15 September 2004
Gaspereau Press Grand Opening

On Thursday September 9, 2004, Gaspereau Press hosted the grand opening of its new location at 47 Church Avenue in Kentville, Nova Scotia. As one of the only publishers in Canada that prints and binds its books in-house, the company has gradually outgrown various rental spaces and has been seeking a more permanent location for its operations. Formerly a town public works site, the building has undergone extensive renovations that began in the early spring of this year. The facility now houses office space, a printing area, and rooms for typecasting, bindery and finishing work.

Approximately 70 people joined the staff and owners to celebrate the building’s completion and the company’s work. Opening remarks were delivered by co-owner Andrew Steeves, who summed up his feelings on the company’s development over the last seven years. "I’ve become fond of saying that when Gary and I founded the company in 1997, we knew just little enough about printing and publishing to think it was a good idea. Today, as we settle into our new home, I think I’m prepared to concede that things seem to be working out."

Congratulations were offered by Kings North MLA Mark Parent, Town of Kentville representative Bill Boyd, friend of the press Dr. James Perkin, and author Peter Sanger. Perkin remarked on the company’s local personality and national reputation; "bold enough to publish books and understanding enough to print little histories, memoirs and reports .... Long may it survive as such!"

Following these addresses and a few words of his own on the positive experience of working as an author with Gaspereau Press, Nova Scotia poet and essayist Peter Sanger gave a reading of his poem, "Bookwork," written in honour of the occasion. (The poem was typeset and letterpress-printed by Andrew Steeves in a limited edition of 200 as a keepsake for the event.) Visitors then gathered outside to watch as Dunfield and Steeves upheld an old printers’ tradition, spraying the walls of the new building with beer.

Background: Gaspereau Press is a literary publisher and printer based in Kentville, Nova Scotia. The press is committed to literature and the book arts, incorporating a range of modern and antique forms of printing and binding to create books that are distinctive in manufacture and design. Its publications have won numerous literary awards, including the Governor General’s Literary Award, the Evelyn Richardson Prize, and the Alcuin Award for excellence in book design.

For more information contact Beth Crosby
47 Church Avenue, Kentville, NS, B4N 2M7
902-678-6002, info@gaspereau.com