SCOTLAND'S PRINTING INDUSTRY

The Scottish Printing Archival Trust (SPRAT) was formed in 1988 to conserve "knowledge and examples of Scotland's (book and other) printing heritage for the benefit of the public and print/media education."

The Trust promotes interest in the history of the Scottish printing industry, which is one of Scotland's oldest. It does not hold any archival collections itself, but works with various institutions to ensure that printing archives are not lost.

The Scottish Printing Archival Trust is currently working to preserve a Cossar press invented by John Cossar of the Clydebank firm which operated from 1778 until 1983. This printing machine combined the simplicity and economy of a flatbed press with the speed and convenience of printing on a reel of newsprint, direct from type. The Trust would like to hear from anyone who worked for Cossar or the Govan Press, please contact the Honorary Secretary for more details.

We were also pleased to hear that the National Trust for Scotland is to offer an apprenticeship in printing at Robert Smail's Printing Works, in partnership with Historic Scotland. For more details, see our News page.

As well as promoting an awareness of Scotland's printing heritage, the Trust has published five books on the history of Scotland's printing industry. There are four books in the series, A Reputation for Excellence, covering local histories of printing. A pamphlet was published as part of the celebrations of the 500th anniversary of Scotland's printing industry, giving an overview of the growth and development of printing in Scotland. In November 2010, the Trust, in association with Graphic Enterprise Scotland, published Mechanical to digital in Scotland: the print employers' organisation by Professor John Gennard, charting the 100 year history of the Scottish print employers' organisation. You can also download an order form for all Trust publications.

This website is currently being updated and reorganised. Please bear with us.

Site last updated on: 1 November 2011