Adam Black

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For other people named Adam Black, see Adam Black (disambiguation).

Adam Black
FRSE
Portrait by John Watson Gordon.
Member of Parliament for Edinburgh
In office
1856–1865
Personal details
Born(1784-02-20)20 February 1784
Charles Street, Edinburgh, Scotland
Died24 January 1874(1874-01-24) (aged 89)
Edinburgh, Scotland
Resting placeWarriston Cemetery
Political partyLiberal
EducationRoyal High School
Alma materUniversity of Edinburgh
ProfessionPublisher, Politician
Black's house at 30 Broughton Place, Edinburgh
Statue of Adam Black in Princes Street Gardens
Adam Black's grave in Warriston Cemetery

Adam Black

FRSE (20 February 1784 – 24 January 1874) was a Scottish publisher and politician. He founded the A & C Black publishing company, and published the 7th, 8th and 9th editions of the Encyclopædia Britannica.[1]

Life

Black was born in Charles Street,

Royal High School and the University of Edinburgh. After serving as an apprentice to Mr Fairbairn, an Edinburgh bookseller,[1] he began business for himself in Edinburgh in 1808. By 1826 he was recognised as one of the principal booksellers in the city; and a few years later he was joined in business by his nephew Charles.[3]

In 1827 he purchased the copyright of the

Waverley Novels. .[3]

In 1817 he relocated his bookshop to 27 North Bridge

De Quincey's works.[3]

Adam Black was twice

Lord Provost of Edinburgh, and represented the city
in parliament from 1856 to 1865.

He retired from business in 1865, and lived his final years at 38 Drummond Place in the New Town.[6] He died on 24 January 1874. He was succeeded by his sons, who removed their business in 1895 to London. In 1877 a bronze statue by John Hutchison of Adam Black was erected in East Princes Street Gardens, Edinburgh.[3] He is buried in Warriston Cemetery on the outer face of the catacombs close to James Young Simpson.

Family

Black was married to Isabella Tait (1796–1877). Their children included Charles Bertram Black (1821–1906), Francis Black (1830–1892) and Adam William Black (1836–1898).

His granddaughter, Eda Lawrie married the botanist Robert John Harvey Gibson.

Trained under Black

FRSE (1834–1893) was apprenticed under Black.[1]

References

  1. ^
    ISBN 978-0-902198-84-5
    . Retrieved 22 December 2011.
  2. doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/2491. (Subscription or UK public library membership
    required.)
  3. ^ a b c d  One or more of the preceding sentences incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Black, Adam". Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 4 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 18.
  4. ^ Grant's Old and New Edinburgh vol.2 p.339
  5. ^ "Edinburgh Post Office annual directory, 1832-1833". National Library of Scotland. Retrieved 20 January 2018.
  6. ^ Edinburgh Post Office Directory 1873

Further reading

External links

Parliament of the United Kingdom
Preceded by
Thomas Babington Macaulay
 Member of Parliament for Edinburgh
1856–1865
With: Charles Cowan 1856–59
James Moncreiff 1859–65 		Succeeded by
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