Annie Matheson
Annie Matheson was an English poet, essayist, and biographer born in 1853 in Blackheath, London. She grew up in Oswestry, Shropshire, where she began writing poetry, dedicating her works to her family and expressing her creative spirit. Matheson published several collections of lyric poetry, gaining recognition in the 1890s, with her first volume, "The Religion of Humanity, and Other Poems," released in 1890. She also contributed essays and biographical works, including "By Divers Paths: The Note-Book of Seven Wayfarers" in 1909, which honored other literary figures. A notable egalitarian feminist, her poetry explored themes such as ethics, spirituality, and social reform, and her works were featured in prominent periodicals of her time. Matheson passed away in 1924 in Woking, Surrey, leaving behind a substantial literary legacy of over ten volumes. Described as charming and possessing a self-effacing humor, she garnered many friendships throughout her life, impacting the literary community significantly.
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Subject Terms
Annie Matheson
Writer
- Born: 1853
- Birthplace: Blackheath, England
- Died: March 16, 1924
- Place of death: Surrey, England
Biography
Annie Matheson was born in 1853 in Blackheath (southeast London), England, to Congregationalist minister James and mother Elizabeth Cripps Matheson. The family then made a home in Oswestry, Shropshire, where Matheson wrote poetry she would later dedicate as “nothing else to give.” While she gave much to the poetry world, and while she contributed essays and biographies as well, she left little records of her personal life. She published a few collections of lyric poetry which were evidently well received in the 1890’s; she later published a collection of essays in 1909, By Divers Paths: The Note-Book of Seven Wayfarers, a tribute work to fellow literary figures.
Noted as an egalitarian feminist, Matheson’s poetry covered expansive themes—ethics, spirituality, and calls for social reform. A number of poems were published in the periodicals of the time: The Athenaeum, The Guardian, Macmillan’s Magazine, and Pall Mall Gazette. Her first volume of poetry, The Religion of Humanity, and Other Poems (1890), was dedicated to her parents.
Regardless of the specifics of her intended audiences, by the time Annie Matheson died in 1924 at Honeysuckle Cottage, Maybury Hill, Woking, in Surrey, England, she had created an oeuvre of poetry, biography, essays, and edited works that left readers with over ten volumes of literature. According to The Times’ obituary writer, she was a woman who had charm, self-effacing humor, and many friends.