William Grimshaw

Shirley Faith Cook (Independent Scholar - Europe)

The Literary Encyclopedia. Volume 1.2.1.05: English Writing and Culture from the Glorious Revolution to the French Revolution, 1689-1789.
Vol. editors: Paul Baines (University of Liverpool), Daniel Cook (University of Dundee), Pat Rogers (University of South Florida), Nicholas Seager (University of Keele)

Dates

Born 14 Sep 1708
Died 6 Apr 1763
Activity c. 1730-1763

Places

Born in England
Active in England

Activities

Primary

Clergyman

Resources

Grimshaw's Works

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When William Grimshaw went to Haworth in Yorkshire in 1742 as perpetual curate of St Michael's, the village was virtually unknown to any apart from the locals. High up in the Pennine range, Haworth was a windswept and desolate spot. John Newton, hymn-writer and vicar of Olney and later of St Mary's, Woolnoth in London, could say of Haworth: ‘The bleak and barren face of the adjacent country was no improper emblem of the state of the inhabitants; who in general had little more sense of religion than their cattle.' But during William Grimshaw's twenty-one-year curacy from 1742-1763 a major change took place.

Today the name ‘Haworth' has become synonymous with the literary achievements of the three Brontë sisters, but there is a strong argument for saying that had it not been for William

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1476 words

Citation: Cook, Shirley Faith. "William Grimshaw". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 10 March 2008 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/speople.php?rec=true&UID=11903, accessed 23 November 2024.]