Printing

Printing reached Scotland from France in the early 16th Century but no records exist of it being recorded in the south west of the country until the 1780s when Peter McArthur introduced it to Kilmarnock. He was succeeded by John Wilson who was responsible for printing the first edition of 'Burns' Poetry' (one of the first ever books printed in Ayrshire). John Wilson also introduced printing to Ayr under the firm 'John and Peter Wilson'. Soon other towns in Ayrshire followed, with Irvine and Beith opening their own print shops. Before 1780, however, the closest printing press had been in Glasgow and even the availability of printed literature was not easy.
Read more

Printing could be a risky business in the early days; expressing your opinion in printed form was widely frowned upon by the establishment and newspaper printers especially, ran the risk of imprisonment and expensive stamp duties. This environment meant that the majority of inhabitants of the region were fairly ignorant towards events outside their own area. The society for the most part was rural and very religious and the only book which most households held was the Bible. With the advent of local printing presses, however, books and newspapers became far more commonplace with stories of the Covenanting Times, Robert the Bruce and William Wallace being popular, alongside more religious works such as 'Pilgrim's Progress' and the works of John Knox. Increased literacy and wider prosperity meant an increased demand for printed material and a new thriving printing industry in the area.

2 Fmedia2 F37902 F7132
Ayr (1)
2 Fmedia2 F37872 F9175
Trays of Type for Printing
Printers used trays of letters called cases in order to hold type of different sizes and styles. Fro
2 Fmedia2 F37842 F9172
Compositing Sticks
These were used to arrange individual pieces of type into words and sentences prior to insertion int
2 Fmedia2 F37812 F9171
A Printing Forme
Type is packed tightly into a frame called a forme - ready to be set in the press. The words are arr
2 Fmedia2 F37772 F9176
Adana Platen Printing Press
Adana printing presses were small presses operated by hand. The Adana, first advertised in November
2 Fmedia2 F37742 F9170
Woodcut Printing Block for The Kilmarnock Standard
Donated by local printers Dunlop & Drennan.
2 Fmedia2 F37712 F8519
Printer's plate for Regal Cinema advert
This printer's plate is an advert for the James Bond 007 films 'Dr No' and 'From Russia with Love'. 
2 Fmedia2 F37682 F7310
Printing plate for 'Wigtown Bouquet'
Copper printing plate advertising "Wigtown Bouquet".  This perfumed water, described as "distilled f
2 Fmedia2 F37652 F7093
Ayr from Castle Hill
2 Fmedia2 F37622 F7091
Ayr
2 Fmedia2 F37592 F7090
A Close in Ayr
2 Fmedia2 F37562 F9167
Miniature Bible
This early printed bible is just a few centimetres across.
You must enable javascript to view this website