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This year marks the 90th anniversary of University of Michigan Press, the scholarly publishing arm of the University. Founded in 1930, today the Press publishes nearly 100 new titles every year in humanities and social science subject areas for which the University is particularly well known. These include political science, classical studies, theater and performance, American studies, Asian studies, and other interdisciplinary fields. The Press also publishes select titles on Michigan and the Great Lakes and an industry-leading English Language Teaching catalog strongly connected to the University’s English Language Institute.

In 2009, U-M Press joined the campus-oriented Michigan Publishing Services (MPS) as part of the University of Michigan Library system, integrating with MPS and Deep Blue Repository and Research Data Services (DBRRDS) under the “Michigan Publishing” banner. Since then, the Press has pioneered a strong advocacy for open access publishing and accessibility, as well as an emphasis on library-focused digital collections, embodied in the University of Michigan Press Ebook Collection

Publishing at the University dates back to 1858, when U-M produced Tables of Victoria, which recounted recent scholarship on an asteroid. Early publishing at Michigan focused on presidential inauguration and conference papers, until the number of departmental publications grew to such an extent that “the situation caused great inconvenience.” It was then that the University centralized publishing activities under a university press in 1930.

In the 1950s, under the leadership of Fred Wieck—the first professional publisher to serve as Press director—the focus of U-M Press broadened to include Russian literature (including the first Russian edition of Dr. Zhivago), the “History of the World” series, the Ann Arbor Paperbacks reprint series for classroom use, and other landmark publishing enterprises such as The Middle English Dictionary -- now available online
Throughout the 90 years of its existence, the Press has published materials in myriad formats, including records, reel-to-reel tapes, cassettes, CDs, and online editions, in addition to paperback and cloth editions. With the debut of Michigan Publishing’s Fulcrum platform in 2018, the Press continues to innovate to bring out the full richness of its authors' research in a durable, discoverable, accessible, and flexible form.
To celebrate the anniversary, University of Michigan Press is offering 50% off and free shipping when you order two or more titles from press.umich.edu when you use promotion code UM90 at checkout. (Excludes ELT titles.) The promotion runs for 90 days, September 8 through December 7, 2020. We invite readers, researchers, faculty, and librarians to share their favorite University of Michigan Press titles on social media using hashtag #UMichPress90.
Read more about the origins of the Press here.
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For more information, please contact:
Shaun Manning
Publications Sales Manager
shaunman@umich.edu