OSTRZESZÓW. map of Ostrzeszow County; lith. and printed. P. Baron, ca. 1900; unsigned; lettered b/w, bdb. condition, soiling, ink marks, tears, annotations (printer's notes and inventory number in blue crayon), on verso a proof print of the company vignette; sheet size 432x354 mm; KREIS SCHILDBERG.
Already in the first half of the nineteenth century in Legnica there was a printing and publishing house of the Hilscher family. They became ne famous due to Adolf Hilscher, who added photography to lithographic production. In the last quarter of the 19th century the publishing house gained its profile. In addition to job printing, the company also took up printing labels for goods, postcards and, above all, maps, mainly of counties located in Silesia and Greater Poland. These were usually issued in conjunction with local bookstores, such as the firm of Ebbecke and his successor, Eulitz, of Leszno, which managed to make a strong entry into the market for maps of the counties of Greater Poland. Hilscher's company was located in Legnica at Najświętszej Marii Panny Street (then Frauenstrasse), later at). Around 1890, the Hilschers' partner became Paul Baron, who eventually became the sole owner around 1910. The headquarters were then moved to Henry Jordan Street (Haagstrasse), and the name was changed to Geographisches Institut Paul Baron. The company was still operating in 1939.
The archive contains many prints printed at this printing house, with maps being particularly noteworthy. For the most part, these are the first, trial, prints, so there are annotations on them in blue crayon about their further fate, such as the referral of the entire print run. Some show ink marks in the margins. Some of the maps are printed double-sided, and sometimes the legend is missing. On the verso there are sample prints that do not have cartographic character. It is also worth noting that the owners put their own pagination on the maps intended for the archive.
