# Roycroft > Mediated Wiki article. Canonical URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Roycroft > Markdown URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Roycroft.md > Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roycroft > Source revision: 1356472877 > License: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/) For the surname, see [Roycroft (surname)](/source/Roycroft_(surname)). This article includes a list of general references, but it lacks sufficient corresponding inline citations. Please help to improve this article by introducing more precise citations. (February 2016) (Learn how and when to remove this message) United States historic place Roycroft Campus U.S. National Register of Historic Places U.S. National Historic Landmark The Copper Shop, first building of the Roycroft Campus to be restored Location Main and South Grove St., East Aurora, New York Nearest city Buffalo Coordinates 42°46′04″N 78°37′04″W / 42.76778°N 78.61778°W / 42.76778; -78.61778 Built 1895 NRHP reference No. 74001236 Significant dates Added to NRHP November 8, 1974[1] Designated NHL February 26, 1986[2] **Roycroft** was a reformist community of [craft](/source/Craft) workers and artists which formed part of the [Arts and Crafts movement](/source/Arts_and_Crafts_movement) in the United States. [Elbert Hubbard](/source/Elbert_Hubbard) founded the community in 1895, in the village of [East Aurora, New York](/source/East_Aurora%2C_New_York), near [Buffalo](/source/Buffalo%2C_New_York). Participants were known as **Roycrofters**. The work and philosophy of the group, often referred to as the **Roycroft movement**, had a strong influence on the development of American architecture and design in the early 20th century. ## History [Golding Pearl](/source/Golding_Pearl) letterpress used by the Roycrofters The name "Roycroft" was chosen after the printers, Samuel and Thomas Roycroft, who made books in [London](/source/London) from about 1650–1690. The word *roycroft* had a special significance to Elbert Hubbard. Hubbard believed "*roycroft"* meant "*king's craft"* in French.[3] In [guilds](/source/Guild) of early modern Europe, king's craftsmen were guild members who had achieved a high degree of skill and therefore made things for the King. The Roycroft insignia was borrowed from the monk [Cassiodorus](/source/Cassiodorus), a 13th-century bookbinder and illuminator. Elbert Hubbard had been influenced by the ideas of [William Morris](/source/William_Morris) on a visit to England.[4] He was unable to find a publisher for his book *Little Journeys* so, inspired by Morris's [Kelmscott Press](/source/Kelmscott_Press), decided to set up his own [private press](/source/Private_press) to print the book himself, founding **Roycroft Press**. His championing of the Arts and Crafts approach attracted a number of visiting craftspeople to East Aurora, and they formed a community of printers, furniture makers, metalsmiths, leathersmiths, and bookbinders. A quotation from [John Ruskin](/source/John_Ruskin) formed the Roycroft "creed": A belief in working with the head, hand and heart and mixing enough play with the work so that every task is pleasurable and makes for health and happiness. The inspirational leadership of Hubbard attracted a group of almost 500 people by 1910, and millions more knew of him through his essay *[A Message to Garcia](/source/A_Message_to_Garcia)*. A door of the Chapel (not a religious building but a guild hall) The Roycroft Press is also credited for publishing partner publications, such as Carl Lothar Bredemeier's *The Buffalo Magazine for Arts* in 1920.[5] In 1915 Hubbard and his wife, noted [suffragist](/source/Suffragist) [Alice Moore Hubbard](/source/Alice_Moore_Hubbard), died in the sinking of [RMS *Lusitania*](/source/RMS_Lusitania), and the Roycroft community went into a gradual decline. Following Elbert's death, his son Bert took over the business. In attempts to keep his father's business afloat, Bert proposed selling Roycroft's furniture through major retailers. Sears & Roebuck eventually agreed to carry the furniture, but this was only a short-lived success.[6] Fourteen original Roycroft buildings are located in the area of South Grove and Main Street in East Aurora. Known as the "Roycroft Campus", this rare survival of an [art colony](/source/Art_colony) was awarded [National Historic Landmark](/source/National_Historic_Landmark) status in 1986.[2][7][8] The Elbert Hubbard Roycroft Museum, housed in the [George and Gladys Scheidemantel House](/source/George_and_Gladys_Scheidemantel_House) in [East Aurora](/source/East_Aurora%2C_New_York) is the main collection and research centre for the work of the Roycrofters. ### Roycroft Inn Roycroft Inn, Lobby bar, Roycroft Campus Part of the Roycroft Campus, the Inn is a hotel with a restaurant and lobby bar across the street from the primary buildings. It first opened for visitors in 1905 and in 1986, as part of the Roycroft Campus, became a [National Historic Landmark](/source/National_Historic_Landmark).[9] A nine-year restoration was completed in 1995, with funding from the Margaret L. Wendt Foundation; the total cost was $8 million.[10] At that time, the facility re-opened. The Salon area contains restored murals by Roycroft artist [Alexis Jean Fournier](/source/Alexis_Jean_Fournier).[11] The inn also hosted a [training camp](/source/Training_camp) for the [Buffalo Bills](/source/Buffalo_Bills) from 1960 until 1962.[12] ## Gallery - Visitor Center, June 2019 - Front of the Chapel - Roycroft Inn - Side of the Chapel - The Roycroft Renaissance Logo - Roycroft Campus welcome sign from the 1990s - Sign about Elbert Hubbard - Sign with Roycroft crest and lettering - Portrait of Elbert Hubbard at the Visitor Center ## Famous Roycrofters - Arthur H. Cole (1899–?), coppersmith - [Jerome Connor](/source/Jerome_Connor) (1874–1943), sculptor of Elbert Hubbard statue, North Wind on the Roycroft Chapel, and others. - [William Wallace Denslow](/source/William_Wallace_Denslow) (1856–1915), illustrator of *[The Wonderful Wizard of Oz](/source/The_Wonderful_Wizard_of_Oz)*. - [Alexis Jean Fournier](/source/Alexis_Jean_Fournier) (1865–1948), American painter, including 20 murals at the Roycroft Inn. - [William Joseph "Dard" Hunter](/source/Dard_Hunter) (1883–1966), American authority on making paper by hand, as well as printing using handmade type. He published a number of books on traditional, pre-industrial, techniques for making paper. - Walter Jennings, coppersmith and jeweler - Karl Kipp (1882–1954), worked in the bindery in 1908 and later established the Roycroft Copper Shop. - Fredrick Kranz, created find leather goods. - Victor Toothaker (1882–1932), coppersmith - Samuel Warner (1871–1947), book designer, artist and illustrator for many Roycroft books. ## See also - [American craft](/source/American_craft) - [Arden, Delaware](/source/Arden%2C_Delaware) - [Byrdcliffe Colony](/source/Byrdcliffe_Colony) - [Elbert Hubbard](/source/Elbert_Hubbard) - [Frank Lloyd Wright](/source/Frank_Lloyd_Wright) - [Gustav Stickley](/source/Gustav_Stickley) - [Rose Valley, Pennsylvania](/source/Rose_Valley%2C_Pennsylvania) - [Roy Croft](/source/Roy_Croft) ## References 1. **[^](#cite_ref-nris_1-0)** ["National Register Information System"](https://npgallery.nps.gov/NRHP). *[National Register of Historic Places](/source/National_Register_of_Historic_Places)*. [National Park Service](/source/National_Park_Service). January 23, 2007. 1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-nhlsum_2-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-nhlsum_2-1) ["Roycroft Campus"](https://web.archive.org/web/20090911042746/http://tps.cr.nps.gov/nhl/detail.cfm?ResourceId=1460&ResourceType=District). *National Historic Landmark summary listing*. National Park Service. September 18, 2007. Archived from [the original](http://tps.cr.nps.gov/nhl/detail.cfm?ResourceId=1460&ResourceType=District) on September 11, 2009. 1. **[^](#cite_ref-3)** ["Elbert G. Hubbard: Roycroft Arts and Crafts by John H. Martin"](https://www.crookedlakereview.com/books/saints_sinners/martin15.html). *www.crookedlakereview.com*. Retrieved April 3, 2022. 1. **[^](#cite_ref-4)** Koch, Robert (January 1967). ["Elbert Hubbard's Roycrofters as Artist-Craftsmen"](https://dx.doi.org/10.1086/495764). *Winterthur Portfolio*. **3**: 67–82. [doi](/source/Doi_(identifier)):[10.1086/495764](https://doi.org/10.1086%2F495764). [ISSN](/source/ISSN_(identifier)) [0084-0416](https://search.worldcat.org/issn/0084-0416). [S2CID](/source/S2CID_(identifier)) [162706305](https://api.semanticscholar.org/CorpusID:162706305). 1. **[^](#cite_ref-5)** *Publications, Volume 24*. Buffalo, NY: Buffalo Historical Society. 1920. p. 384. 1. **[^](#cite_ref-Roycroft_Hubbard_6-0)** ["Elbert Hubbard - The Man"](https://web.archive.org/web/20140729162105/http://roycroft.org/elbert-hubbard.html). *Roycroft.org*. Archived from [the original](http://roycroft.org/elbert-hubbard.html) on July 29, 2014. Retrieved December 17, 2015. 1. **[^](#cite_ref-nrhpinv_7-0)** [""Roycroft Campus", July 1985, by Carolyn Pitts (National Register of Historic Places Inventory-Nomination)"](https://npgallery.nps.gov/NRHP/GetAsset/NHLS/74001236_text) (pdf). National Park Service. July 1985. 1. **[^](#cite_ref-nrhpphotos_8-0)** ["Roycroft Campus--Accompanying 3 photos, exterior, from 1973. (National Register of Historic Places Inventory-Nomination)"](https://npgallery.nps.gov/NRHP/GetAsset/NHLS/74001236_photos) (pdf). National Park Service. July 1985. 1. **[^](#cite_ref-nrhpdoc_9-0)** Carolyn Pitts (July 1985). [National Register of Historic Places Registration: New York NHL Roycroft Campus](https://catalog.archives.gov/id/75315730). National Archives and Records Administration. Retrieved October 21, 2025. (Downloading may be slow.) 1. **[^](#cite_ref-10)** SCHULMAN, JAMES HEANEY AND PAUL CARROLL, PAUL CARROLL, PAUL CARROLL AND GENE WARNER, PAUL CARROLL AND SUSAN (April 30, 1995). ["RESTORED ROYCROFT INN TO REOPEN E. AURORA LANDMARK REBORN IN $8 MILLION RENOVATION"](https://buffalonews.com/news/restored-roycroft-inn-to-reopen-e-aurora-landmark-reborn-in-8-million-renovation/article_bddc59c5-6179-5967-994d-c869f3ec5423.html). *Buffalo News*. Retrieved April 3, 2022.{{[cite web](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Template:Cite_web)}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list ([link](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:CS1_maint:_multiple_names:_authors_list)) 1. **[^](#cite_ref-11)** [https://roycroftinn.com/our-history/](https://roycroftinn.com/our-history/), Our History 1. **[^](#cite_ref-train_12-0)** ["Throwback Thursday: Bills Training Camp history"](https://www.buffalobills.com/news/throwback-thursday-bills-training-camp-history-10537441). *BuffaloBills.com*. NFL Enterprises. [Archived](https://web.archive.org/web/20190701040406/https://www.buffalobills.com/news/throwback-thursday-bills-training-camp-history-10537441) from the original on July 1, 2019. Retrieved June 30, 2019. ## Further reading - Beyer, Rachael A. (June 21, 2013). ["'You must make it the fashion:' selling utopia in Roycroft and Arden, 1895-1915"](https://lib.dr.iastate.edu/etd/13025). *Iowa State University Digital Repository*. [OCLC](/source/OCLC_(identifier)) [880379261](https://search.worldcat.org/oclc/880379261). Retrieved March 20, 2018. - Cathers, David M. (1981) *Furniture of the American Arts and Crafts Movement: Stickley and Roycroft Mission Oak* New American Library, New York, [ISBN](/source/ISBN_(identifier)) [0-453-00397-4](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/0-453-00397-4) - Champney, Freeman (1968) *Art & glory; the story of Elbert Hubbard* Crown Publishers, New York, [OCLC 274494](http://worldcat.org/oclc/274494) - Dirlam, H. Kenneth (1964) *Sinners, this is East Aurora; the story of Elbert Hubbard and the Roycroft Shops* Vantage Press, New York - Guiler, Thomas A (2025) *The Handcrafted Utopia: Arts and Crafts Communities in America's Progressive Era* Richard W. Couper Press, Clinton, New York, [ISBN](/source/ISBN_(identifier)) [978-1-937370-43-5](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-1-937370-43-5) - Hamilton, Charles Franklin (1973) *As Bees in Honey Drown: Elbert Hubbard and the Roycrofters* A.S. Barnes, South Brunswick, [ISBN](/source/ISBN_(identifier)) [0-498-01052-X](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/0-498-01052-X) - Rust, Robert *et al.* (2000) *The Roycroft Campus* (*Images of America* series) Arcadia Publishing, Charleston, SC, [ISBN](/source/ISBN_(identifier)) [0-7524-1344-9](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/0-7524-1344-9) - Turgeon, Kitty and Rust, Robert (1998) *The Arts and Crafts Home* Friedman/Fairfax Publishers, New York, [ISBN](/source/ISBN_(identifier)) [1-56799-455-5](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/1-56799-455-5) - Via, Marie and Searl, Marjorie (eds.) (1994) *Head, Heart, and Hand: Elbert Hubbard and the Roycrofters* University of Rochester Press, Rochester, N.Y., [ISBN](/source/ISBN_(identifier)) [1-878822-43-8](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/1-878822-43-8) ## External links Wikimedia Commons has media related to [Roycroft](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:Roycroft). - [Roycroft Organization](https://www.roycroftcampuscorporation.com/) - [Roycroft Inn, East Aurora](https://web.archive.org/web/20070312042831/http://www.roycroftinn.com/inn/inn_history.htm) - [Roycroft shop marks and related historical furniture maker details](https://web.archive.org/web/20160319104038/http://www.stickleyera.info/AmericanMakersR-Ste.htm) - [The Roycroft Community 1894–1938 by Hilary Davis](https://web.archive.org/web/20161109075520/http://www.arts-crafts.com/archive/hdavis.shtml) - [The Arts & Crafts Movement: People: Elbert Hubbard](https://web.archive.org/web/20101124213821/http://www.arts-crafts.com/archive/ehubbard.shtml) - [The Roycroft Campus](https://web.archive.org/web/20070210063221/http://freenet.buffalo.edu/bah/a/archsty/a-c/roy/hp/index.html) - [Roycrofters At Large Association](http://www.ralaweb.com) - [The Winterthur Library](http://findingaid.winterthur.org/html/HTML_Finding_Aids/COL0254.htm) Overview of an archival collection on the Roycrofters - Roycrofters Collection: Books published at the Roycrofter colony founded by Elbert Hubbard, (97 items). From the [Rare Book and Special Collections Division at the Library of Congress](https://www.loc.gov/rr/rarebook/) - [Furniture Items from the 1906 Roycroft Catalog](https://web.archive.org/web/20150707090929/http://www.trovestar.com/ac_antique/index.php?Manufacturer=Roycroft) v t e National Historic Landmarks in New York Albany County Harmony Mills Fort Orange James Hall Office New York State Canal System New York State Capitol St. Peter's Episcopal Church Schuyler Flatts Schuyler Mansion USS Slater Watervliet Arsenal Erie County Buffalo History Museum Edward M. Cotter Darwin D. Martin House Fillmore House Kleinhans Music Hall New York State Canal System Prudential (Guaranty) Building Richardson Olmsted Complex Roycroft SS Columbia St. Paul's Cathedral USS The Sullivans Long Island Christeen Fire Fighter Fort Corchaug Archaeological Site Fort Massapeag Archeological Site John Philip Sousa House Modesty Montauk Point Light Old House Pollock-Krasner House and Study Center Priscilla Rudolph Oyster House Thomas Moran House William Sidney Mount House Manhattan 1 Hanover Square 280 Broadway 330 West 42nd Street 55 Wall Street 555 Edgecombe Avenue 69th Regiment Armory African Burial Ground National Monument Alexander Hamilton U.S. Custom House Alfred E. Smith House American Stock Exchange Building Andrew Carnegie Mansion Bayard–Condict Building Bell Laboratories Building Brooklyn Bridge Brown Building Carnegie Hall Central Park Central Synagogue Chamber of Commerce Building Chester A. Arthur Home Chrysler Building Church of the Ascension, Episcopal Cooper Union Croton Aqueduct Daily News Building Duke Ellington House Dyckman House Eldridge Street Synagogue Empire State Building Equitable Building Flatiron Building Founder's Hall General Winfield Scott House Governors Island National Monument Grace Church Grand Central Terminal Hamilton Fish House Hamilton Grange National Memorial Harlem YMCA Harry F. Sinclair House Henry Clay Frick House Henry Street Settlement Hispanic Society of America Holland Tunnel James Weldon Johnson Residence Jefferson Market Library Lettie G. Howard Low Memorial Library Lower East Side Tenement Museum Macy's Herald Square Margaret Sanger Clinic Matthew Henson Residence Merchant's House Museum Metropolitan Life Insurance Company Tower Morgan Library & Museum Morris–Jumel Mansion New York Amsterdam News Building New York City Hall New York Life Building New York Public Library Main Branch New York Stock Exchange Building New York Yacht Club Building Park Avenue Armory Philosophy Hall Plaza Hotel Pupin Hall Rockefeller Center Samuel J. Tilden House Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture SoHo Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum St. Bartholomew's Episcopal Church St. George's Episcopal Church St. Patrick's Cathedral St. Paul's Chapel Stonewall Inn Surrogate's Courthouse The Dakota The Met Fifth Avenue The Players The Town Hall Tiffany and Company Building Trinity Church Tweed Courthouse Union Square United Charities Building United States lightship Ambrose USS Intrepid Whitney Museum of American Art Will Marion Cook House Woolworth Building New York City outside Manhattan Admiral David Glasgow Farragut Gravesite Alice Austen House Bartow–Pell Mansion Bronx Community College Brooklyn Bridge Brooklyn Heights Center for Brooklyn History Conference House Croton Aqueduct Green-Wood Cemetery Jackie Robinson House King Manor Lorillard Snuff Mill Louis Armstrong House New York Botanical Garden Old Quaker Meeting House Plymouth Church Protestant Reformed Dutch Church of Flushing Quarters A Ralph Johnson Bunche House St. Ann & the Holy Trinity Church Snug Harbor United Workers Cooperatives Van Cortlandt House Voorlezer's House Ward's Point Woodlawn Cemetery Wyckoff House Wyckoff-Bennett Homestead Westchester County Aaron Copland House Armour–Stiner House Boston Post Road Historic District Croton Aqueduct Elephant Hotel Henry Draper Observatory John Hartford House Kykuit Lyndhurst Old Dutch Church of Sleepy Hollow Philipsburg Manor House Philipse Manor Hall State Historic Site Playland Thomas Paine Cottage Stepping Stones Sunnyside Van Cortlandt Manor Villa Lewaro Winged Foot Golf Club Rest of the state Adams Power Plant Transformer House Adirondack Park Arden Bennington Battlefield State Historic Site Bronck House Camp Pine Knot Camp Uncas Canfield Casino and Congress Park Chautauqua Institution Clermont State Historic Site Cobblestone Historic District Davis-Ferris Organ DeWint House Delaware and Hudson Canal Dutch Reformed Church Eagle Island Camp Elihu Root House Elizabeth Cady Stanton House Elkanah Watson House Fort Crailo Fort Crown Point Fort Klock Fort Montgomery Fort Niagara Fort Saint-Frédéric Fort Stanwix Fort Ticonderoga Franklin B. Hough House Ganondagan State Historic Site Gen. William Floyd House General Electric Research Laboratory Geneseo Historic District George Eastman Museum Gerrit Smith Estate Grant Cottage State Historic Site Great Camp Sagamore Harriet Tubman National Historical Park Historic Track Holland Land Office Hudson River Historic District Hudson River State Hospital Huguenot Street Historic District Hurley Historic District Hyde Hall Irving Langmuir House Jean Hasbrouck House Jethro Wood House John Brown Farm State Historic Site John Jay Homestead State Historic Site Johnson Hall State Historic Site Kate Mullany House Knox's Headquarters State Historic Site Lamoka site Land Tortoise Lemuel Haynes House Lewis Miller Cottage Locust Grove Main Building Manitoga Martin Van Buren National Historic Site Mohawk Upper Castle Historic District Mohonk Mountain House Montgomery Place Morrill Hall Nash New York State Canal System New York State Inebriate Asylum Newtown Battlefield State Park Niagara Falls State Park Nott Memorial Olana State Historic Site Old Dutch Church Old Fort Johnson Old Whaler's Church Oliver Bronson House Oneida Community Mansion House Oriskany Battlefield State Historic Site Owl's Nest Palisades Interstate Park Commission Petrified Sea Gardens Plattsburgh Bay Riverby Roscoe Conkling House Rose Hill Mansion Santanoni Preserve Saratoga Spa State Park Schoharie Crossing State Historic Site Slabsides Springside Steepletop Stony Point Battlefield Susan B. Anthony House Thomas Cole National Historic Site Top Cottage Troy Savings Bank Music Hall United States Military Academy Utica Psychiatric Center Valcour Bay Van Alen House Vassar College Observatory W. & L. E. Gurley Building Washington's Headquarters State Historic Site West Point Foundry Willard Memorial Chapel-Welch Memorial Hall William H. Seward House Woodchuck Lodge Yaddo Historic sites Castle Clinton National Monument Eleanor Roosevelt National Historic Site Federal Hall National Memorial General Grant National Memorial Home of Franklin D. Roosevelt National Historic Site Sagamore Hill National Historic Site Saint Paul's Church National Historic Site Saratoga National Historical Park Theodore Roosevelt Birthplace National Historic Site Theodore Roosevelt Inaugural National Historic Site Vanderbilt Mansion National Historic Site Women's Rights National Historical Park Former Relocated Nantucket (LV-112) USCGC Fir (WLM-212) USS Edson Delisted Edwin H. Armstrong House Florence Mills House Old Blenheim Bridge v t e U.S. National Register of Historic Places in New York Topics Contributing property Keeper of the Register Historic district History of the National Register of Historic Places National Park Service Property types Lists by county Albany Allegany Bronx Broome Cattaraugus Cayuga Chautauqua Chemung Chenango Clinton Columbia Cortland Delaware Dutchess Erie Essex Franklin Fulton Genesee Greene Hamilton Herkimer Jefferson Kings (Brooklyn) Lewis Livingston Madison Monroe Montgomery Nassau New York (Manhattan) Niagara Oneida Onondaga Ontario Orange Orleans Oswego Otsego Putnam Queens Rensselaer Richmond (Staten Island) Rockland Saratoga Schenectady Schoharie Schuyler Seneca St. Lawrence Steuben Suffolk Sullivan Tioga Tompkins Ulster Warren Washington Wayne Westchester Northern Southern Wyoming Yates Lists by city Albany Buffalo New Rochelle New York City Bronx Brooklyn Queens Staten Island Manhattan Below 14th St. 14th–59th St. 59th–110th St. Above 110th St. Minor islands Niagara Falls Peekskill Poughkeepsie Rhinebeck Rochester Syracuse Yonkers Other lists Bridges and tunnels National Historic Landmarks New York City Outside New York City Category List National Register of Historic Places Portal --- Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Roycroft](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roycroft) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roycroft?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.