Alexander Donaldson (bookseller)

Alexander Donaldson
Born	1733
Died	11 March 1794 Broughton Hall, Edinburgh, Scotland
Nationality	Scottish
Occupation	Bookseller, publisher, printer
Known for	Appellant in Donaldson v Beckett; Founder/Publisher, Edinburgh Advertiser
Spouse(s)	Anna Marshall
Children	James Donaldson
Parent(s)	James Donaldson, Treasurer of Edinburgh; Elizabeth Weir

Alexander Donaldson (1727 – 11 March 1794) was a Scottish bookseller, publisher, and printer. Donaldson was the founding publisher of the weekly newspaper, the Edinburgh Advertiser. He was also known for selling cheap copies of books after their copyright had expired in disregard to London booksellers' opinions on literary property.

Donaldson was the son of Dr James Donaldson (died 1754), a textile manufacturer and Treasurer of Edinburgh. His mother was Elizabeth Weir (died 1768). He had an older brother, John. His paternal grandfather was Capt. James Donaldson, publisher of the Gazette. Donaldson inherited approximately £10,000 from his father.

In 1748, he opened a bookselling shop in Edinburgh. Two years later, on 29 August 1750, he was made a Burgess and Guild Brother of Edinburgh by right of his father in lieu of an apprenticeship. He married a merchant's daughter, Anna Marshall, on 10 January 1751 and may have received a substantial dowry.

Having the financial wherewithal, Donaldson become a junior partner of Alexander Kincaid from 1751–58. In its first year, Kincaid & Donaldson published Dr. Francis Home's Essay on the Contents and Virtues of Dunse-Spaw and Henry Home's Essays on the Principles of Morality and Natural Religion. In 1752, Kincaid & Donaldson was the sole publisher David Hume's Political Discourses. After Donaldson left Kincaid, his involvement with the Scottish Enlightenment's new books was essentially over, with the exception of his involvement with James Boswell. Kincaid went on to become Lord Provost of Edinburgh.

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