Thomas Pearce (1820–1885) was an English clergyman, known under the pseudonym "Idstone" as an author on dogs.

Life

He was born at Hatford, the son of Francis Joseph Pearce, a clergyman who died when he was aged two, and his wife Mary Ann Rickards. He then moved to be with her, in

Leicestershire Leicestershire ( ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the East Midlands of England. It is bordered by Derbyshire, Nottinghamshire and Lincolnshire to the north, Rutland to the east, Northamptonshire to the south-east, Warw ...

. s:Alumni Oxonienses: the Members of the University of Oxford, 1715-1886/Pearce, Thomas (4)Chandler, p. 119 Thomas Pearce matriculated at

Lincoln College, Oxford Lincoln College (formally, The College of the Blessed Mary and All Saints, Lincoln) is a Colleges of the University of Oxford, constituent college of the University of Oxford, in the United Kingdom. Lincoln was founded in 1427 by Richard Flemin ...

in June 1838, as did his elder brother Francis Joseph at Exeter College. The family moved to Oxford at this period. Thomas graduated B.A. in 1843, and M.A. in 1849. Ordained in the

Church of England The Church of England (C of E) is the State religion#State churches, established List of Christian denominations, Christian church in England and the Crown Dependencies. It is the mother church of the Anglicanism, Anglican Christian tradition, ...

in 1845, Pearce then held a number of curacies in southern England. He was in 1845 at Goldenhill; in 1847 at

Highcliffe Highcliffe or Highcliffe-on-Sea is a seaside town in the civil parish of Highcliffe and Walkford, in the unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area of Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole, in the ceremonial county of Dorset in Englan ...

; in 1851 at

Waterperry Waterperry is a village and former civil parish, now in the parish of Waterperry with Thomley, in the South Oxfordshire district, in Oxfordshire and close to the county boundary with Buckinghamshire, England. It is beside the River Thame, about ...

; and in 1852 in Sparsholt, which was at that time in Berkshire.Chandler, p. 122 Pearce became vicar of Morden, Dorset in 1853. He was also rector of

Charborough Charborough is an historic former parish and Manorialism, manor in Dorset, England. It survives today as a hamlet, situated on an affluent of the River Stour, Dorset, River Stour, 6 miles west of Wimborne Minster, but without any of its former adm ...

from 1871. He died on 24 September 1885. His interests including breeding champion

setter The setter is a type of gundog used most often for hunting game such as quail, pheasant, and grouse. In the UK, the four setter breeds, together with the pointers, usually form a subgroup within the gundog group as they share a common fun ...

s, shooting

snipe A snipe is any of about 26 wading bird species in three genera in the family Scolopacidae. They are characterized by a very long, slender bill, eyes placed high on the head, and cryptic/ camouflaging plumage. ''Gallinago'' snipe have a nearly ...

, and collecting birds.

Works

Pearce wrote articles for '' The Field'', from 1865. His works included: *''The Dog: with directions for his treatment'' (1872) *''The Idstone Papers'' (1872) The compilation ''The Dogs of the British Islands'' (1866) was mostly from Pearce's work. The pseudonym Idstone, from a hamlet now in

Oxfordshire Oxfordshire ( ; abbreviated ''Oxon'') is a ceremonial county in South East England. The county is bordered by Northamptonshire and Warwickshire to the north, Buckinghamshire to the east, Berkshire to the south, and Wiltshire and Glouceste ...

, is connected to Pearce family properties that lay in the civil parish of

Ashbury, Oxfordshire Ashbury is a village and large civil parish at the upper end (west) of the Vale of White Horse. It was part of Berkshire until the 1974 boundary changes transferred it to Oxfordshire. The village is centred east of Swindon in neighbouring Wilt ...

. It was a pen name, published in lists of related sporting authors.

Family

Pearce married on 14 July 1852 Fanny Georgina Blake. Her father

Charles Henry Blake Charles Henry Blake (1794–1872) was a British indigo planter and industrialist in India, who became a property developer and railway company director in London. Early life He was the son of Benjamin Blake, a sea captain turned indigo planter in ...

(1794–1872), born in Calcutta and in early life an indigo planter, became a property speculator in London. They had three sons and a daughter: #Frank Charles born 1853. He became a colleague of

John Henry Walsh John Henry Walsh FRCS (21 October 1810 – 12 February 1888) was an English sports writer born in Hackney, London who wrote under the pseudonym "Stonehenge." Walsh was educated in private schools and became a fellow of the Royal College of Surg ...

("Stonehenge") on the staff of ''The Field'', and

Sewallis Shirley Sewallis Shirley may refer to: * Sewallis Edward Shirley, 10th Earl Ferrers (1847–1912), British peer *Sewallis Shirley (MP) (1844–1904), British politician *Sewallis Shirley (1709–1765) Sewallis Shirley (19 October 1709 – 31 October 176 ...

, founder of

The Kennel Club The Royal Kennel Club (KC) is the official kennel club of the United Kingdom. It is the oldest recognised kennel club in the world. Its role is to oversee various canine activities including dog shows, dog agility and working trials. It also ...

, chose him, to edit the initial ''Kennel Club Stud Book'' of 1874. #Evelyn Thomas (c.1855–1894), became an indigo planter in

Bihar Bihar ( ) is a states and union territories of India, state in Eastern India. It is the list of states and union territories of India by population, second largest state by population, the List of states and union territories of India by are ...

, then a tea planter in Checher and

Sylhet Sylhet (; ) is a Metropolis, metropolitan city in the north eastern region of Bangladesh. It serves as the administrative center for both the Sylhet District and the Sylhet Division. The city is situated on the banks of the Surma River and, as o ...

. #Ethel Katharine (1856–1940), who spent time a journalist, and is known as an authority on Dorset heathland flies, through her series of books ''Typical Flies'' of the 1920s illustrated with her own photographs. #Nigel Douglas Frith (1862–1939).

References

Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Pearce, Thomas 1820 births 1885 deaths 19th-century English Anglican priests Dogs in the United Kingdom Alumni of Lincoln College, Oxford English nature writers