Jane Aitken — printer, publisher, and bookbinder
- Title:
- Census directory for 1811: containing the names, occupations, & residence of the inhabitants of the city, Southwark & Northern Liberties, a separate division being allotted to persons of colour: to which is annexed an appendix containing much useful information, and a perpetual calendar
- Publication/Origin:
- Philadelphia: Printed by Jane Aitken, 1811
- Description:
- The most significant woman bookbinder of the early American Republic, Jane Aitken ran the bindery at her father’s printing office. Her first imprint appears in 1796. In 1808 she printed and bound Thomson’s Bible (also in the collection), the first English translation of the Septuagint, the earliest Greek translation of the Hebrew scriptures. Aitken was the first American woman to print a Bible (Thomson's Bible, also in the collection.) Upon her father’s death in 1802, Aitken inherited the printing works and bookshop along with significant debt that had been incurred not by the shop but by her late brother-in-law. In 1813, all her equipment was sold, and Jane Aitken was imprisoned for debt. After her release, she continued to work as a bookbinder, but by 1815 her career as a printer was over. The Census Directory for 1811 is the first published census to include African Americans. It lists names, home addresses, and occupations for all Philadelphia inhabitants, as well as for local businesses, organizations, and professions, such as the Anti-Slavery Society, Mr. Peale’s Museum, churches, midwives, and “layers out of the dead.”
- Citation:
- Census directory for 1811: containing the names, occupations, & residence of the inhabitants of the city, Southwark & Northern Liberties, a separate division being allotted to persons of colour: to which is annexed an appendix containing much useful information, and a perpetual calendar, Philadelphia: Printed by Jane Aitken, 1811, Lisa Unger Baskin Collection, Rubenstein Rare Book & Manuscript Library, Duke University. Accessed April 24, 2024, https://exhibits.library.duke.edu/exhibits/show/baskin/item/4087