First printing towns from 1508 to 1900

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On this page you can trace the geographical spread of printing in Scotland from its beginning in 1508 until 1900. In almost 400 years, 198 printing towns were established across the Scottish mainland.

Until the end of the 18th century, printing was confined to the south and east of Scotland, apart from Inverness and Banff. In the 19th century, printing spread much further. It reached some of the Western and Northern Isles (Cumbrae, Iona, Rothesay and Kirkwall) as well as the North East of Scotland.

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