William Roscoe’s Early Life
William Roscoe was born near Mount Pleasant, Liverpool. It is now
on the corner of Hope Street. His father was a butler at Allerton Hall.
William's mother died when he was young and some of his first
poetry is about her.
"O best of mothers! thou whose guardian care
Sustain'd my infant Life when weak and faint
I pour'd the feeble cry!
George III (1738 - 1820) was on the throne for most of William's life.
Great historical events occurred during William's life.
The French Revolution (1789)
Wars with France (1793-1815)
At the age of 6 William went to school in Paradise Street.
William Roscoe enjoyed school and he wrote this about his teacher,
Mr. Martin: "To his care, and the instruction of a kind and
affectionate mother, I believe I may safely attribute any good
principle which may have appeared in my conduct in later life." When
he was 8, William got a new teacher called Mr. Sykes who "kept a
school in the same house for writing and arithmetic to which were
added instruction in English grammar."
At the age of 12, William was glad to leave school. "Having quitted
school and committed my English grammar to the flames, I now
began to assist my father in his agricultural concerns, particularly in
his business of cultivating potatoes for sale, of which every year he
grew several acres, and which he sold, when produced early in the
season, at very advanced prices. In this and other laborious
occupations, I passed several years of my life, devoting my hours of
relaxation to reading my books."
Readers need to be aware that Mount Pleasant in William Roscoe's
time was a rural area. William and his family would have been known
as "countrymen".
This is where William Roscoe grew to love nature. William also
loved the arts and it is believed he gained his first lessons in painting
from the workmen of Reid's China Works which was next to his
father's garden.
William loved the work of William Shakespeare.
Reading was a great passion.
Roscoe Primary School is proud to be associated with William
Roscoe.
It would be a fitting tribute to the great man if all the pupils who
learned in a school that bears his name could also develop a passion
for reading.