Fancy Text and the open Fancy Text Shaded were designed by Richard Smith and first cast by MacKellar, Smiths & Jordan in 1870. Versions and copies include Fancy Text (Reed/Triangle Type Foundry), Columbian Series (Pavyers & Bullen), Gotische Schrift Serie 8 (Enschedé, before 1902), Kirchen-Gotisch (AG f. Schriftgießerei u. M., still sold in 1926), Kirchengothisch antik (Rudhard, before 1878), Pfeil-Gothisch (Rühl/Woellmer, before 1900), and Pfeilschrift (Rust). [Reichardt, Seemann]

A phototype versions is shown in the Solotype catalog (1992) as Fancy Card Text.

Digitized by Gerhard Helzel as Moderne Kirchen-Gotisch (1996) with Kirchen-Gotisch licht (open, 2001), based on a ca. 48pt source from 1880. Varous freebie and amateur digitizations, including Showcard (Silver Graphics, 1993), Fancy Card Text (Dieter Steffmann, 2000, solid w/o ornamentation), Minster (Paul James Lloyd, 2002, 6 styles, solid and open, w/ and w/o ornamentation), Fancy Text (Claude Pelletier, 2003, solid, used for sample); Pepin Press Fancy 129 (Dick Pape, 2009, based on a Pepin Press showing w/ a different lowercase), Fancy Card Text (Rebecca Simpson, 2012, autotraced).