Adam Black founded his publishing business in 1807 in Edinburgh and was later joined by his nephew Charles. They are best known for publishing the 7th, 8th and 9th editions of the Encyclopaedia Britannica and acquiring the copyright of the Waverley novels. They first began publishing their travel guide books, Black's Guides, in 1839, and the last edition of their Tourist's Guide to Scotland was published in 1881.