Author: CUNNINGHAM, William
Biography:
CUNNINGHAM, William (1781-1804: Poems)
An account of his life was published with Poems in 1808 but must have been in circulation from soon after his death; newspaper accounts of his death quote elements of it verbatim and it is included as a note to Thomas Romney Robinson’s (q.v.) “Verses, on the Death of William Cunningham” in the Poetical Register in 1806. No public records that corroborate the account or supply the names of his parents have been found. He was the son of a weaver and born near or in Dromore, Antrim, on 19 Mar. 1781. His formal education was limited to attending the Bishop of Dromore’s Sunday school but he supplemented this by reading. The Bishop of Dromore, Thomas Percy (q.v.), became his patron and sent him to the diocesan school in Dromore where he acquired a classical education. He became an assistant master at the Belfast Academy under the Rev. William Bruce. (Robinson was a pupil at the academy.) However his health was precarious; he had tuberculosis and, despite treatment at the spa at Ballynahinch and from an eminent physician, he died in Magherabeg near Dromore on 27 Dec. 1804. He was buried in Dromore churchyard. Tall and slight, he was said to have closely resembled Oliver Goldsmith in his facial features. He published verse in newspapers and periodicals as “Colin” and “Alonso” and the subscription edition of Poems was issued for the benefit of his mother. (Poems; GM 90 [1801]; Poetical Register [1806]; O’Donoghue; Caledonian Mercury 7 Jan. 1805)
Other Names:
- W. Cunningham