American Dyestuff Reporter
“In the issue of American Dyestuff Reporter for December 7, 1942, there is a very complete account of the publication and its antecedents, together with a considerable amount of incident and detail which affected the growth of the magazine.” Thus begins an article that discussed the origins during World War I. ADR was the outgrowth of a dyestuff department or “section” published by “Dry Goods Guide” – a publication which catered to the department store field during World War I. This Guide was under the editorship of A. P. Howes, the present publisher of the Reporter. The purpose of this “department” was to inform the textile consumers of the difficulties being encountered by the infant U. S. dyestuff industry during the war. (Note: Prior to outbreak of the war in Europe, the United States’ textile industry was happy to import quality dyes from the wellestablished companies in Germany, Switzerland and other European suppliers. The homeborn industry was a mere shadow of the imports in terms of size and quality. When war broke out and the Lusitania was sunk, the British blockaded shipments to and from Germany. The U. S. textile industry was in a jamb and needed to grow an industry.) The first homemade dyes were in no way equal to the quality of imported dyes that came from companies with decades of experience in dye manufacture. American chemists followed chemical routes outlined in patents only to find missing steps and extra ingredients, all left by the applicant to drag cheaters off the trail.
The first issue of the American Dyestuff Reporter was a little 16 page newspaper without a cover, 6 x 9 inches in size, published weekly. Information on dye supplies and availability flowed. A cover was added on August 12, 1918. As technical problems having to do with the application of colorants and related chemicals appeared, it became obvious that the publication should also become a technical journal. After an extensive search, Professor Louis A. Olney, head of the Department of Chemistry and Dyeing of the Lowell Textile School, took over the leadership of a monthly technical section. The size of the first supplement in August 1920 was 9 x 12 inches. Beginning January 1, 1921, the Reporter began to appear biweekly in the expanded format. Myron D. Reeser became Advertising Manager; Norman A. Johnson became Managing Editor.
Three covers of the American Dyestuff Reporter 1918 -1922
Courtesy Bob Baptista
Sidney M. Edelstein wrote a series of articles detailing the history of dyeing. The first appeared in 1947.
Textile Colorist and Converter was incorporated into ADR in January 1949.
Herb Stauderman joined the magazine as an advertising representative in 1949 and published the American Dyestuff Reporter until 1999 when he sold to AATCC. The publication rolled into the AATCC publications and emerged as AATCC Review. Herb retired to Summit, New Jersey until he and his wife, Doris, moved to Southern California. He passed away in 2009. 2
Figure: A.P. Howes (1885-1948) Original Publisher
Figure: Herbert A. Stauderman (1919-2009)
Publisher, American Dyestuff Reporter
Photo Courtesy of January/February 2010 AATCC Review
Sources:
- Anon, “A Brief Outline of the Origin and Growth of the American Dyestuff Reporter,” American Dyestuff Reporter, Dec. 2, 1946, 669-672.
- P. J. Wood, “Historical Sketch of the AATCC,” American Dyestuff Reporter, February 24, 1947, p79.
- http://www.nj.com/independentpress/index.ssf/2010/03/obituaries_herbert_allen_staud.html