Alfred Williams (Poet)
Encyclopedia
Alfred Mason Williams was a poet
who lived in the vicinity of Swindon
, UK. He was almost entirely self taught, producing his most famous work, Life in a Railway Factory (1915), at night after completing a gruelling day's work in the Great Western Railway
works in Swindon. He was nicknamed “The Hammerman Poet”.
Alfred was born in Cambria Cottage in the village of South Marston
, the son of a carpenter, and grew up in poverty after his father abandoned his wife and eight children. He became a farm labourer at eleven, and then, when he was fifteen he entered Swindon railway works, where he worked in the Stamping Shop for the next twenty-three years.
Married in 1903, Alfred pursued a demanding schedule of full-time work and private study. He published his first of book of poems in 1909, Songs in Wiltshire, but his health declined and he left the factory in 1914.
Alfred Williams produced a total of thirteen books but died in poverty in 1930 in South Marston. Life in a Railway Factory has been described as “undisputed as the most important literary work ever produced in Swindon, about Swindon.”
Poet
A poet is a person who writes poetry. A poet's work can be literal, meaning that his work is derived from a specific event, or metaphorical, meaning that his work can take on many meanings and forms. Poets have existed since antiquity, in nearly all languages, and have produced works that vary...
who lived in the vicinity of Swindon
Swindon
Swindon is a large town within the borough of Swindon and ceremonial county of Wiltshire, in South West England. It is midway between Bristol, west and Reading, east. London is east...
, UK. He was almost entirely self taught, producing his most famous work, Life in a Railway Factory (1915), at night after completing a gruelling day's work in the Great Western Railway
Great Western Railway
The Great Western Railway was a British railway company that linked London with the south-west and west of England and most of Wales. It was founded in 1833, received its enabling Act of Parliament in 1835 and ran its first trains in 1838...
works in Swindon. He was nicknamed “The Hammerman Poet”.
Alfred was born in Cambria Cottage in the village of South Marston
South Marston
South Marston is a village in north-east Wiltshire, England. The name Marston derives from the common English village name meaning marsh farm. It is part of the Borough of Swindon. Early in World War 2, a Ministry of Aircraft Production shadow factory and airfield were built for the Phillips &...
, the son of a carpenter, and grew up in poverty after his father abandoned his wife and eight children. He became a farm labourer at eleven, and then, when he was fifteen he entered Swindon railway works, where he worked in the Stamping Shop for the next twenty-three years.
Married in 1903, Alfred pursued a demanding schedule of full-time work and private study. He published his first of book of poems in 1909, Songs in Wiltshire, but his health declined and he left the factory in 1914.
Alfred Williams produced a total of thirteen books but died in poverty in 1930 in South Marston. Life in a Railway Factory has been described as “undisputed as the most important literary work ever produced in Swindon, about Swindon.”
External links
- Alfred Williams Heritage Society.
- Alfred Williams biography at SwindonWeb
- Alfred Williams images in the Swindon Local Studies Flickr Gallery