Edith Carrington (1853 – 23 January 1929) was an English activist and writer. She was an advocate for

animal welfare Animal welfare is the quality of life and overall well-being of animals. Formal standards of animal welfare vary between contexts, but are debated mostly by animal welfare groups, legislators, and academics. Animal welfare science uses measures ...

and

vegetarianism Vegetarianism is the practice of abstaining from the Eating, consumption of meat (red meat, poultry, seafood, insects as food, insects, and the flesh of any other animal). It may also include abstaining from eating all by-products of animal slau ...

. Carrington was for sometime an artist and later wrote several animal stories for children. She was a vocal opponent of

Eleanor Anne Ormerod Eleanor Anne Ormerod (11 May 182819 July 1901) was a pioneer English entomologist. Based on her studies in agriculture, she became one of the first to define the field of agricultural entomology. She published an influential series of articles on ...

's campaign seeking the extermination of the

house sparrow The house sparrow (''Passer domesticus'') is a bird of the Old World sparrow, sparrow family Passeridae, found in most parts of the world. It is a small bird that has a typical length of and a mass of . Females and young birds are coloured pa ...

and was an anti-vivisectionist.

Life and work

Carrington was born in

Swainswick Swainswick is a small village and civil parish, northeast of Bath, on the A46 in the Bath and North East Somerset unitary authority, Somerset, England. The parish has a population of 265. The village name was also spelled Sweyneswik and Sweyne ...

, Bath, into a wealthy family of naturalists.'''' Her parents were Henry Carrington (died 1859) and Emily Heywood Johns (1814–1890). She was influenced by

Charles Kingsley Charles Kingsley (12 June 1819 – 23 January 1875) was a broad church priest of the Church of England, a university professor, social reformer, historian, novelist and poet. He is particularly associated with Christian socialism, the workin ...

, who introduced her to study

natural history Natural history is a domain of inquiry involving organisms, including animals, fungi, and plants, in their natural environment, leaning more towards observational than experimental methods of study. A person who studies natural history is cal ...

and took on herself the "wish for no higher mission than to live and die in the cause of God's beautiful and sinless mute creatures."'''' She wrote regularly in the ''

Animals' Friend The Animals' Friend Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals was an animal welfare organisation founded in 1832 by Lewis Gompertz and T. Forster. Along with the RSPCA, it was a pioneering organisation advocating for animal welfare in the ...

'' (established in 1894), was a collaborator of

Henry Stephens Salt Henry Shakespear Stephens Salt (; 20 September 1851 – 19 April 1939) was a British writer and social reformer. He campaigned for social reform in the fields of prisons, schools, economic institutions, and the treatment of animals. He was a n ...

, and was a participant in the

Humanitarian League The Humanitarian League was a British radical advocacy group formed by Henry S. Salt and others to promote the principle that it is wrong to inflict avoidable suffering on any sentient being. It was based in London and operated between 1891 ...

(established 1891)''.'' Carrington's first book ''Stories for Somebody'' was written when she was 35. She later wrote a number of animal stories for children. One series, ''Animal Life Readers'', edited by Carrington and Ernest Bell was illustrated by

Harrison Weir Harrison William Weir (5 May 18243 January 1906), known as "The Father of the animal fancy, Cat Fancy", was a British artist. He organised the first cat show in England, at the The Crystal Palace, Crystal Palace, London, in July 1871. He and ...

and others. She also ran a children's magazine called ''Our Animal Brothers''. Carrington died at the age of 75, on 23 January 1929 in

Bristol Bristol () is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city, unitary authority area and ceremonial county in South West England, the most populous city in the region. Built around the River Avon, Bristol, River Avon, it is bordered by t ...

.England, Select Dorset Church of England Parish Registers, 1538-1910.England & Wales,

National Probate Calendar The National Probate Calendar is a register of proved wills and administrations in England and Wales since 1858. History The probate calendar was created by the Probate Registry, which was responsible for proving wills and administrations from ...

(Index of Wills and Administrations), 1858-1966. She was buried on 29 January in Alderholt, Dorset.

Selected publications

* ''Stories for Somebody'' * ''Nobody's Business'' (1891) * ''Workers Without Wage'' (1893) * ''Mrs Trimmer's History of the Robins and Keeper's Travels'' (1895) * ''From Many Lands'' (1895) * ''Dick and His Cat'' (1895) * ''Spare the Sparrow'' (1897) * ''Man's Helpers'' (1897) * ''Wonderful Tools'' (1897) * ''The Farmer and the Birds'' (1898) * ''Flower Folk'' * ''Friendship of Animals'' * ''Ten Tales Without a Title'' * ''Bread and Butter Stories'' * ''Appeals on behalf of the Speechless: A Series of Tracts'' * ''The Extermination of Birds'' * ''A Narrow, Narrow World'' * ''A Story of Wings'' * ''Five Stars in a Little Pool'' * ''The Dog: His Rights and Wrongs'' * ''The Cat: Her Place in Society and Treatment'' * ''Animals in the Wrong Place'' * ''Anecdotes of Horses'' * ''The Ass, his Welfare, Wants, and Woes'' * ''Ages Ago''

References

External links

*
Henry S. Salt, "Edith Carrington’s Writings", Vegetarian Review, November 1896
* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Carrington, Edith 1853 births 1929 deaths English animal welfare workers English anti-vivisectionists English children's writers English nature writers English vegetarianism activists Activists from Bath, Somerset Women children's writers Writers from Bath, Somerset