaths 20th-century American inventors People from Turner County, South Dakota