CV

EDUCATION

1988 B.A. in English Literature, Goshen College, Goshen, In.

PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE

1996 — Present Owner, Peachey Conservation LLC, NYC. Provides conservation treatment services for libraries, museums, individuals, dealers and collectors. Invents, manufactures and sells specialized tools and machines for book conservation, including The Peachey Board Slotting Machine, which is used in conservation labs worldwide. Consults, publishes, teaches and lectures on bookbinding, book history, and book conservation nationally and internationally. Established Peachey Conservation, LLC in 2019.

1992 — 1996 Columbia University Libraries, NYC. Special Collections Technician. Performed single-item book treatments, environmental and condition surveys, written and photographic documentation, under the direction of the Head of Conservation. Materials ranged from 13th century manuscript fragments to modern first editions. Maintained statistics, evaluated and ordered supplies. Prepared materials for exhibition and travel. Matted and framed artwork.

1990 — 1992 Columbia University Libraries, NYC. General Collections Technician, NEH Grant. Treated circulating collections, and medium-rare material from 1600-present, including limp and stiff-board vellum, paper-case, leather and cloth bindings.

1990 Teachers College, NYC. Part time conservation technician. Fabricated protective enclosures.

1989 — 1990 The Gotham Book Mart and Gallery, NYC. Book clerk.

1988 — 1989 Toga Bike Shop, NYC. Bicycle mechanic.

PUBLICATIONS

2023  (forthcoming) “The Binder’s Curse: John Bradford and Early Nineteenth-Century American Bookbinding” In Suave Mechanicals: Essays in the History of Bookbinding, Volume 8. (Ann Arbor: The Legacy Press, 2023)

2022 “On Tool Embodiment” in Decorating Dissidence Issue 15. https://decoratingdissidence.com/2022/07/01/on-tool-embodiment-jeff-peachey/

2021 “An Investigation of Seventeenth Century English Bookbinding Tools in Randle Holme’s  Academy of Armory” The New Bookbinder, Vol. 41 (2021): 38-48.

2021 “The Craft of Nailing” Center for Mennonite Writing Journal, Vol. 12, No. 2.  https://mennonitewriting.org/journal/12/2/

2017 “Leerdunmessen” Handboekbinden, 10, no. 3 (2017): 92-95. A Dutch translation of my blog post, “An Overview of Leather Paring Knives, Tools, and Machines”

2017 Book Review. Jamie Kamph. Tricks of the Trade: Confessions of a Bookbinder. Kristina Lundblad. Bound to be Modern: Publishers’ Cloth Bindings and the Material Culture of the Book, 1840–1914. https://www.sharpweb.org/sharpnews/2017/09/07/tricks-of-the-trade-bound-to-be-modern/

2016 (coauthor Ervin Beck) “Ausbund 1564: The History and Conservation of an Anabaptist Icon.” Pennsylvania Mennonite Heritage (October 2016): 128-135. Used with permission, © 2016 Lancaster Mennonite Historical Society.

2013 “Beating, Rolling and Pressing: The Compression of Signatures in Bookbinding Prior to Sewing” In Suave Mechanicals: Essays in the History of Bookbinding, Volume 1. (Ann Arbor: The Legacy Press, 2013): 316-381.

2012 “Special Considerations for Private Book Conservation Laboratories.” In The Planning and Construction of Book and Paper Conservation Laboratories. (Chicago: Association for Library Collections & Technical Services a Division of the American Library Association, 2012): 157-175.

2011 Book review. “From the Hand to the Machine by Cathleen Baker.” The Bonefolder, 7, no. 1 (2011): 77-79. Reprinted in Bull & Branch, 31, no. 2 (2011): 77-79. http://www.philobiblon.com/bonefolder/vol7contents.htm

2011 (coauthor Alexis Hagadorn) “The Use of Parchment to Reinforce Split Wooden Bookboards, With Preliminary Observations Into The Effects of RH Cycling on These Repairs.” Journal of the Institute of Conservation, 33, Issue 1 (March 2010): 41-63.

2010 “Book Review: The Thread that Binds by Pamela Leutz” The Bonefolder, 6, no. 2 (Spring 2010): 59-60. http://www.philobiblon.com/bonefolder/vol6no2contents.htm

2010 “Outside of the Text: My Work in Book Conservation.” Center for Mennonite Writing Journal, 2, no. 2 (2010). http://www.mennonitewriting.org/journal/2/2/outside-text-my-work-book-conservation

2009 “Contextualizing ‘The Joiner and Cabinet Maker’” in The Joiner and Cabinet Maker. (Fort Mitchell, KY: Lost Arts Press, 2009): 356-366.

2008 — Present Book conservation, bookbinding, craft, and tool blog. Over 500 posts.

2008 “Review of Panel Discussion” Guild of Book Workers Newsletter, no. 177 (2008): 10.

2006 “New Possibilities for Board Slotting” The Bonefolder, 2 no. 2 (2006): 28-32. http://www.philobiblon.com/bonefolder/vol2no2contents.htm

2004 “Conservation and Tools: An Inquiry into Nature and Meaning” The Bonefolder, 1, no. 1. (2004): 19-21. http://www.philobiblon.com/bonefolder/vol1no1contents.htm

2004 “A Few More Thoughts on Spokeshave Modification ” Guild of Book Workers Newsletter, no. 155 (2004): 13.

2004 “Conservation of the JAIC” Recent Setbacks in Conservation Online.

2001 “Golden Artist Colors” Guild of Book Workers NYC Newsletter, no. 21 (2001): 3.

1998 “W.O. Hickok Mfg. Co.”Guild of Book Workers Newsletter, no. 121 (1998): 5.

1997 “Iris Nevins Marbling Workshop” Guild of Book Workers NYC Newsletter, no. 10 (1997): 2.

1996 “Review of Beyond the Deckle Edge” Koob Stra, XVI, no. 15 (Fall 1996): 3.

1995 “Hand Papermaking in Northern Vietnam” Hand Papermaking, 10, no. 1 (1995): 13-17.

1994 “An Undocumented Sewing Structure” Paper Conservation News, no. 69.

ABOUT JEFF PEACHEY

2022 “Rare Bible Conserved” Bluffton University News. https://www.bluffton.edu/news/-2021-22/031822bible-conservation.aspx Another story about this treatment in Sandusky Ohio’s The Courier. https://thecourier.com/news/377162/rare-bible-conserved-returned-to-bluffton-university-archives/

2019 “NY Book Conservator Saves Books For The Future” NTD TV (YouTube).

2019 “An Interview: Jeff Peachey” Brea Black, Guild of Book Workers Newsletter No. 245 (August 2019): 16-18.

2017 “Jeff Peachey ’88 Restores Rare Ausbund for Mennonite Historical Library” The Goshen College News 3 April 2017. The story was picked up by the Goshen News 4 April 2017, The Elkhart Truth 8 April 2017 and Mennonite World Review (19).

2017 “1564 Ausbund, Newly Conserved, On View at Spring MAH Meeting” MAH News and Notes, Michiana Anabaptist Historians, 26, no. 1, (Spring 2017): 2.

2016 “Jeff Peachey Het Belang Van Goed Gereedschap” Handboekbinden, 9, no. 4 (2016): 112-117. Translation, “Jeff Peachey on the Importance of Good Tools”

2016   “In the Midst of Joyous Toolmaking with Jeff Peachey” Guild of Book Workers Rocky Mountain Chapter, Thursday, June 20, 2016. Reprinted in the Guild of Book Workers Newsletter, no. 227 (August 2016): 16.

2016 Brock, David. “A Review of Suave Mechanicals:Essays in the History of Bookbinding” The Book Club of California Quarterly News-Letter, LXXXI, no. 1 (Winter 2016): 18-21.

2016 “A Medical Pop-up Book from the 17th Century” http://newsroom.cumc.columbia.edu/blog/2016/01/11/popup/

2015 “Expert Bookbinder Receives Bibliography and Book History Award”  http://ischool.utoronto.ca/content/expert-bookbinder-receives-bibliography-and-book-history-award

2015 Smith, Daniel. “Having an Edge: A One Day Workshop with Jeff Peachey.” Guild of Book Workers Newsletter no. 219 (April 2015): 12-15.

2014 Preservation Conservations: Selections for Interviews with Book Conservators, ed. Thomasina Taylor (Tuscaloosa, AL: Ilene Books, 2014)

2011 Kremser, Valeria. “The Page Illuminates: Book Highlights from the Internet” DVC Pressing Matter: The Delaware Valley Chapter of GBW, (January 2011): 2.

2011 “Interview with Jeff Peachey” Susan Mills, Bookbinding Now, podcast.

2010 Takacs, Chris. “Jeffrey Peachey: Late Eighteenth Century French Binding Structures”, Guild of Book Workers Newsletter no. 193 (December 2010): 15.

2010 “GBW Standards of Excellence Presentations” Z Smith Reynolds Library Blog.

2010 Green, Arthur and Maria Kalligerou. “Workshop review. Making and Sharpening Knives: A Rational Approach.” ICON News (November 2010): 26-27.

2010 “Jeff Peachey’s Sharpening Workshop held at Oxford Conservation Consortium” The ICON Book & Paper Group Gathering.

2009 Campbell, Brenna. “Workshop Review Late 18th Century French Bookbinding Workshop.” The Guild of Book Workers Newsletter, no. 186 (October 2009): 16-17.

2007 “Utraquist Gradual Conservation” Friends of the St. Marks Library, Winter 2007. Review, University of Oregon Libraries, LSA News, LSA no. 79 Feb 2007).

2007 Laubacher, Kevin. “Knife making with Jeff Peachey.” Guild of Book Workers Newsletter, no. 171 (April 2007): 5-6.

2007 Barclay, Algeria. “Jeff Peachey: On the Fine Art of Knife Sharpening.” Guild of Book Workers North East Chapter Newsletter, 26, no.3 (2007): 3-5.

2004 “fyi” Vitals, September, no. 1, 2004.

2003 “Who Can Rebind My Rare Book?” New York Magazine, Sean Kennedy, Nov. 3, 2003.

PRESENTATIONS/ LECTURES

2022 (upcoming) “The Craft of Paring Leather” American Bookbinder’s Museum. Zoom, November 12, 2022.

2021 “An Investigation of Seventeenth Century English Bookbinding Tools in Randle Holme’s  Academy of Armory” Zoom presentation at the Guild of Book Workers Standards of Excellence Online Conference. PDF of the presentation here: https://guildofbookworkers.org/sites/guildofbookworkers.org/files/standards/17th-c.-bookbinding-tools-final.pdf

2021 “Tools With a Past”  Hand Bookbinders of California. Zoom lecture. 

2021 Cary Fellowship Report. Invited participant. Zoom panel.

2020 “Historic Book Structures Lectures” Series of seven lectures for Book Conservation Graduate Students. Zoom.

2019 “The Conservation of Dante’s 1477 La Commedia” Harvard University, Sponsored by the N.E. Chapter of the Guild of Book Workers

2018 “The Conservation of Dante’s 1477 La Commedia” Hesburgh Libraries, University of Notre Dame (South Bend) and Woodruff Library, Emory University (Atlanta)

2015 “Making a Delrin Folder Demonstration and Roundtable Tool Discussion” Canadian Bookbinders and Book Artists Guild (Toronto, Canada)

2015 “Pulled to Pieces: Life as an Independent Book Conservator” Faculty of Information (ischool) University of Toronto (Canada)

2015 “Pulled to Pieces: Life as an Independent Book Conservator. Blogging, teaching, inventing, tool-making, treatments, connoisseurship, collecting and once, even acting.” Winterthur/ University of Delaware Program in Art Conservation, Student Choice Seminar (Wilmington, DE)

2014 Invited participant in “Time and the Book”, Yale Program in the History of the Book Symposium (New Haven)

2014 “Book Boxes: Historic, Functional, and a few Borderline Insane” Winterthur/ University of Delaware Program in Art Conservation (Wilmington, DE)

2013 “Book Boxes: Historic, Functional, and a few Borderline Insane” Columbia College (Chicago)

2013 “Reconstructing Diderot: Eighteenth Century French Bookbinding” Brodsky Series for the Advancement of Conservation, Syracuse University Libraries (NY)

2012 “Reconstructing Diderot: Eighteenth Century French Bookbinding” Rare Book School (University of Virginia)

2011 “Reconstructing Diderot: Eighteenth Century French Bookbinding” 2011-2012 Book History Colloquium at Columbia University (NYC)

2010 “Late Eighteenth Century French Binding Structures: Tools, Techniques and Materials” The Guild of Book Workers Standards of Excellence Seminar (Tucson, Arizona)

2010 “A Force Beyond Function: The Conservation, Technology and Significance of the Codex” Organized and moderated a panel discussion at the Center for Book Arts (NYC)

2009 “The Obsolete Book and the Obsolete Man” The University of Trash at The Sculpture Center, NYC and North Bennet Street School (Boston)

2008 “Board Slotting: An Overview” The British Library (London)

2007 “The Failure of the Word: The Conservation of 16th Century Bibles” Brigham Young University (Provo, UT)

2007 “Board Slotting: The Past 30 Years” NE Guild of Book Workers, North Bennet Street School (Boston)

1997 “The French Connection in Vietnamese Bookbinding” University of Iowa Conservation Department (Iowa City)

1996 “Sacred to Profane: The Evolution of Northern Vietnamese Papermaking” Grolier Club, sponsored by the NY Chapter of GBW (NYC)

1996 “Papermaking in Northern Vietnam” Palmer School of Library and Information Science (NYC)

TEACHING EXPERIENCE

2022 “The Conservation of Leather Bookbindings” One week. The University of Cincinnati. “Early Nineteenth Century American and English Bookbinding: Machines, Materials, Structures, and Tools. One week. (Montefiascone, Italy). “Historical Book Structures Practicum” Four weeks. For LACE graduate students taught at New York University’s Conservation Center (NYC). “Making and Sharpening Knives” Two days. North Bennett Street School Bookbinding Department (Boston). “Making Delrin and Bamboo Tools” Three zoom sections for 36 Library of Congress conservators.

2021 “Making Delrin and Bamboo Tools” Two session zoom workshop. Repeated six times. “Historical Book Structures Practicum”. A four week zoom workshop for LACE graduate students. “Making and Sharpening Knives” North Bennett Street School Bookbinding Department (Boston).

2020  “The Conservation of Leather Bookbindings” taught through the American Institute for Conservation (AIC), Notre Dame University (South Bend, IN) “Making Delrin and Bamboo Tools” Two session zoom workshop.

2019 “Historical Book Structures Practicum” ( Four week workshop) Visiting Instructor for the Library and Archives Conservation Education Consortium (LACE) of Buffalo State University, New York University, and the Winterthur/ University of Delaware, “Knife and Spokeshave Making” at North Bennett Street School (Boston)

2018 “Historical Book Structures Practicum” Visiting Instructor for the Library and Archives Conservation Education Consortium (LACE) of Buffalo State University, New York University, and the Winterthur/ University of Delaware. “The Conservation of Leather Bookbindings” Woodruff Library, Emory University (Atlanta), “Knife and Spokeshave Making” at North Bennett Street School (Boston)

2017 “Historic Book Structures for Conservators” at Winterthur/ University of Delaware Program in Art Conservation (Wilmington, DE), “18th Century French Binding” at the Georgia Archives (Morrow, GA), “Knife and Spokeshave Making” at North Bennett Street School (Boston), “Knife Sharpening” at The Conservation Center, Institute of Fine Arts, New York University (NYC)

2016 “18th Century French Binding and Making Knives” at Restauratoren Nederland (Friesland, Netherlands), “The History and Conservation of Cloth Case Bindings” at Georgia Archives (Morrow, GA), “Knife Sharpening” at Brigham Young University (Provo, Utah), “Knife and Spokeshave Making” at North Bennett Street School (Boston)

2015 “Knife Sharpening” at The Conservation Center, Institute of Fine Arts, New York University (NYC), and at North Bennett Street School (Boston), “Bookbinding for Book History Students” at Rare Book and Manuscript Library, Columbia University (NYC) “Historic Book Structures for Conservators, Winterthur/ University of Delaware Program in Art Conservation (Wilmington, DE)

2014 “Historic Book Structures for Conservators” LIS 500, Simmons GSLIS/ Winterthur/ North Bennet Street School (Boston), “Knife Sharpening for Conservators” Winterthur/ University of Delaware Program in Art Conservation (Wilmington, DE), “Knife Sharpening” at North Bennett Street School (Boston)

2013 “A Drop-spine Cradle Box” Columbia College (Chicago), “Understanding Boards Bindings” Mellon Library/ Archives Expert Speaker (Boston), “A Drop-spine Cradle Box” and “Making Bookbinding Knives” Focus on Book Arts Conference (Forest Grove, OR), “18th Century French Beating and Sewing” Brodsky Series for the Advancement of Conservation, Syracuse University Libraries (NY), “Knife Sharpening” at North Bennett Street School (Boston)

2012 “Knife Sharpening” Conservation Center for Art & Historic Artifacts (Philadelphia), North Bennet Street School (Boston), New York University’s Institute of Fine Arts (NYC), “Eighteenth Century French Bookbinding” Montefiascone Project (Montefiascone, Italy), and University of Cincinnati (Ohio)

2011 “Sharpening for Conservators” at The Historical Society of Pennsylvania (Philadelphia), “Introduction to Board Slotting” at University of Miami (Florida), Watson Library of the Metropolitan Museum of Art (NYC), and The Morgan Library & Museum (NYC), “Making and Sharpening Knives” at North Bennet Street School (Boston)

2010 “Introduction to Board Slotting” at The National Library of Wales (Wales, UK) Emory University (Atlanta) and New York Public Library (NYC), “Making and Sharpening Knives: A Rational Approach” at Oxford Conservation Consortium (Oxford, UK), University of Texas iSchool (Austin, Texas), Austin Book Workers (Austin) and North Bennet Street School (Boston), “Late 18th French Book Structures” at Paper and Book Intensive (Maine), “Historical Cloth Case Bookbinding” at Columbia College (Chicago)

2009 “Late 18th C. French Bookbinding Structures” at The Montefiascone Project (Montefiascone, Italy) and NY Chapter of the Guild of Book Workers (NYC), “Advanced Board Slotting Techniques” at Library of Congress (Washington, DC) and Fitzwilliam Museum (Cambridge, UK) “Making and Sharpening Knives for Bookbinders” at North Bennet Street School (Boston)

2008 “An Introduction to Board Slotting” at The British Library (London), “18th Century French Bookbinding” at North Bennet Street School (Boston) and San Francisco Center for the Book (San Francisco)

2007 “Making Knives for Bookbinders” at N.W. Chapter of the Guild of Book Workers (Portland, OR), N.E Chapter of the Guild of Book Workers (Boston), and Library of Congress (Washington, DC), “An Introduction to Board Slotting” at New York University (NYC), Columbia University (NYC), Oxford Conservation Consortium (Oxford, UK), the Bodleian Library (Oxford, UK) and Library of Congress (Washington, DC), “18th Century French Bookbinding” at Scrub Oak Bindery (Salt Lake City)

2006 “Making and Sharpening Knives: A Rigorous Approach” at Paper and Book Intensive (La Porte, IN), “An Introduction to Board Slotting” at Canadian Library and National Archives (Ottawa, CA), National Institute of Medicine (MD), and Indiana University (Bloomington, IN)

2003 “Making and Sharpening Knives: A Rigorous Approach” at The Huntington Library (Pasadena, CA), The Garage School Annex (Easthampton, MA) and Guild of Book Workers Midwest Chapter Annual Meeting (Bloomington, IN)

1999 “Non-adhesive Book Structures” at Long Island University (NYC), “Accordion Binding” at The New School (NYC)

1998 “Double Fan Adhesive Binding” at Parsons (NYC), “Supported Sewing Structures” at Center for Book Arts (NYC), “Introduction to Collections Conservation” at School of Visual Arts Library (NYC)

1997 — 2001 “Narrative Forms: The Art of the Photographic Book”, Photo 313, at Pratt Institute (NYC)

1997 “Byzantine Bookbinding” at The Metropolitan Museum of Art (NYC)

1996 — 2000 “Single Leaf Attachment, Bookbinding I, II, III” (various semesters) at The Center for Book Arts (NYC)

AWARDS/ FELLOWSHIPS

2018 Included in the FAIC Oral History Project. http://www.conservation-wiki.com/wiki/FAIC_Oral_History_Project_Interviewee_List

2016-2017 Cathleen A. Baker Fellowship in Paper Conservation, University of Michigan (MI)

2016 Cary Collection Short-Term Research Fellowship, Rochester Institute of Technology (NY)

2015 Rockefeller Foundation Bellagio Center (Bellagio, Italy)

2014 — 2015 Patricia Fleming Visiting Fellowship in Bibliography and Book History, University of Toronto (Canada)

2014 Short Term Research Fellowship at The Winterthur Museum, Garden and Library (Wilmington, DE)

2013 Reese Fellowship in American Bibliography, Library Company of Philadelphia (PA)

2011 Sherman Fairchild Conservation Research Fellowship, Morgan Library & Museum (NYC)

2000 Scholarship for Guild of Book Workers Standards of Excellence Conference (UT)

1997 Empire State Craft Alliance (NY)

1997 Mellon Foundation Advanced Conservation Workshop, University of Iowa (IA)

MAJOR GRANT PROJECTS

2014 — 2022 Consulting Rare Book Conservator, various projects. Columbia University, NYC.

2006 — 2007 Union Theological Seminary, NYC. Treatment of late 15th and early 16th century wooden board bindings

2000 — 2001 The New York Academy of Medicine, NYC. Treatment of 19th century colored Medical Atlases with moveable flaps

1999 — 2000 Union Theological Seminary, NYC. Condition survey, supervised and trained staff, performed treatments and disaster recovery

1996 — 1997 American Museum of Natural History, NYC. Rare Book Survey and Stabilization Project

SERVICE

2022-Present  Advisory Board Member for The American Bookbinders Museum.

2010 Member of Nominating Committee, The Guild of Book Workers (GBW)

2007 — 2008 Chair, Conservators in Private Practice (CIPP), a Specialty Group of The American Institute for Conservation of Historic and Artistic Works (AIC)

2006 — 2007 Vice-Chair, CIPP

2006 — 2007 Member of CIPP Certification Task Force

PROFESSIONAL ASSOCIATIONS

American Institute for Conservation (AIC), Professional Associate (PA) since 1999

Early American Industries Association (EAIA)

Guild of Book Workers (GBW)

Institute of Conservation (ICON)

Midwest Tool Collectors Association (MTCA)