WHEN GREG CLINGHAM began running the Bucknell University Press in 1996, he had a special passion for 18th-century studies.

He’d come to Lewisburg just three years earlier to teach in the English department. When he took over at the Press, Clingham made the most of his field of expertise, quickly launching a series of titles that brought Bucknell to the forefront of scholarship in the field.

During Clingham’s 22-year tenure, the press continued to build its already-solid reputation in studies of Latin America, and Iberian studies and Irish literature, while branching into other fields, such as Africana and cultural studies.

“Bucknell Press has become one of the great, small academic presses,” Clingham says.

All told, the Press published more than 700 humanities titles under Clingham’s leadership. Equally impressive is that Clingham did so through turbulent economic times that killed off some presses at other universities and forced others to drastically retrench.

“Bucknell University Press is providing the kind of high-quality service to scholarship that is, unfortunately, increasingly rare in the present publishing climate,” says Andrew Carpenter, professor emeritus of English, University College Dublin.

In December, the Press celebrated its 50th anniversary with festivities that doubled as Clingham’s retirement party. To honor Clingham, who served the longest tenure of the Press’s four directors, the University presented him with a rare first edition of a 1775 Samuel Johnson book — an especially meaningful gift for Clingham, who is a noted scholar of Johnson’s work.

Early into his official retirement, Clingham was still tying up loose ends for Press projects. With those out of the way, he plans to travel, write books and continue as an editor of the Press’s 18th-century studies series.

“Greg just put his heart and soul into the Press. He absolutely made the press the success it is today,” says Associate Provost Karen Morin. “He’ll be missed.” — Matt Zencey