Lewis I. Cohen
Lewis I. Cohen made his first deck of cards in 1832. In 1835 Mr Cohen invented a new machine to print four colours on a sheet at once, which was to revolutionise the entire playing card industry.
Lewis I. Cohen (1832-1860)
Lewis I. Cohen made his first deck of cards in 1832. In 1835 Mr Cohen invented a new machine to print four colours on a sheet at once, which was to revolutionise the entire playing card industry. This innovation soon led to his dominance in the market. In 1838 he moved to 118 William Street and in 1844 purchased a large building at 184-190 William St., to house his newly expanded plant. At the same time he relocated his store to 134 William St. Meanwhile Lewis Cohen gave control of his firm to his son Solomon L. Cohen and his nephew John M. Lawrence. On Lewis Cohen's death in 1860 the company changed to Lawrence, Cohen & Co. and in 1864 to Lawrence & Cohen.
Above: 'Highlanders' deck produced by L.I. Cohen, c.1840-60. The full-length courts have been made to resemble the wood-block courts of earlier times. A facsimile edition of the deck was published by U.S.Games Systems titled 'Highlanders'. See fragments of cards discovered behind an old door hinge.
Lawrence, Cohen & Co. (1860-1864)
On Lewis Cohen's death in 1860 the company was managed by his son Solomon L. Cohen and his nephew John M. Lawrence, and the name changed to Lawrence, Cohen & Co. In 1864 the company name changed yet again to Lawrence & Cohen. The cards shown below are from this brief period.
Above: one of the earliest decks with the Lawrence, Cohen & Co. name, which can be read on the Ace of Spades along with the 184 William Street address, c.1860. This subsequently became the address for the New York Consolidated Card Company when this was formed in the early 1870s.
Lawrence, Cohen & Co. became Lawrence & Cohen in 1864.
By Simon Wintle
Spain • Member since February 01, 1996
I am the founder of The World of Playing Cards (est. 1996), a website dedicated to the history, artistry and cultural significance of playing cards and tarot. Over the years I have researched various areas of the subject, acquired and traded collections and contributed as a committee member of the IPCS and graphics editor of The Playing-Card journal. Having lived in Chile, England, Wales, and now Spain, these experiences have shaped my work and passion for playing cards. Amongst my achievements is producing a limited-edition replica of a 17th-century English pack using woodblocks and stencils—a labour of love. Today, the World of Playing Cards is a global collaborative project, with my son Adam serving as the technical driving force behind its development. His innovative efforts have helped shape the site into the thriving hub it is today. You are warmly invited to become a contributor and share your enthusiasm.
Activity for Lewis I. Cohen
Sign in to comment or save this article.
Related Articles
The New Deal Playing Card Company
Publishers of a range of ergocards intended to be easy to hold and easy to shuffle.
Paper Empires by Jason McKinstry
A review of Jason McKinstry’s Paper Empires, Volume I, an illustrated study of early American...
Classification of Numeral Card Designs in French-suited packs
The classification of numeral cards in French-suited packs, covering various pip designs in over 400...
Mediaeval Playing Cards
Finely executed late 19th century pack from the USA featuring courts in medieval costume.
Foster’s Self-Playing Whist Cards
In 1890 R. F. Foster published the first edition of “Foster’s Whist Manual” which was to become the ...
Sextet: 6 handed bridge
6 handed bridge playing cards designed by Ralph E. Peterson, 1966.
Triangle Playing Cards
Triangle Playing Cards by Michael Scott.
Hesslers Enhanced
Matt Hessler’s “Enhanced” four-colour playing cards, 2015.
De Luxe No.142
A wide size version of De Luxe No.142 had been published in c.1920, with a similar Ace of Spades and...
Lighthouse No.922
“Lighthouse No.922” playing cards were introduced in c.1920.
Triton No.42
There have been at least three different versions of the Triton deck, with different Jokers, differe...
Triplicate No.18
Dougherty first secured a patent for “Triplicates” in 1876, a novel type of indices with a miniature...
Lawrence & Cohen
Lawrence & Cohen were successors to Lawrence, Cohen & Co.
Royal Playing Cards, 1890s
Royal Playing Cards, 1890s
New York Consolidated Card Company
The New York Consolidated Card Company was formed in 1871 by the merging of Lawrence & Cohen, Samuel...
Samuel Hart, 1846-1871
Samuel Hart was a prolific manufacturer of playing cards who commenced business sometime around 1845...
Andrew Dougherty 1848-1930
Andrew Dougherty was born in Donegal in Northern Ireland in 1827. He started his playing card busine...
Squeezers No.35
By 1877 the New York Consolidated Card Co's "Squeezers" were a great success on account of the indic...
De La Rue
De La Rue introduced letter-press printing into playing card production and his patent was granted i...
Most Popular
Our top articles from the past 60 days
