James Thomson (weaver poet)
Encyclopedia
James Thomson was a Scottish
weaver poet
of Currie
, near Edinburgh
, whose poetry in the Scottish vernacular
was published in Leith
in the early 19th century. He is remembered by the Poet's Glen in Currie, a wooded dell
with a scenic riverside path which is a right of way.
, where his grandfather was a weaver. The name Kenleith comes from Killeith, the chapel of the Water of Leith
, which was the original name for the village of Currie. The farm where Thomson lived lies higher up the Kinleith Burn to the south of Currie Kirk, and is now known as Mid Kinleith.
When six years old, Thomson was sent to the parish school but after he caught smallpox
his grandmother kept him at home and he was taught to read by his grandmother and an aunt. He was given the duty of herding, and each day took his grandfather's cow to the field with ballads or a book of songs in his pocket. He particularly liked the songs of Allan Ramsay
, and learnt The Gentle Shepherd
by heart.
He was apprenticed as a weaver when 13 years old, learning from his grandfather so well that business which had suffered from his grandfather's failing eyesight soon picked up. Thomson also returned to school to learn to write, but his handwriting remained untidy. He was able to buy a fiddle and became a musician, entertaining his friends with music and with his poems. He married a young woman from the same village. His grandfather fell ill and died, and for a while Thomson and his wife lived in the parish of Colinton
before returning to Kenleith. His weaving supported his family and his grandmother.
Thomson and his wife had seven daughters and one son. They lived on Mid Kinleith farm in a small cottage which they named after Mount Parnassus
. During the day he worked as a weaver, and in the evenings composed songs and poems, depicting local characters and places. He became known for useful skills, including trimming the beards of locals, and for his poetry. A new minister in the parish needed his razors sharpened, and when he sent them to Thomson they were returned well sharpened along with suitable verses for the occasion.
, for the Author. This opened with An Account of the Author, giving his life story, and a Dedication to the Merchants of Leith. The contents include a sharp epigram
:
A set of four love songs describes the author being too bold in the first, then in the second bidding farewell to buchts, or sheep-folds, he had become excessively shy. The tune "Logan Water" as well as the first verse of the poem itself refer to the Logan Burn
. In the chorus he laments no longer taking pleasure in the singing of the laverock
, the skylark.
He gained the patronage of General Scott of Malleny, and dedicated to him Poems, chiefly in the Scottish dialect (Leith, 1819). Thomson also published A poem, chiefly in the Scottish dialect, on raising and selling the dead, and the melancholy spectacle which was presented to the inhabitants of Currie, on their taking two dead bodies from a cart in its way from Lanark to Edinburgh (Leith, 1821).
Thomson lived until 1832, in reasonable prosperity.
after passing under a bridge of the Water of Leith Walkway
.
His cottage still stands at Mid Kileith farm, with "Mount Parnassus" still inscribed over the entrance door.
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
weaver poet
Weaver Poets
Weaver Poets, Rhyming Weaver Poets and Ulster Weaver Poets were a collective group of poets belonging to an artistic movement who were both influenced by and contemporaries of Robert Burns and the Romantic movement.-Origins:...
of Currie
Currie
Currie is a civil parish and suburb of Edinburgh, Scotland, situated 10 kilometres south west of the city centre. A former village within the County of Midlothian, it lies to the south west of the city, between Juniper Green and Balerno on the Lanark Road...
, near Edinburgh
Edinburgh
Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland, the second largest city in Scotland, and the eighth most populous in the United Kingdom. The City of Edinburgh Council governs one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas. The council area includes urban Edinburgh and a rural area...
, whose poetry in the Scottish vernacular
Scots language
Scots is the Germanic language variety spoken in Lowland Scotland and parts of Ulster . It is sometimes called Lowland Scots to distinguish it from Scottish Gaelic, the Celtic language variety spoken in most of the western Highlands and in the Hebrides.Since there are no universally accepted...
was published in Leith
Leith
-South Leith v. North Leith:Up until the late 16th century Leith , comprised two separate towns on either side of the river....
in the early 19th century. He is remembered by the Poet's Glen in Currie, a wooded dell
Dell (landform)
In physical geography, a dell is a small wooded valley. Like "dale", the word "dell" is derived from the Old English word dæl.-See also:* Cirque* Combe * Coulee* Dells of the Wisconsin River...
with a scenic riverside path which is a right of way.
Early life
When James Thomson was born on 10 September 1763 in Edinburgh, his parents were too poor to bring him up and when he was four months old they sent him to be brought up by his mother's parents in the small village of Kenleith in the parish of CurrieCurrie
Currie is a civil parish and suburb of Edinburgh, Scotland, situated 10 kilometres south west of the city centre. A former village within the County of Midlothian, it lies to the south west of the city, between Juniper Green and Balerno on the Lanark Road...
, where his grandfather was a weaver. The name Kenleith comes from Killeith, the chapel of the Water of Leith
Water of Leith
The Water of Leith is the main river flowing through Edinburgh, Scotland, to the port of Leith where it flows into the sea via the Firth of Forth.It is long and rises in the Colzium Springs at Millstone Rig of the Pentland Hills...
, which was the original name for the village of Currie. The farm where Thomson lived lies higher up the Kinleith Burn to the south of Currie Kirk, and is now known as Mid Kinleith.
When six years old, Thomson was sent to the parish school but after he caught smallpox
Smallpox
Smallpox was an infectious disease unique to humans, caused by either of two virus variants, Variola major and Variola minor. The disease is also known by the Latin names Variola or Variola vera, which is a derivative of the Latin varius, meaning "spotted", or varus, meaning "pimple"...
his grandmother kept him at home and he was taught to read by his grandmother and an aunt. He was given the duty of herding, and each day took his grandfather's cow to the field with ballads or a book of songs in his pocket. He particularly liked the songs of Allan Ramsay
Allan Ramsay (poet)
Allan Ramsay was a Scottish poet , playwright, publisher, librarian and wig-maker.-Life and career:...
, and learnt The Gentle Shepherd
The Gentle Shepherd
"The Gentle Shepherd" is a pastoral by Allan Ramsay first published in 1725 and dedicated to Susanna Montgomery, Lady Eglinton. The original manuscript was given to Lady Eglinton....
by heart.
He was apprenticed as a weaver when 13 years old, learning from his grandfather so well that business which had suffered from his grandfather's failing eyesight soon picked up. Thomson also returned to school to learn to write, but his handwriting remained untidy. He was able to buy a fiddle and became a musician, entertaining his friends with music and with his poems. He married a young woman from the same village. His grandfather fell ill and died, and for a while Thomson and his wife lived in the parish of Colinton
Colinton
Colinton is a suburb of Edinburgh, Scotland situated 6 kilometres south west of the city centre. It is bordered by Dreghorn to the south and Craiglockhart to the north-east. To the north-west it extends to Lanark Road and to the south-west to the City Bypass...
before returning to Kenleith. His weaving supported his family and his grandmother.
Thomson and his wife had seven daughters and one son. They lived on Mid Kinleith farm in a small cottage which they named after Mount Parnassus
Mount Parnassus
Mount Parnassus, also Parnassos , is a mountain of limestone in central Greece that towers above Delphi, north of the Gulf of Corinth, and offers scenic views of the surrounding olive groves and countryside. According to Greek mythology, this mountain was sacred to Apollo and the Corycian nymphs,...
. During the day he worked as a weaver, and in the evenings composed songs and poems, depicting local characters and places. He became known for useful skills, including trimming the beards of locals, and for his poetry. A new minister in the parish needed his razors sharpened, and when he sent them to Thomson they were returned well sharpened along with suitable verses for the occasion.
Works
With the minister's encouragement, a book of Poems, in the Scottish dialect by James Thomson, Weaver in Kinleith, was published in 1801, printed by J. Fillans & Sons, Edinburgh, and published by W. Reid, LeithLeith
-South Leith v. North Leith:Up until the late 16th century Leith , comprised two separate towns on either side of the river....
, for the Author. This opened with An Account of the Author, giving his life story, and a Dedication to the Merchants of Leith. The contents include a sharp epigram
Epigram
An epigram is a brief, interesting, usually memorable and sometimes surprising statement. Derived from the epigramma "inscription" from ἐπιγράφειν epigraphein "to write on inscribe", this literary device has been employed for over two millennia....
:
A set of four love songs describes the author being too bold in the first, then in the second bidding farewell to buchts, or sheep-folds, he had become excessively shy. The tune "Logan Water" as well as the first verse of the poem itself refer to the Logan Burn
Loganlea Reservoir
Loganlea Reservoir is a small reservoir in the Pentland Hills, Midlothian, Scotland, UK.The Logan Burn connects the reservoir with Glencorse Reservoir.-External links:*...
. In the chorus he laments no longer taking pleasure in the singing of the laverock
Laverock
Laverock is the Scots word for a lark. It may also refer to:*Laverock, Pennsylvania, a small unincorporated community in the United States*Charles Laverock Lambe, British air marshal...
, the skylark.
He gained the patronage of General Scott of Malleny, and dedicated to him Poems, chiefly in the Scottish dialect (Leith, 1819). Thomson also published A poem, chiefly in the Scottish dialect, on raising and selling the dead, and the melancholy spectacle which was presented to the inhabitants of Currie, on their taking two dead bodies from a cart in its way from Lanark to Edinburgh (Leith, 1821).
Thomson lived until 1832, in reasonable prosperity.
Commemoration
The Kinleith Burn below Thomson's house has been named the "Poet's Burn", after James Thomson, the "Weaver Poet", and it runs down the steeply sloping "Poet's Glen" down to near Currie Kirk where it flows into the Water of LeithWater of Leith
The Water of Leith is the main river flowing through Edinburgh, Scotland, to the port of Leith where it flows into the sea via the Firth of Forth.It is long and rises in the Colzium Springs at Millstone Rig of the Pentland Hills...
after passing under a bridge of the Water of Leith Walkway
Water of Leith Walkway
The Water of Leith Walkway is a public footpath and cycleway that runs alongside the small river of the same name through Edinburgh, Scotland, from Balerno to Leith....
.
His cottage still stands at Mid Kileith farm, with "Mount Parnassus" still inscribed over the entrance door.