The Lone Mountain Press was a printing press created by a group of Lone Mountain College students, Lisa Leff, John Fereiro, Frank Papia, Frank Flynn, Ken Prager, and Jean Mendelson, along with their faculty advisor, Pat Sweeney. The press was active from May of 1976 until May of 1978, and printed a variety of broadsides, poems, short stories, and essays by Lone Mountain College students.
The History
Unoffically beginning in 1975 with the printing of student Judith Tishar’s collection of poems September Woman, a group of Lone Mountain College students, mostly in the Creative Writing department, decided to create a way for they and their fellow students to get published.
By May of 1976, the students began their press by printing two students’ poems, 150 copies of A Rare Bird Flies Past by Cynthia Trueblood and fifty copies of Scrub Oak by Michael Oppenheimer. This served as a way for students to begin their journey in the printing world, and copies of these poems were only distributed amongst themselves and poet’s friends and family.
The true and official beginning of the press comes in the next academic semester with the publishing of Iridescent I, a collection of poems by Lone Mountain College student Genevieve Dougherty. With this official beginning, the Lone Mountain Press began.
Every year, the Lone Mountain Press would ask students to submit work to be published. The final product culminated in a collection of student poems entitled Madhouse: An Anthology of Thorns (1974-1978).
September Woman – Judith Tishar
Copyrighted in 1975, September Woman is a collection of poetry by Judith Tishar, a student at Lone Mountain College in the Division of Humanities program. The cover art was done by Deann Nielsen. September Woman was the first project by the Lone Mountain Press and was completed in the spring and summer of 1975.
The poems range from political to personal and tackle queer liberation, abortion rights, and mental health. It serves as an interesting look into the daily life of a student in San Francisco during the 70s.
Madhouse: An Anthology of Thorns (1974-1978)
The poets featured in Madhouse were Cynthia Trueblood, Frank Papia, Neil Meshon, Rita LaForce, Goya, Jane Edwards, Judith Tishar, and Duane Press. Each poem was chosen by the students who ran the Lone Mountain Press and was authored by a student who attended Lone Mountain College between 1978 and 1974.
The ultimate piece published by Lone Mountain Press, each poem tackles a unique range of subject matters, speaking to the experimental nature of the Press and school at the time.
Pat Sweeney
The advisor of the entire operation, Pat Sweeney was a beloved comparative literature professor at Lone Mountain College during the 70s. Unfortunately struck and killed in a motor accident in 1986, Sweeney was an integral aspect of the Press’ success.
Sweeney was not only a professor, but a poet, printer, and clerk-typist at the mayor’s office in San Francisco. He came to be the advisor of Lone Mountain Press because of his expertise in printing from working his own press in the basement of his home.
His poems have been published, both by himself and other bodies, and have a range of topics, but seemed to have a focus on his personal life and his life with his wife, Sharon, whom he often dedicated his work to.
An Abrupt Ending
The Lone Mountain Press was experimental, deeply creative, and provided students with a forum to share their writing with the world. It seemed to be doing quite well within the college, even garnering a feature in a supplement of the San Francisco Review of Books, with a special issue focusing on contemporary printing in the Bay Area.
So what happened?
In the merging of Lone Mountain College and the University of San Francisco in 1978, it became clear that something things had to go. While the Lone Mountain Press was a treasured part of the education of many students, it was unable to survive the merger, and both Lone Mountain Press and Pat Sweeney were let go.
However, the Lone Mountain Press remains an important chapter in the history of Lone Mountain College, and offers current students at USF a look into the works and lives of those who came before them.
Featured Pieces From The Collection
Gleeson Library Special Collections & University Archives holds a collection of items printed at the Lone Mountain Press. To get a closer look at any of these items, stop by the Donohue Rare Book Room on the 3rd floor of Gleeson Library. You can also contact us to ask questions or schedule an appointment.
Incredible work! I love this highlighting of literature and creativity! Wish USF would’ve kept the Lone Mountain Press around.
Cool! Someone should re-publish one of the Superthorns.