CAWTHORN, JAMES (1719-1761), poet, born 4th November, 1719, at Sheffield, was a son of Thomas Cawthorn, upholsterer (Gent. Magazine vol lxi pt ii p 1081). The boy was first sent to the Sheffield grammar school, where he displayed some literary talent by trying to establish a periodical, 'The Tea-Table'. He was removed to the grammar school of Kirkby Lonsdale in 1735; he in 1736 became assistant teacher at Rotherham school, and published the 'Perjured Lovers', at Sheffield (ib), and a 'Meditation' soon afterwards in the 'Gentleman's Magazine' v 549. On 8th July, 1738, he matriculated at Clare Hall, Cambridge, but did not reside, and became assistant to a schoolmaster in Soho Square. About 1743 he married Mary, this schoolmaster's daughter; was ordained and was elected head master of Tonbridge grammar school. In 1746 he published 'Abelard and Heloise' in the 'Poetical Calendar'; in 1748 he published a sermon, on the title-page of which he describes himself as M.A. He established a library in his school and wrote 'Annual Visitation Poems' and other trifles. On 15th April, 1761, he was thrown from his horse and killed.
Cawthorn was buried in Tonbridge church where a marble slab with a Latin epitaph was put up for him, and verses were printed to his memory by Lord Eardley in the 'Gentleman's Magazine' xxxi 232. His poems were not collected till 1771 when they were published by subscription 4to.
Cawthorn was included among 'English Poets' in Johnson's edition, though not till 1790 (vol lxv); in Park's 'British Poets', 1808 (vol iv): in Platt's 'Cabinet of Poetry', same year (vol v); in Sanford's 'British Poets' 1819 (vol xxiv); in the Chiswick edition 1822 (vol lx); in Chalmer's edition (vol xiv); in Anderson's, and others; while his 'Abelard and Heloise' was also separately collected, with Pope's 'Epistle', twice at least, viz in 1805 and 1818.
(( Gent. Mag. 1791, vol lxi pt ii pp 1081-3 (where is a list of the scholars who recited the Visitation Poems), vol lxii pt I p 68; Ohalmer's English Poets, xiv 229; Monthly Review, xlv 1-5, 9, 336.)) J.H.
The Dictionary of National Biography Vol III Brown-Chaloner p 1289.