The ''Tipperary Free Press'' was a former

regional newspaper A newspaper is a periodical publication containing written information about current events and is often typed in black ink with a white or gray background. Newspapers can cover a wide variety of fields such as politics, business, sports, art, ...

, printed in the mid-19th century in

Clonmel Clonmel () is the county town and largest settlement of County Tipperary, Republic of Ireland, Ireland. The town is noted in Irish history for its resistance to the Cromwellian conquest of Ireland, Cromwellian army which sacked the towns of Dro ...

County Tipperary County Tipperary () is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Munster and the Southern Region, Ireland, Southern Region. The county is named after the town of Tipperary (tow ...

in Ireland. The bi-weekly newspaper, which was in print from 1826 into the early 1880s, was distributed in counties Tipperary, Waterford, Cork, Limerick and parts of Kilkenny.

History

The ''Tipperary Free Press'' was first printed in December 1826. It played a role in championing the cause of Catholic emancipation in Ireland, with a liberal and nationalist stance under its Catholic leadership. John Hackett, a politician, printer, bookseller and stationer who operated the first public library in the town, printed the newspaper on his premises at J. Hackett, Public Library, 101 Main Street (now O'Connell Street) in Clonmel. Editorship was successively passed over to his three sons, each following his footsteps as a mayor of Clonmel, himself having been in 1843 the first Catholic mayor of Clonmel since 1688. The newspaper was published bi-weekly, reaching a circulation of 43,250 by 1832. It became the "chief organ" for the

Catholic Association The Catholic Association was an Irish Roman Catholic political organization set up by Daniel O'Connell in the early nineteenth century to campaign for Catholic emancipation within the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. It was one of ...

and Emancipation Party in the Clonmel constituency, South Tipperary and neighbouring counties. In 1838, the smaller ''Clonmel Advertiser'' was bought by John Hackett and added as a sub-title to the ''Tipperary Free Press''. Under the proprietorship of William Carson from 1811, the ''Clonmel Advertiser'' swayed from its initial conservatism to supporting both

Daniel O'Connell Daniel(I) O’Connell (; 6 August 1775 – 15 May 1847), hailed in his time as The Liberator, was the acknowledged political leader of Ireland's Roman Catholic majority in the first half of the 19th century. His mobilisation of Catholic Irelan ...

's vision of Catholic emancipation and the anti-tithe movement, also supported by the ''Tipperary Free Press''. However, following Carson's death in 1832, the ''Clonmel Advertiser'' became strongly opposed to O'Connell under the more staunchly protestant John Kempston until his death in 1838 and the subsequent buyout by Hackett. ''

The Nenagh Guardian ''The Nenagh Guardian'' is a weekly local newspaper that circulates in County Tipperary, Republic of Ireland, Ireland. The newspaper is based in Nenagh, County Tipperary, but is printed by the ''Limerick Leader'' in Limerick. The title incorpora ...

'' was then established by Kempton's son, in opposition to the ''Tipperary Free Press''. Contributors to the ''Tipperary Free Press'' included Maurice Lenihan,

Richard Lalor Sheil Richard Lalor Sheil (17 August 1791 – 23 May 1851), Irish politician, writer and orator, was born at Drumdowney, Slieverue, County Kilkenny, Ireland. The family was temporarily domiciled at Drumdowney while their new mansion at Bellevue, near ...

William Cooke Taylor William Cooke Taylor (1800–1849) was an Irish writer, known as a journalist, historian and Anti-Corn Law propagandist. Life and work He was born at Youghal on 16 April 1800.Royal Society of Antiquaries of Ireland Journal, 1861, p. 263. Throu ...

, General Thomas Perronet Thompson and

Michael Doheny Michael Doheny (22 May 1805 – 1 April 1862Some references give 1862: ) was an Irish writer, lawyer, member of the Young Ireland movement, and co-founder of the Irish Republican Brotherhood, an Irish secret society which would go on to launch ...

. The influence of the newspaper reportedly "faded" after John Hackett's retirement in 1861, and it "went out of existence" following the death of Henry O'Connell Hackett in 1880. It was replaced by the ''Tipperary Independent'' (1880–1892) which first appeared in November 1880.

Editors

* 1826: John Hackett * 1861: William Louis Hackett * 1876: Henry O'Connell Hackett * 1880: Edward Charles Hackett

References

Defunct newspapers published in Ireland Clonmel {{Ireland-newspaper-stub