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Richard March Hoe (September 12, 1812-June 7, 1886) was an
American inventor who
designed an improved printing press.
His father owned a steam-powered manufactory of printing presses, which Richard joined at fifteen. On his father's death, he became head of the
Robert Hoe & Company corporation.
In 1843, Richard invented the rotary printing press, a design much faster than the old flat-bed printing
press. Because many type cylinders could be placed around the main cylinder, which could move much faster since it only
travelled in one direction, some versions of the press were able to create up to 20,000 impressions per hour. The design was patented in 1846 (U.S. Patent #5199), and first commercially installed in
1847. In its early days, it was also called the "Hoe web perfecting press," the "Hoe
lightning press," and the "Hoes's Cylindrical-Bed Press."
Richard M. Hoe was a Freemason.
His nephew, Robert Hoe (1839-1909), wrote a
notalbe Short History of the Printing Press in 1902 and made further improvements
in printing.
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