Joseph Woods
Encyclopedia
Joseph Woods FLS FGS 24 August 1776-1864 was an English Quaker architect, botanist and geologist born in the village of Stoke Newington
, a few miles north of the City of London
. A Member of the Society of Antiquaries, and an Honorary Member of the Society of British Architects, he was also elected a Fellow of the Linnean Society and a Fellow of the Geological Society in recognition of his original research.
. The Hoares lived on what is now Stoke Newington Church Street
, opposite Clissold Park
. The children of the family, Joseph Woods's uncles and aunts, included
Jonathan, merchant of Throgmorton Street, partner in Gurnell, Hoare & Co, who built Clissold House and then ran into financial difficulties; Grizell, as a wealthy 72 year old widow of Wilson Birkbeck, who married William Allen
, pharmacist, philanthropist and abolitionist, with whom she founded Newington Academy for Girls
in 1824; and Samuel Jr
, a banker and abolitionist.
His father, Joseph Woods the elder, was a founding abolitionist. He and Samuel Jr were actually two of the four Quaker founders of the London Abolition Committee, the predecessor body to the Committee for the Abolition of the Slave Trade.
.
is often attributed to him, dating from about 1790, but this seems improbable. In 1816, immediately after the end of the Napoleonic Wars
, he was able to travel throughout the Continent and visited France, Switzerland, and Italy, studying their architecture and botany. Drawing on part of this experience, his accomplished book, Letters of an Architect, was published in 1828.
Many years earlier, he had completed a study of the genus Rosa, which had been published in the Transactions of the Linnean Society in 1818 under the title Synopsis of the British Species of Rosa and established Woods’ reputation as a systematic botanist. leaving architecture to one side, he was now able to devote himself more fully to botany and his botanical notes, made during his Continental and British travels, were published in the Companion to the Botanical Magazine in 1835 and in 1836, and in successive volumes of The Phytologist beginning in 1843.
In 1850 he published The Tourist’s Flora: a descriptive catalogue of the flowering plants and ferns of the British Islands, France, Germany, Switzerland, Italy, and the Italian islands, drawing further on his many field excursions in Europe and the British Isles.
A genus of fern, Woodsia, is named in his honour.
Stoke Newington
Stoke Newington is a district in the London Borough of Hackney. It is north-east of Charing Cross.-Boundaries:In modern terms, Stoke Newington can be roughly defined by the N16 postcode area . Its southern boundary with Dalston is quite ill-defined too...
, a few miles north of the City of London
City of London
The City of London is a small area within Greater London, England. It is the historic core of London around which the modern conurbation grew and has held city status since time immemorial. The City’s boundaries have remained almost unchanged since the Middle Ages, and it is now only a tiny part of...
. A Member of the Society of Antiquaries, and an Honorary Member of the Society of British Architects, he was also elected a Fellow of the Linnean Society and a Fellow of the Geological Society in recognition of his original research.
Family background
His mother was Mary (or Margaret) Hoare, daughter of Samuel Hoare (1716-1796), a London merchant from an Irish background, and Grizell Gurnell (1722? - 1802), of EalingEaling
Ealing is a suburban area of west London, England and the administrative centre of the London Borough of Ealing. It is located west of Charing Cross and around from the City of London. It is one of the major metropolitan centres identified in the London Plan. It was historically a rural village...
. The Hoares lived on what is now Stoke Newington Church Street
Stoke Newington Church Street
Stoke Newington Church Street is a road in north London of the borough of Hackney. The road links Green Lanes in the west to Stoke Newington High Street , in the east...
, opposite Clissold Park
Clissold Park
Clissold Park is a community park in Stoke Newington within the London Borough of Hackney. Facilities include a children's playground, sports fields, a bowling green, tennis courts, a cafe and some animal attractions including terrapins in its lakes...
. The children of the family, Joseph Woods's uncles and aunts, included
Jonathan, merchant of Throgmorton Street, partner in Gurnell, Hoare & Co, who built Clissold House and then ran into financial difficulties; Grizell, as a wealthy 72 year old widow of Wilson Birkbeck, who married William Allen
William Allen (Quaker)
William Allen FRS, FLS was an English scientist and philanthropist who opposed slavery and engaged in schemes of social and penal improvement in early nineteenth century England.-Early life:...
, pharmacist, philanthropist and abolitionist, with whom she founded Newington Academy for Girls
Newington Academy for Girls
The Newington Academy for Girls, also known as Newington College for Girls, was a Quaker school established in 1824 in Stoke Newington, then north of London. In a time when girls' educational opportunities were limited, it offered a wide range of subjects "on a plan in degree differing from any...
in 1824; and Samuel Jr
Samuel Hoare Jr
Samuel Hoare Jr was a wealthy British Quaker merchant and abolitionist born in Stoke Newington, the north of London. He was one of the twelve founding members of the Society for the Abolition of the Slave Trade.-Background:...
, a banker and abolitionist.
His father, Joseph Woods the elder, was a founding abolitionist. He and Samuel Jr were actually two of the four Quaker founders of the London Abolition Committee, the predecessor body to the Committee for the Abolition of the Slave Trade.
Education
Joseph Woods' early education was at home, where his parents taught him Latin, Greek, Modern Greek, Hebrew, Italian and French. Later (at about age 16) he studied architecture under Daniel Asher AlexanderDaniel Asher Alexander
Daniel Asher Alexander was a British architect and engineer, born in London.-Life:Daniel Asher Alexander was educated at St Paul's School, London, and admitted to the Royal Academy Schools in 1782....
.
Architecture
In 1806 Joseph Woods founded the London Architectural Society and became its first President. Prior to this date, the design and building of Clissold House in Stoke NewingtonStoke Newington
Stoke Newington is a district in the London Borough of Hackney. It is north-east of Charing Cross.-Boundaries:In modern terms, Stoke Newington can be roughly defined by the N16 postcode area . Its southern boundary with Dalston is quite ill-defined too...
is often attributed to him, dating from about 1790, but this seems improbable. In 1816, immediately after the end of the Napoleonic Wars
Napoleonic Wars
The Napoleonic Wars were a series of wars declared against Napoleon's French Empire by opposing coalitions that ran from 1803 to 1815. As a continuation of the wars sparked by the French Revolution of 1789, they revolutionised European armies and played out on an unprecedented scale, mainly due to...
, he was able to travel throughout the Continent and visited France, Switzerland, and Italy, studying their architecture and botany. Drawing on part of this experience, his accomplished book, Letters of an Architect, was published in 1828.
Botany
After about 1835 Joseph Wood's interest in architecture gave way to his other passion, botany.Many years earlier, he had completed a study of the genus Rosa, which had been published in the Transactions of the Linnean Society in 1818 under the title Synopsis of the British Species of Rosa and established Woods’ reputation as a systematic botanist. leaving architecture to one side, he was now able to devote himself more fully to botany and his botanical notes, made during his Continental and British travels, were published in the Companion to the Botanical Magazine in 1835 and in 1836, and in successive volumes of The Phytologist beginning in 1843.
In 1850 he published The Tourist’s Flora: a descriptive catalogue of the flowering plants and ferns of the British Islands, France, Germany, Switzerland, Italy, and the Italian islands, drawing further on his many field excursions in Europe and the British Isles.
A genus of fern, Woodsia, is named in his honour.