Inventory
Scope and Contents:
The Archives of The Seal Press contain 92 linear feet of materials spanning from 1976 to 2002. The materials document the growth of the Seal Press from a small, regional press to a nationally recognized publishing house, until its sale to Avalon Publish Group in 2001. The records are organized into twelve series: Publicity and Promotional Materials; Editorial Files; Contracts, Legal Documents, and Business Plans; Manuscripts; Memorabilia; Foreign Press Correspondence; Production; Ephemera and Scrapbooks; Posters and Mechanicals; Slush; Financial Records; Women in Translation. Series XII, Women in Translation (a press dedicated to publishing translations of international feminist literature in English), is further organized into 5 subseries: Organization, Editorial Files, Production, Publicity, and Financial Records. The Archive includes a complete library of Seal Press publications as well as those publications licensed by Seal Press to mass-market and foreign publishers and publishers of anthologies.
Series 1
Publicity and Promotional Materials, ca. 1980s-2001 Scope: (11 boxes, 8.4 l.f.)
The publicity and promotional materials include book reviews and media coverage; press releases and promotional materials; book tour plans; author biographies and information; sales conference and grant records; book jackets; galley proofs; photographs and negatives; audio and audiovisual materials in VHS, cassette, and DVD formats.
Series 2
Editorial Files, ca. 1980-2001 [Some materials restricted] Scope: (18 boxes, 16.8 l.f.)
The editorial files contain clean and copyedited manuscripts; sample chapters; job searches and applications; correspondence with staff, authors, and other presses; manuscript queries and rejections; a small amount of permissions correspondence and translations grant records; readers’ reports and reviews. Restricted materials are denoted in the inventory.
Series 3
Contracts, Legal Documents, and Business Plans, ca. 1978-2001 Scope: (2 boxes, 2 l.f.)
This series includes photocopies of publishing contracts from 1981-2001 and a small amount of original contracts; correspondence; newspaper and magazine clippings; copyright documents; out-of-print notifications; correspondence with Avalon Publishing Group; Seal Press business licenses; documentation of a lawsuit filed against The Seal Press by Mattel Inc., regarding the publication of Adios, Barbie!; Seal Press by-laws, business plans, and fundraising documents.
Series 4
Manuscripts, ca. 1980s-2001 Scope: (37 boxes, 36.2 l.f.)
Series IV contains outlines, drafts, front and back matter, galleys, bluelines, editorial corrections by authors and copyeditors, clean master copies of manuscripts, final manuscripts, editorial correspondence, production notes, calls for submissions, book background research, stylesheets, and reader comments.
Series 5
Memorabilia, 1976-ca. 1990s Scope: (2 boxes, 1.5 l.f.)
The memorabilia includes early editorial files; logo ideas for The Seal Press; correspondence; T-shirts; 24 relief printing blocks from early Seal Press publishing; Barbara Wilson’s travel notebooks, datebooks, and rolodex; office memo notebooks.
Series 6
Foreign Press Correspondence, 1980s-90s Scope: (3 boxes, 3 l.f.)
Series VI includes correspondence with foreign presses regarding foreign editions, rights, and royalties; international book fair records; feminist and lesbian publishing resources; foreign and U.S. feminist press catalogs, queries and foreign editions of Seal Press titles.
Series 7
Production, ca. 1970s-ca. 1990s Scope: (5 boxes, 4.2 l.f.)
The production files comprise the records, correspondence, and some financial information regarding book design, cover art, photography, typesetting, text, and font specifications. Materials include bluelines, billing invoices from printers, front and back matter, extra loose type, galleys, general production notes, slides and negatives, queries and résumés from artists and graphic designers.
Series 8
Ephemera and scrapbooks, 1976-87 Scope: (1 box, 0.4 l.f.)
Includes four scrapbooks chronicling The Seal Press from 1976-86, printed matter, photocopied media coverage of Seal titles and the press itself, book reviews, correspondence with authors, photographs, and Polaroid’s of Seal Press offices and staff.
Series 9
Posters and mechanicals, ca. 1980s-ca.1990s Scope: (4 boxes, 6.7 l.f.)
This series contains original letterpress book pages; bluelines; paste-ups; baseline negative sheets; font specifications and extra type; photographs and negatives; transparencies; cover and other art; foamboard and paper posters of publishing events and Seal Press titles.
Series 11
Financial Records, 1976-2002 [Some materials restricted] Scope: (4 boxes, 4 l.f.)
This series documents The Seal Press’s financial history. Included are account statements, budget forecasts, financial statements, donations to other organizations, tax records, marketing meeting materials, insurance documents, sales reports, royalties statements, and loan records. The financial records originally included 26 records boxes of materials, but invoices and other redundant documents were removed from the collection. Receipts and invoices from 1976 to 1983 were retained to better document The Seal Press’s inception. Restricted materials are denoted in the inventory.
Series 12
Women in Translation, 1984-2001, [Some materials restricted] Scope: (4 boxes, 3.2 l.f.)
Women in Translation began as an imprint of The Seal Press, but was incorporated as a separate non-profit entity in 1989. The materials in this series are organized into five subseries: Organization, Editorial Files, Production, Publicity, and Financial Records. Subseries 1, Organization, contains the original planning documents for Women in Translation, employee information, by-laws, and resolutions. Subseries 2, Editorial Files, includes correspondence with authors and translators, contracts, manuscript drafts, and galleys. Subseries 3, Production, comprises art and design materials, correspondence, galleys, and invoices for typesetting. Subseries 4, Publicity, includes promotional materials and reviews of books. Subseries 5, Financial Records, contains funding and fundraising documents, correspondence regarding financial matters, royalties statements, financial planning materials, board meeting information, and projected incomes. Restricted materials are denoted in the inventory.
Initial processing and inventories compiled by Elizabeth Ehrenhalt, Wallis Adams, and Elinor Anderson. Collection reviewed and edited by Haley Antell in 2016. Last Updated August 2026.