| AdminHistory | Ebenezer Elliott was a poet who was a champion of humanitarian causes and became known as the 'Corn Law Rhymer' for his campaign to repeal the Corn Laws (blamed for inflicting hardship and suffering on the poor). Elliott was born at the New Foundry, Masbrough, Rotherham on 17 March 1781. He was one of 11 children (eight of whom survived infancy). Elliott's father (also called Ebenezer) was an extreme radical and ultra-Calvinist known as "Devil Elliott" on account of his fiery sermons. From the age of 16 to 24, Elliott worked in father's iron foundry business.
Elliott married Frances (Fanny) Gartside in 1806 and the couple had thirteen children. His wife had a fortune which Elliott invested in his father's share of the iron foundry but the firm faced severe financial difficulties and Elliott was declared bankrupt in 1816. In 1819, Elliott moved to Sheffield and started another business as an iron founder with borrowed capital. The business prospered and, in 1841, Elliott retired to Great Houghton near Barnsley with a fortune of £60,000.
Whilst in Sheffield, Elliott rented a house in Upperthorpe, Sheffield and was an active political poet. He helped to found the Sheffield Mechanics' Anti-Bread Tax Society in 1830 (the first society in England to call for reform of the Corn Laws). In 1834, he helped to establish the Sheffield Anti-Corn Law Society and was also instrumental in setting up the Sheffield Mechanics' Institute. He played an active role in the Sheffield Political Union and campaigned for the 1832 Reform Act. Later, Elliott played a prominent role in the Chartist movement, acting as the Sheffield delegate to the 'Great Public Meeting' in Westminster in 1838, and chairing a meeting in Sheffield when the Charter was introduced to local people. However, Elliott withdrew from the Chartist movement once it espoused the use of violence.
Elliott died on 1 December 1849 aged 68. He was buried at Darfield Churchyard. In 1854, a bronze statue in memory of Elliott was erected in Sheffield Market Place (this was later moved to Weston Park in 1875). |