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Author: Brayley, Edward Wedlake

Biography:

BRAYLEY, Edward Wedlake (c. 1773-1854: ODNB)

The birth year of 1773 derives from John Britton’s memoir of his friend but no record has been located and the names of his parents are not known. Census records are inconsistent about his age—in 1841 his birth year is given as 1776 but in 1851 it appears as 1774—and death notices give his age as 85 in 1854. Although Britton states that he came from Lambeth, Surrey, he may have been born elsewhere; there are almost no records for any individuals with his surname in Surrey and Wedlake is common only in Somerset. Possibly, for reasons unknown, Brayley changed his name or, at least, the spelling. He met Britton when he was apprenticed to an enameller in London and the two men later collaborated in writing and editing the first ten volumes of The Beauties of England and Wales. They were competent topographers and Brayley contributed most of the text while Britton produced the illustrations. Brayley married Ann Jones at St. John, Clerkenwell, on 24 Dec. 1800; their eldest child, Edward William Brayley, was baptised at St. James, Clerkenwell, on 19 Nov. 1801. They had three more children but only the eldest son and a daughter, Ann, survived their father. Brayley wrote numerous other works, including The History of Surrey in five volumes (1841-44) but he struggled financially and spent time in King’s Bench prison for debt. John Britton applied to the RLF on his behalf in June 1812, citing Brayley’s embarrassment at being dependent on charity. He was awarded £50 in total (£30 in 1812 and £20 in 1819). In 1822 he was made a fellow of the Society of Antiquaries. His financial situation must have improved in 1825 when he was appointed secretary of the Russell Institution for the Promotion of Literary and Scientific Knowledge; he held the post until his death and the family lived at the institute’s premises at 55 Great Coram Street, London. Among his responsibilities was cataloguing the library. Ann Brayley had died by the time of the 1851 Census when Brayley was living alone with his daughter. He died of cholera on 23 Sept. 1854. (ODNB 25 June 2023; ancestry.co.uk 25 June 2023; John Britton, A Brief Memoir of Edward Wedlake Brayley, F.S.A. [1855]; RLF file 284; Morning Herald 26 Sept. 1854)

 

Books written (1):