A Dictionary of the Booksellers and Printers who Were at Work in England, Scotland and Ireland from 1641 to 1667/Lilliecrap or Lilliecrop (Peter)
LILLIECRAP, or LILLIECROP (PETER), printer in London, (1) Crooked Billet on Addle Hill; (2) The Five Bells near the church in Clerkenwell Close. 1647-72. Son of Peter Lillicrap, of Queatheack, co. Cornwall. Apprentice to Miles Fletcher, or Flesher, for seven years from April 5th, 1647. At the outbreak of the Civil War he made a discovery of arms, hidden by a Parliament man, and gave information to the High Sheriff of Cornwall, by whom they were seized. Lilliecrap afterwards served in the Royalist army and was wounded and taken prisoner four times. On the expiration of his apprenticeship he set up for himself as a printer, but was watched with suspicion by the Parliamentary party, and the May before Cromwell died his press was seized by the official printer, Henry Hills, and he was sent a prisoner to the Tower for printing Walter Gostello's Coming of God in Mercy and Vengeance. He was in trouble again in 1663 for printing Farewell Sermons and other seditious literature, but was discharged from custody after a few weeks. Lilliecrap succeeded Daniel Maxwell as printer of the news-sheet Mercurius Publicus. At the survey of the press made in July, 1668, he was returned as employing one press, one apprentice, one compositor and one pressman. [Plomer, Short History, p. 227; Domestic State Papers, Charles II, vol. 77 (37); 78 (37-40).]