Catherine Payton Phillips
Encyclopedia
Catherine Phillips, born Payton (16 March 1727 – 16 August 1794) was a Quaker Minister
, who travelled in England, Wales, Scotland, Holland and the American colonies. Her Christian name is sometimes spelt "Catharine".
, Worcestershire, the daughter of Henry Payton (1671–1746), and his second wife, Ann (c.1673–1774), daughter of Henry and Elizabeth Fowler of Evesham
. She did not attend school until her late teens but studied and read widely, at home. She spent much time reading to her paralysed father.
, Cornwall.
, Come-to-Good
, in the parish of Kea, near Truro. Her stepson, James Phillips, a Quaker printer, published her Memoirs and some other writing after her death. James's sons, Richard Phillips
(1778–1851) and William Phillips
(1775–1828) were Fellows of the Royal Society.
Recorded Minister
A Recorded Minister was originally a male or female Quaker who was acknowledged to have a gift of spoken ministry.The practice of recording, in a Monthly Meeting Minute, the acknowledgement that a Friend had a gift of spoken ministry began in the 1730s in London Yearly Meeting, according to...
, who travelled in England, Wales, Scotland, Holland and the American colonies. Her Christian name is sometimes spelt "Catharine".
Early life
Catherine Payton was born at DudleyDudley
Dudley is a large town in the West Midlands county of England. At the 2001 census , the Dudley Urban Sub Area had a population of 194,919, making it the 26th largest settlement in England, the second largest town in the United Kingdom behind Reading, and the largest settlement in the UK without...
, Worcestershire, the daughter of Henry Payton (1671–1746), and his second wife, Ann (c.1673–1774), daughter of Henry and Elizabeth Fowler of Evesham
Evesham
Evesham is a market town and a civil parish in the Local Authority District of Wychavon in the county of Worcestershire, England with a population of 22,000. It is located roughly equidistant between Worcester, Cheltenham and Stratford-upon-Avon...
. She did not attend school until her late teens but studied and read widely, at home. She spent much time reading to her paralysed father.
Calling to Ministry
She was recognised as a Minister at Dudley Meeting around 1748, and soon started her many travels, which included a long period in the American colonies.Late marriage
Catherine Payton met William Phillips, a copper agent and widower, in 1749 but did not marry him until 1772, when she moved to his home in RedruthRedruth
Redruth is a town and civil parish traditionally in the Penwith Hundred in Cornwall, United Kingdom. It has a population of 12,352. Redruth lies approximately at the junction of the A393 and A3047 roads, on the route of the old London to Land's End trunk road , and is approximately west of...
, Cornwall.
Death and survivors
She died on 16 August 1794 and was buried at the Quaker Burial GroundFriends Meeting House, Come-to-Good
The Friends Meeting House, Come-to-Good, is a meeting house of the Society of Friends, on the southern border of the Parish of Kea, near Truro in Cornwall, UK. It was also known as Kea Meeting House and Feock Meeting House....
, Come-to-Good
Come-to-Good
Come-to-Good is a small settlement in Cornwall, United Kingdom.It consists of a farm, seven residential houses and a Quaker Meeting House, built in 1710. It lies on the Tregye Road between Carnon Downs and King Harry Ferry...
, in the parish of Kea, near Truro. Her stepson, James Phillips, a Quaker printer, published her Memoirs and some other writing after her death. James's sons, Richard Phillips
Richard Phillips
Richard Phillips may refer to*Richard Phillips , artist from the United States*Richard Phillips , captain of the MV Maersk Alabama taken hostage by Somali pirates in April 2009...
(1778–1851) and William Phillips
William Phillips (geologist)
William Phillips FRS was an English mineralogist and geologist.Phillips was the son of James Phillips, printer and bookseller in London. He became interested in mineralogy and geology, and was one of the founders of the Geological Society of London...
(1775–1828) were Fellows of the Royal Society.
Publications
- An Epistle to Friends in Ireland [on vital religion], Dublin, 1776.
- To the principal inhabitants of the County of Cornwall ... about to assemble at Truro, ... on the mining concerns of this county [urging the formation of “a code of moral stannary laws,” etc.]. (Redruth, 6th of the 12th month, 1791.).
- An address to the principal inhabitants of the county of Cornwall who are about to assemble at Truro ... on the mining concerns of that county, 8 pages. J. West: Stourbridge, 1792
- Considerations on the Causes of the High Price of Grain . . . with occasional remarks 1792.
- Reasons why the People called Quakers cannot so fully unite with the Methodists in their Missions to the Negroes in the West India Islands and Africa as freely to contribute thereto London, 1792.
- To the lower class of people in the western part of the county of Cornwall, J. Phillips: London, 1793, 8 pages .
- The Happy King, a Sacred Poem, with occasional remarks. Respectfully addressed to George IIIGeorge III of the United KingdomGeorge III was King of Great Britain and King of Ireland from 25 October 1760 until the union of these two countries on 1 January 1801, after which he was King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland until his death...
privately printed, 1794 [against Slavery] . - Memoirs of the Life of Catherine Phillips, to which are added some of her Epistles London, James Phillips, 1797 .
- Some of her discourses are appended to those of Samuel Fothergill in Some Discourses, Epistles and Letters by ... S. Fothergill, etc. London, James Phillips, 1803:
- Discourse delivered at Fryar's Meeting HouseQuakers FriarsQuakers Friars is a historic building in Broadmead, Bristol, England.The site is the remains of a Dominican friary, Blackfriars that was established by Maurice de Gaunt, circa 1227....
, Bristol 5th of Fifth Month 1779 p. 149-171 - Prayer: discourse delivered at Westminster 5th Month 19th, 1782 p. 172-176
- A Discourse at the Meeting-House in Westminster 17th of the 5th Month 1780 p. 177-195 .
- Some letters are printed in John Kendall's Letters on Religious Subjects by divers Friends deceased 1805, Volume 2 .
- According to the Gentleman's Magazine obituary (1795), "Mrs. Phillips is said to have had considerable knowledge in medicine and botany, and to have published something on planting and beautifying waste grounds,’ but no such work appears to be known" .
Sources
- Catherine Phillips Memoirs of the Life of Catherine Phillips, to which are added some of her Epistles London: James Phillips, 1797 .
- ODNB article by Gil Skidmore, ‘Phillips , Catherine (1727–1794)’, Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, online edn, Oxford University Press, Sept 2004 accessed 24 June 2010.
- Rebecca Larson Daughters of LightDaughters of LightDaughters of Light: Quaker Women Preaching and Prophesying in the Colonies and Abroad, 1700-1775 is a book by Rebecca Larson, published in 1999 . It provides specific studies of 18th century women ministers, evidencing the progressive nature of Quaker views on women.-Author:Rebecca Larson was born...
: Quaker Women Preaching and Prophesying in the Colonies and Abroad, 1700-1775, New York: Alfred A Knopf, 1999 ISBN 0-679-43762-2. Paperback edition - University of North Carolina Press (September 2000): ISBN 978-0-8078-4897-5. - Dictionary of Quaker Biography (typescript) at Friends House, Euston Road, London NW1 2BJ: articles on Catherine and William Phillips.
- The Gentleman's MagazineThe Gentleman's MagazineThe Gentleman's Magazine was founded in London, England, by Edward Cave in January 1731. It ran uninterrupted for almost 200 years, until 1922. It was the first to use the term "magazine" for a periodical...
1795, i. 259 "Obituaries of remarkable persons; with biographical anecdotes: available online at GoogleBooks - Boase and Courtney's Bibliotheca Cornubiensis Volume 2, pp. 479-480: Lists of Catherine Phillips writings. This source is available online at Internet Archive.
- British Library integrated catalogue
- "The later years of Catharine Phillips" by A. G. K. Leonard in Friends Quarterly Vol. 11, No. 2 (April 1957), p. 91-94.