Author: Everett, James
Biography:
EVERETT, James (1784-1872: ODNB)
pseudonym William COWPER
Methodist minister, religious writer and reformer. He was born at Alnwick, Northumberland, to John Everett and Margaret (Bowmaker) Everett. Although he received some education at a local school, his father’s early death meant that he was required to support his mother and Everett was apprenticed to a grocer. He converted to Methodism in 1803 and four years later he was accepted by the Wesleyans for their itinerant ministry. In 1810 he married Elizabeth Hutchinson. A serious throat infection put an end to his preaching and he began operating as a bookseller first in Sheffield and later in Manchester. In 1834 his health allowed him to resume preaching (at Newcastle upon Tyne and at York) but by 1842 he was again obliged to quit. However, he continued very actively engaged in the Methodist church until his criticisms of the direction taken by its policies led to his 1849 expulsion from the Wesleyan conference. A large number of others also seceded to join him in forming an alternative, the United Methodist Free Churches, and he was named the first president of the new assembly. Everett was a prolific author, particularly of biography, magazine articles, and church history. He died at Sunderland, leaving behind a significant collection of Methodist literature. Although library catalogues identify him as the author of The Yorkshire Hunt, accounts of his life mention neither the book nor his adoption of “William Cowper” as a pseudonym. (ODNB 20 Nov 2018)