Edinburgh Courant

The Edinburgh Courant was a broadsheet newspaper from the 18th century. It was published out of Edinburgh, Midlothian, Scotland. Its first issue was dated February 14–19, 1705 and was sold for a penny. It was one of the country's first regional papers, second only to the Norwich Post (1701). The paper was produced twice weekly for five years, then continued as the Scots Courant until April 1720. In 1718, the Edinburgh Evening Courant began publication, and it survived until the Evening News came into existence in 1873.

It was founded by James Watson (who had also published the Edinburgh Gazette from 1700)^[1] and had its main printing office was at Craigs Close at 170 High Street on the Royal Mile, the premises generally being known as the King's Printing House.^[2]

In 1725, during the time of the Scottish Malt Tax riots, rival political factions used - or at least attempted to use - newspapers including the Edinburgh Evening Courant and the Caledonian Mercury as their "mouthpieces", as a letter from the then book trade apprentice Andrew Millar indicates. Millar was apprenticed to James McEuen, who had been printer, editor, and principal bookseller of The Edinburgh Evening Courant since 1718.^[3]

Editors

Daniel Defoe, author of Robinson Crusoe, and then based at Moubray House, was its editor in the early 18th century. James Hannay, Naval History writer, was its editor from 1860 to 1864.

Archives

Images of the newspaper have been digitilized and can be viewed through Ancestry.com, with a subscription.

References

External links

• Concise History of British Newspapers
• The Word of the Street
• Ancestry.com
• The Scotsman
• The Hannays of Knock and Garrarie