ITC Cheltenham Font Field Guide

Best Practices

Originally drawn to be a display typeface, The ITC Cheltenham family works best at large sizes. It is also somewhat condensed, providing economy of space. Being a distinctive design, however, it should be used sparingly.

Family

Four roman and condensed weights, each with corresponding italics, plus a special “Handtooled” design.

Font Facts

• The first ITC version was drawn in just two weights, of book and ultra, as display complements to the existing text design from ATF.
• Matthew Carter drew a custom version of Cheltenham for The New York Times newspaper, in the early 2000s.

Roots

The original Cheltenham was designed in 1896 by architect Bertram Goodhue for the Cheltenham Press in New York. Cheltenham Old Style was produced by Mergenthaler Linotype Company for its metal typesetting machines, and then the designs were sold to American Type Founders in 1902. Tony Stan was commissioned, in 1975, to develop a version of Cheltenham for ITC.

Legibility

Sturdy proportions, a large x-height, open counters and distinctive character designs, make ITC Cheltenham legible. Because the design is so distinctive, however, it can hinder message delivery in text sizes.

Download a pdf version of the fy{T}i ITC Cheltenham Font Field Guide and view the ITC Cheltenham font family.