William Edward Armytage Axon (13 January 1846 – 27 December 1913) was an English librarian,

antiquary An antiquarian or antiquary () is an aficionado or student of antiquities or things of the past. More specifically, the term is used for those who study history with particular attention to ancient artefacts, archaeological and historic sit ...

and journalist for the ''

Manchester Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...

''. He contributed to the ''

Dictionary of National Biography The ''Dictionary of National Biography'' (''DNB'') is a standard work of reference on notable figures from British history, published since 1885. The updated ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'' (''ODNB'') was published on 23 September ...

'' under his initials W. E. A. A. He was also a notable

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 ...

activist.

Biography

Early life

Axon was born in

Chorlton-on-Medlock Chorlton-on-Medlock is an inner city area of Manchester, England. Historic counties of England, Historically in Lancashire, Chorlton-on-Medlock is bordered to the north by the River Medlock, which runs immediately south of Manchester city cen ...

, Manchester, on 13 January 1846. He was the illegitimate child of Edward Armytage, a clothing manufacturer, and Lydia Whitehead, a 15 year old servant girl in his household. He was later adopted by the Axon family and took on their surname. His adoptive family faced financial struggles, and his fragile health kept him from attending regular school. Instead, he gained literacy skills from his adoptive sisters and a Baptist Sunday school in

Hulme Hulme () is an inner city area and electoral ward of Manchester, in Greater Manchester, England, immediately south of Manchester city centre. It has a significant industrial heritage. Historically in Lancashire, the name Hulme is derived from ...

. From a young age, he displayed a remarkable ability to absorb knowledge, an extraordinary memory, and a deep love of books and learning.

Career

Axon was best known as an antiquary and a bibliographer, but his interests were extremely varied. As honorary secretary of the Manchester and Salford Sunday Society he took a prominent part in the agitation for the opening of the Manchester libraries on Sunday. Axon had begun life as a boy in the Manchester Reference Library, and was early drawn to literary pursuits. Later he wrote much on the folklore and historical associations of Lancashire and Cheshire, and the antiquaries of these counties made him their president. Besides this, as a member of the English Dialect Society Axon wrote many tales and sketches illustrating the dialect and customs of the county in which he lived. Axon was also the author of ''Cobden as a Citizen'' in 1907. He published his study of Anna Jane Vardill's poem that was a sequel to Coleridge's poem Christabel in 1908. It was claimed that she had not written it but based on new evidence he was able to assure the

Royal Society of Literature The Royal Society of Literature (RSL) is a learned society founded in 1820 by King George IV to "reward literary merit and excite literary talent". A charity that represents the voice of literature in the UK, the RSL has about 800 Fellows, elect ...

that the poem had been written by her. Axon for 30 years was on the literary staff of the ''

'', and for his general literary work was distinguished by the

University of Manchester The University of Manchester is a public university, public research university in Manchester, England. The main campus is south of Manchester city centre, Manchester City Centre on Wilmslow Road, Oxford Road. The University of Manchester is c ...

, which conferred on him the honorary degree of

Master of Arts A Master of Arts ( or ''Artium Magister''; abbreviated MA or AM) is the holder of a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is usually contrasted with that of Master of Science. Those admitted to the degree have ...

in 1913. He was a

Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature The Royal Society of Literature (RSL) is a learned society founded in 1820 by George IV of the United Kingdom, King George IV to "reward literary merit and excite literary talent". A charity that represents the voice of literature in the UK, the ...

, an honorary

LL.D. A Doctor of Laws (LL.D.) is a doctoral degree in legal studies. The abbreviation LL.D. stands for ''Legum Doctor'', with the double “L” in the abbreviation referring to the early practice in the University of Cambridge to teach both canon law ...

Wilberforce University Wilberforce University (WU) is a private university in Wilberforce, Ohio. It is one of three historically black universities established before the American Civil War. Founded in 1856 by the Methodist Episcopal Church (MEC), it is named after ...

, and contributed articles to the ''

Encyclopædia Britannica The is a general knowledge, general-knowledge English-language encyclopaedia. It has been published by Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. since 1768, although the company has changed ownership seven times. The 2010 version of the 15th edition, ...

'', ''

American Encyclopædia American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, p ...

'', and ''

Notes and Queries ''Notes and Queries'', also styled ''Notes & Queries'', is a long-running quarterly scholarly journal that publishes short articles related to " English language and literature, lexicography, history, and scholarly antiquarianism".From the inner ...

''. Obituary: Dr. William Edward Armytage Axon in ''

The Times ''The Times'' is a British Newspaper#Daily, daily Newspaper#National, national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its modern name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its si ...

'', December 30, 1913; Issue 40407; pg. 9; col B

Vegetarianism

Axon was an ardent

vegetarian 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 ...

and member of the Anti-Tobacco League. He has been described as a "leading figure of the vegetarian movement." He served as vice-president and honorary secretary of the

Vegetarian Society The Vegetarian Society of the United Kingdom (VSUK) is a British Registered charity in England, registered charity. It campaigns for dietary changes, licenses Vegetarian Society Approved trademarks for Vegetarianism, vegetarian and Veganism, v ...

, as well as treasurer. He served as president from 1911 to 1913. Axon contributed articles on the

history of vegetarianism History is the systematic study of the past, focusing primarily on the human past. As an academic discipline, it analyses and interprets evidence to construct narratives about what happened and explain why it happened. Some theorists categ ...

to John Harvey Kellogg's ''

Good Health ''Good Health'' is the first studio album by Pretty Girls Make Graves. Originally released in 2002 by Lookout Records, it was re-released by Matador Records with an additional 4 songs made up of the band's first self-titled EP. This album is of ...

'' journal. He was editor of the ''Vegetarian Messenger''. Axon wrote the

preface __NOTOC__ A preface () or proem () is an introduction to a book or other literature, literary work written by the work's author. An introductory essay written by a different person is a ''foreword'' and precedes an author's preface. The preface o ...

for the 1884 edition of Percy Bysshe Shelley's ''

A Vindication of Natural Diet ''A Vindication of Natural Diet'' is an 1813 book by Percy Bysshe Shelley on vegetarianism and animal rights. It was first written as part of the notes to '' Queen Mab'', which was privately printed in 1813. Later in the same year the essay wa ...

''. He also authored ''

Shelley's Vegetarianism ''Shelley's Vegetarianism'' is a 1891 pamphlet on the vegetarianism of Percy Bysshe Shelley by William Axon, published by the Vegetarian Society. It is a printing of a lecture delivered by Axon before the Shelley Society, at University College in ...

'', in 1891. Historian

Ina Zweiniger-Bargielowska Ina-Maria Zweiniger-Bargielowska, known professionally as Ina Zweiniger-Bargielowska, is a British-American academic historian specialising in 20th-century Britain. Since 2010, she has been Professor of History at the University of Illinois at ...

has noted that "Axon abhorred cruelty to animals and the degrading work of the 'slaughterman, reeking with blood and striking to death with remorseless blows a creature that shares with him the gift of life".

Personal life and death

Axon married Jane Woods in 1866; they had three children. After her death in 1899, he married Setta Lueft; they had one child. Axon's second wife died in 1910. Axon was a teetotaller and a member of the

Bible Christian Church The Bible Christian Church was a Methodist denomination founded by William O'Bryan (born Bryant), a Wesleyan Methodist local preacher, on 18 October 1815 in North Cornwall. The first society, consisting of just 22 members, met at Lake Farm ...

. Axon was elected to membership of the Manchester Literary and Philosophical Society on 3 November 1874 Axon died at home on 27 December 1913 and was buried at St Paul's Church in

Kersal Kersal is a district of Salford, Greater Manchester, England, northwest of Manchester city centre. History Kersal has been variously known as Kereshale, Kershal, Kereshole, Carshall and Kersall.see'Townships: Broughton', A History of the Coun ...

, Manchester.

Bibliography

*1877: ''Handbook of the Public Libraries of Manchester and Salford''. Manchester:

Abel Heywood Abel Heywood (25 February 1810 – 19 August 1893) was an English publisher, Radicalism (historical), radical and mayor of Manchester. Early life Abel was born into a poor family in Prestwich, who moved to Manchester after Heywood's father ...

and Son. *1879
''John Ruskin: A Bibliographical Biography''
*1883
''Lancashire Gleanings''
*1884
''Cheshire Gleanings''
*1888
''Stray Chapters in Literature, Folk-lore, and Archaeology''
*1890
''Thomas Taylor, the Platonist''
*1891
''Shelley's Vegetarianism''
*1893
''The Literature of Vegetarianism''
*1897
''Bygone Sussex''
*1899
''Echoes of Old Lancashire''
*1899
''Ortensio Lando, a humorist of the Renaissance''
on

Ortensio Lando Ortensio Lando or Landi ( – ) was an Italian writer of satires and translations. He is also sometimes known by a Latin pseudonym of Hortensius Tranquillus. Biography Ortensio Lando was born in Milan, Italy, and around the year 1523 he entered an ...

*1907: ''Cobden as a Citizen'' *1908: ''Anna Jane Vardill Niven''

Edited works

*1886: ''The Annals of Manchester: a chronological record from the earliest times to the end of 1885''. Manchester: J. Heywood, Deansgate and Ridgefield ("The volume now offered to the public, as a revised edition of the ''Manchester Historical Recorder'', is virtually a new work ...". - preface)
electronic version
* ''Collected sermons, 1631–1659'' of

Thomas Fuller Thomas Fuller (baptised 19 June 1608 – 16 August 1661) was an English churchman and historian. He is now remembered for his writings, particularly his ''Worthies of England'', published in 1662, after his death. He was a prolific author, and ...

, Volume 1 edited by

John Eglington Bailey John Eglington Bailey (1840–1888) was an English antiquary, Secretary of the Chetham Society and Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries. Life Born at Edgbaston, Birmingham, on 13 February 1840, he was the son of Charles Bailey, by his wife Ma ...

. Completed by William E. A. Axon (1891) * ''Collected sermons, 1631–1659'' Volume 2 edited by John Eglington Bailey. Completed by William E. A. Axon (1891)Collected sermons, 1631–1659
Volume 2, edited by John Eglington Bailey. Completed by William E. A. Axon (1891)

Contributions to the DNB

*Ashworth, John *Banks, George Linnaeus *Bellot, Thomas *Bennis, George Geary *Blythe, John Dean *Bowers, George Hull *Bradberry, David *Brandwood, James *Brittain, Thomas *Brooke, Henry *Brookes, Joshua *Brotherton, Edward *Bruen, John *Butterworth, James *Calvert, Charles *Calvert, Thomas *Canne, John *Castillo, John *Caw, John Young *Clayton, John (1754–1843) *Cole, Thomas (1628–1697) *Crestadoro, Andrea

Notes

References

;Attribution *

External links

* * *
William Axon papers
at the

John Rylands Library The John Rylands Research Institute and Library is a Victorian era, late-Victorian Gothic Revival architecture, neo-Gothic building on Deansgate in Manchester, England. It is part of the University of Manchester. The library, which opened to t ...

.
Images of William E. A. Axon
at the Manchester Archives {{DEFAULTSORT:Axon, William 1846 births 1913 deaths 19th-century English historians 19th-century English male writers 20th-century English historians 20th-century English male writers Anti-smoking activists Contributors to the Dictionary of National Biography Contributors to the Encyclopædia Britannica English antiquarians English biographers English librarians English male biographers English male journalists English male non-fiction writers English temperance activists English vegetarianism activists Historians of vegetarianism Lancashire and Cheshire Antiquarian Society Manchester Literary and Philosophical Society People associated with the Vegetarian Society The Guardian journalists Vegetarianism writers Writers from Manchester Bible Christians Journalists from Manchester Activists from Manchester