Catherine Finn (1749? – 1832) was an Irish printer and owner of ''
Finn's Leinster Journal
''Finn's Leinster Journal'' (1767–1801), later ''Leinster Journal'' (1801–1830), ''Kilkenny Journal'' and'' Leinster Commercial and Literary Advertiser'' (1832–1922), was a newspaper published in Kilkenny, Ireland.
The journal ...
''.
Life
Catherine Finn was born Catherine Butler around 1749. She was the daughter of
Kilkenny
Kilkenny (). is a city in County Kilkenny, Ireland. It is located in the South-East Region and in the province of Leinster. It is built on both banks of the River Nore. The 2016 census gave the total population of Kilkenny as 26,512.
Kilken ...
printer, Michael Butler (died 1779). She was married to printer
Edmund Finn
Edmund 'Garryowen' Finn (13 January 1819 – 4 April 1898) was an Australian journalist and author who wrote many colorful descriptions of the life and people in early Melbourne.
Finn was born in Tipperary, Ireland, the son of William Finn and h ...
, founder and printer of ''Finn's Leinster Journal''. After her husband's death on 5 April 1777, Finn continued to print and publish the Journal. She ran the printing business, while raising seven children, until 1805.
She sold advertisement space, organised editorial content, and oversaw the printing and the distribution. The Finns were also the local agents for Maredant's
Antiscorbutic
Scurvy is a disease resulting from a lack of vitamin C (ascorbic acid). Early symptoms of deficiency include weakness, feeling tired and sore arms and legs. Without treatment, decreased red blood cells, gum disease, changes to hair, and bleeding ...
Drops, Dr Ryan's Antiscorbutic Drops, and Dr Ryan's Pectoral Essence of Colt's Foot, which were also advertised in the Journal. They sold a wide variety of books, text books, annuals and periodicals in their Kilkenny bookshop and stationery office.
In 1783, Finn is listed as the Kilkenny agent of the Hibernian Insurance Co. in Wilson's Dublin Directory. Finn died in 1832, aged 83.
The Finn's eldest child, Michael, married Sarah Williams in 1796, the daughter of a Dublin bookseller James Williams (died 1786). Michael made an unsuccessful attempt to run his mother's printing business, changing the tone of the Journal and unsuccessfully applied for a government subvention.
See also
*
List of women printers and publishers before 1800
The list of women printers and publishers before 1800 include women active as printers or publishers prior to the 19th century. Before the printing press was invented, books were made from pages written by scribes, and it could take up to a year ...
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Finn, Catherine
1749 births
1832 deaths
People from Kilkenny (city)
Irish publishers (people)
18th-century publishers (people)
18th-century Irish businesswomen
19th-century Irish businesswomen