In April 1802, William Flyn (c.1740-1811) retired from business, and also from the publication of The Hibernian Chronicle. The paper continued under the title of the Cork Mercantile Chronicle, and was issued by Flyn's son-in-law, James Haly (c.1765-1850), on behalf of himself and the other proprietors, among them John Pearce (c.1770-1842). In 1826, Pearce appointed Thomas Sheahan (1797-1836) as editor, and under his stewardship the paper became a strong advocate of the movement to repeal the Act of Union, and also campaigned for a better civic response to the economic conditions of Cork's poorer classes. Sheahan also highlighted the shortcomings of the city's response to a major cholera outbreak in Cork in 1832.
The Cork Mercantile Chronicle appeared thrice-weekly, on Monday, Wednesday and Friday, being issued from the paper's office on Patrick's Street.
Special Collections holds 5 loose issues of the Cork Mercantile Chronicle, though some are in poor condition:
In addition there are microfilm copies of 1832-1835 held in the Microform Room.
Other holdings
The largest collection of this newspaper is held by the National Library of Ireland (1802-1835, with gaps). Microfilms of these years are held by Cork City Libraries and Cork County Libraries.
Lane, Fintan. In search of Thomas Sheahan : radical politics in Cork, 1824-1836. Dublin : Irish Academic Press, 2001.
O'Leary, Karen Mary. The 1832 Asiatic cholera epidemic in Cork. M.A. thesis, University College, Cork, 2003.
