In 1795, Elihu Phinney was invited to Cooperstown by Judge William Cooper. Here, Elihu opened the first printing and publishing business, becoming the first printer in Cooperstown.
The judge’s son became interested in typesetting and learned the art from Elihu. Later this son, James Fenimore Cooper, would turn to writing. Elihu’s printing business contributed to the rise of Coopertown’s importance in printing.
His sons, Henry and Elihu took over the printing business after his death, remaining in Cooperstown until 1848, when the company, then styled as H. & E. Phinney, moved to Buffalo, N.Y.
The connection between the Coopers and the Phinneys continued as James’ daughter Caroline married the Elihu Sr.’s grandson in 1849.

The mysterious print on the back cover of the interior wrapper reads“Oratorio to aid in the rebuilding of Zion Church.” Zion Church may be another name for a St. Paul’s in the same county as Cooperstown. But what happened to the church that it needed to be rebuilt? There is a short and inconclusive reference to it on page 39 in Morgan Dix’s Historical Recollections of S. Paul’s Chapel, New York (1867).