The Gazette did a story about Shields born author Ernest Seton Thompson.
I though his name was Ernest Thompson Seton. I am sure there was a house in Beach Road with a plaque bearing his name. Can anyone confirm?
South Shields author
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Delilahcat
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- Location: Marsden South Shields
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baldy.smith
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Delilahcat
- Full Time Gobber
- Posts: 4834
- Joined: Tue Jan 03, 2006 2:25 pm
- Location: Marsden South Shields
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Delilahcat
- Full Time Gobber
- Posts: 4834
- Joined: Tue Jan 03, 2006 2:25 pm
- Location: Marsden South Shields
Dear Delilah and Baldy,
I've been compiling material on NE authors and famous people for years. It's all on my site and childishly easy to navigate. Do give it a try. Here's my entry on Seton's daughter Anya, followed by her dad.
ANYA SETON (1904 - 1990)
Anya Seton was the daughter of Ernest Thompson Seton (q.v.). A well-known historical novelist in America, she produced best-sellers in Dragonwyck (1941) and Foxfire (1950) both made into Hollywood films.
Her novel Devil Water concerns James, the luckless Earl of Derwentwater and his involvement with the Jacobite rising of 1715. She also narrates the story of his brother Charles, beheaded after the 1745 rebellion, the last man to d*e for the cause. The action of the novel moves back and forth between Northumberland, Tyneside, London and America. General Tom Forster, and his intrepid sister Dorothy both make an appearance, along with members of well-known Border families like the Widdringtons and Collingwoods.
Anya Seton stated that the book developed out of her love for Northumberland. Her grandmother was a Snowdon, and Anya certainly visited her Snowdon cousins at Felton. Billy Pigg, the celebrated Northumbrian piper played 'Derwentwater's Farewell' especially for her. The novel shows thorough research of events and places, though the accents are a little wayward. Anya Seton said that her greatest debt of all was to Miss Amy Flagg of Westoe Village in South Shields, who provided her with much documentation and information.
ERNEST THOMPSON SETON (1860 - 1946)
Seton was actually born Ernest Evan Seton Thompson at 43 Beach Road, South Shields, where there is a plaque. The family, which included ten sons, emigrated to Canada in 1866. Seton gained experience as a naturalist by trailing and hunting in the prairie country of Manitoba, and used this knowledge as the basis for his animal stories; his artistic training enabled him to illustrate his own books. His most popular book was Wild Animals I Have Known (1898), about which he lectured to the Newcastle Lit and Phil in 1904. A curious work was his The Natural History of the Ten Commandments (1907), moralistic tales purporting to show wild creatures obeying the commandments.
Seton fought for the establishment of reservations for the Indians, and parks for threatened wildlife species. He later became chairman of the committee which established the Boy Scouts of America. As well as further books on scouting and woodcraft, he wrote an autobiography, published in 1940. Seton's writings greatly influenced Lord Baden-Powell (q.v.) in setting up the Boy Scout movement. Other admirers have included Gavin Maxwell, George Orwell (qq.v.) and Richard Adams, who acknowledges Seton's influence on Watership Down, the best-selling rabbit saga of recent years. In his Plague Dogs, Adams has the 'Tod' (fox) speaking pure Geordie - tappy-lappying and all!
You're not often wrong, Baldy, but you're right again.
He adopted the Seton bit (according to the Gazette) as a link to his (supposed) ancestor, the last Earl of Winton - first as Seton Thompson, then finally as Thompson Seton. I've heard that story before.
Beach Road was then known as Wellington Terrace. According to the George Orwell entry on my site, Orwell's wife Eileen (O'Shaughnessy) lived there with her family in Westgate House, still extant. I think I saw it in the Gazette a year or two back.
Another resident was A.E. Stoddart the great cricketer, after whom Stoddart Street is named. He was born at no. 10. He captained the England representative side which won the Ashes in Australia in 1894.
I've been compiling material on NE authors and famous people for years. It's all on my site and childishly easy to navigate. Do give it a try. Here's my entry on Seton's daughter Anya, followed by her dad.
ANYA SETON (1904 - 1990)
Anya Seton was the daughter of Ernest Thompson Seton (q.v.). A well-known historical novelist in America, she produced best-sellers in Dragonwyck (1941) and Foxfire (1950) both made into Hollywood films.
Her novel Devil Water concerns James, the luckless Earl of Derwentwater and his involvement with the Jacobite rising of 1715. She also narrates the story of his brother Charles, beheaded after the 1745 rebellion, the last man to d*e for the cause. The action of the novel moves back and forth between Northumberland, Tyneside, London and America. General Tom Forster, and his intrepid sister Dorothy both make an appearance, along with members of well-known Border families like the Widdringtons and Collingwoods.
Anya Seton stated that the book developed out of her love for Northumberland. Her grandmother was a Snowdon, and Anya certainly visited her Snowdon cousins at Felton. Billy Pigg, the celebrated Northumbrian piper played 'Derwentwater's Farewell' especially for her. The novel shows thorough research of events and places, though the accents are a little wayward. Anya Seton said that her greatest debt of all was to Miss Amy Flagg of Westoe Village in South Shields, who provided her with much documentation and information.
ERNEST THOMPSON SETON (1860 - 1946)
Seton was actually born Ernest Evan Seton Thompson at 43 Beach Road, South Shields, where there is a plaque. The family, which included ten sons, emigrated to Canada in 1866. Seton gained experience as a naturalist by trailing and hunting in the prairie country of Manitoba, and used this knowledge as the basis for his animal stories; his artistic training enabled him to illustrate his own books. His most popular book was Wild Animals I Have Known (1898), about which he lectured to the Newcastle Lit and Phil in 1904. A curious work was his The Natural History of the Ten Commandments (1907), moralistic tales purporting to show wild creatures obeying the commandments.
Seton fought for the establishment of reservations for the Indians, and parks for threatened wildlife species. He later became chairman of the committee which established the Boy Scouts of America. As well as further books on scouting and woodcraft, he wrote an autobiography, published in 1940. Seton's writings greatly influenced Lord Baden-Powell (q.v.) in setting up the Boy Scout movement. Other admirers have included Gavin Maxwell, George Orwell (qq.v.) and Richard Adams, who acknowledges Seton's influence on Watership Down, the best-selling rabbit saga of recent years. In his Plague Dogs, Adams has the 'Tod' (fox) speaking pure Geordie - tappy-lappying and all!
You're not often wrong, Baldy, but you're right again.
He adopted the Seton bit (according to the Gazette) as a link to his (supposed) ancestor, the last Earl of Winton - first as Seton Thompson, then finally as Thompson Seton. I've heard that story before.
Beach Road was then known as Wellington Terrace. According to the George Orwell entry on my site, Orwell's wife Eileen (O'Shaughnessy) lived there with her family in Westgate House, still extant. I think I saw it in the Gazette a year or two back.
Another resident was A.E. Stoddart the great cricketer, after whom Stoddart Street is named. He was born at no. 10. He captained the England representative side which won the Ashes in Australia in 1894.
Last edited by Jerry on Mon Jan 15, 2007 6:04 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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baldy.smith