Joseph Fry (type-founder)

He was the first member of his family to settle in Bristol, where he acquired a considerable medical practice, and 'was led to take a part in many new scientific undertakings'.

He helped Richard Champion in his Bristol works, and began to make chocolate having purchased Walter Churchman's patent right.

[2] The chocolate and cocoa manufactory thus started has been carried on by the family, J. S. Fry & Sons, down to the early twentieth century.

[2] The success of John Baskerville caused Fry to turn his attention in 1764 to type-founding, and he entered into a partnership with William Pine, the first printer of the newspaper Bristol Gazette, who had a large business in Wine Street.

The manager of Messrs. Joseph Fry & Wm Pine was Isaac Moore, formerly a whitesmith at Birmingham,[4] after whose speedy admission to partnership the business (Bristol Letter Foundry of 1764–1773) moved and went to London.

Fry took two of his sons, Edmund (d. 1835) and Henry, into partnership in 1782, and in the same year bought the James Foundry on the death of Rowe Mores, including all its relics of the old English Letter Founders.

The business was removed to Worship Street, from where in 1785 was issued "A Specimen of Printing Types made by Joseph Fry & Sons, Letter-founders and Marking Instrument Makers by the King's Royal Letters Patent".

In the advertisement the proprietors claim that the types, which are called new, "will mix with, and be totally unknown from, the most approved founts made by the late ingenious artist, William Caslon".