Born Manchester. Author, best known for "Confessions of an English Opium-Eater" (1821). Was as addicted to books as much as to drink or opium, sometimes renting an extra lodging (which he could not afford) because the first was full of books and papers. Reacted badly to his sister's death when he was a child, dwelling on the details of her corpse and post-mortem for longer than is healthy, Developed a profitable line writing sensational reports of murders, rapes, etc. for the mass magazine audience. Wrote "On murder considered as one of the fine arts" and stories of criminal detection which put him among the early detective fiction writers. Married and had 8 children but then moaned about how the noisy, hungry children kept inspiration at bay. His solution was to leave them in poverty for most of the time while he lived with friends, doing little work. Died at home in Edinburgh.
This section lists the memorials where the subject on this page is commemorated:
Thomas de Quincey
Commemorated ati
Thomas de Quincey
Note: "Quincey" seems to be the accepted spelling rather than the "Quincy" o...
Other Subjects
Baron Paul Julius Reuter
Pioneer of telegraphy and news reporting. Born Kassel, Germany as Israel Josaphat. He set up a pigeon post service between Aachen and Brussels. Attracted by the establishment of the Dover-Calais t...
Henry Blackburn
Editor of 'London Society', ‘an illustrated magazine of light and amusing literature’. He was close friends with Randolph Caldecott whose illustrations often appeared in his publications.
Julius Salter Elias, Viscount Southwood
'Fairlight' in Wood Lane, Highgate, was built in 1908 for Julius Elias. who was the head of the publishing firm, Odhams Press, and later became Viscount Southwood. There is a book by R.J Minney, 'V...
Person, Journalism / Publishing, Philanthropy, Politics & Administration
Ruy Barbosa
Born Ruy Barbosa D'Oliveira in Salvador da Bahia, Brazil. A defender of civil liberties, he fought for the abolition of slavery in Brazil. He fled to London after being accused of being a conspirat...
Person, Journalism / Publishing, Law, Politics & Administration, Race Issues, Brazil
Sir Henry Morton Stanley
Explorer and journalist, born as John Rowlands at Denbigh, Wales. Illegitimate and brought up in a workhouse, he sailed to America as a cabin boy in 1859. He befriended a trader called Henry Hope S...
Person, Exploring, Journalism / Publishing, Race Issues, Seriously Famous, Africa, USA, Wales