Job Caudwell
Job Caudwell | |
|---|---|
| Born | 1820 Drayton Manor, Abingdon, England |
| Died | 1908-06-05 Wandsworth, Surrey, England |
| Occupation(s) | Publisher, bookseller, editor, social reform advocate |
| Known for | Temperance and reformist literature; vegetarianism advocacy; anti-vaccination activism |
| Notable work | Vegetarian Cookery for the Million |
Job Caudwell (1820 – 5 June 1908) was a prominent English publisher, bookseller, editor, and social reform advocate. His work primarily focused on temperance and reformist literature, with strong support for temperance, vegetarianism, and anti-vaccination causes. Caudwell was responsible for publishing and editing multiple temperance-related journals and authored the vegetarian recipe book Vegetarian Cookery for the Million. He held key positions in both the London Vegetarian Association and the Anti-Compulsory Vaccination League, while also running a homeopathic institute from his publishing premises. He was honored as a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature and the Royal Geographical Society, in addition to being a member of the Victoria Institute.
Early life and family
Born at Drayton Manor in Abingdon in 1820, Caudwell was the youngest child among 21 siblings born to William Caudwell (1779–1854) and Hannah (née Lousley; 1782–1849). His family hailed from the historic armigerous Caudwell line in Berkshire, which had been established in Abingdon since 1790.
Career and activism
Growing up in rural Berkshire, Caudwell undertook extensive travels and devoted himself to studies in botany and antiquarian subjects. His lifelong commitment was to social reform, particularly concerning issues related to alcohol use.
He played an active role within the London Vegetarian Association (which later became the Vegetarian Society) and the Anti-Compulsory Vaccination League (subsequently known as the National Anti-Vaccination League). From 1857 to 1876, he served as publisher and editor for the Temperance Star, while between 1859 and 1867 he edited the Temperance Spectator. Additionally, he published the Journal of Health and wrote Vegetarian Cookery for the Million in 1864. Caudwell was also an advocate of homeopathy and hydropathy.
In July 1859, he joined forces with activist William Horsell to publish at 335 The Strand, a partnership that lasted until September 1860. His office doubled as a homeopathic institute where his distinctive homeopathic cocoa was dispensed alongside pure flour products. Throughout the 1860s, his publications encompassed temperance dictionaries, health guides, examinations of Mormonism, works related to Southcottian beliefs, and commentaries on the American Civil War.
Caudwell was named a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature in 1863 and later elected a Fellow of the Royal Geographical Society in 1879. He became affiliated with the Victoria Institute in 1891.
A memoir accompanied by his portrait appeared in February 1865 within The Illustrated News of the World, where he held an editorial position. In 1881, he participated in laying the foundation stone of Putney Methodist Church.
Personal life and death
A steadfast teetotaler and vegetarian, Caudwell adopted vegetarianism after extensive reading and prominently displayed related slogans throughout his residence. He enjoyed outdoor pursuits, including climbing Ben Nevis as a committed vegetarian.
In 1860, he married Eliza Cooper Braine; together they had four sons and one daughter. Following her passing in 1887, he remarried Eliza Harvey in 1901.
Caudwell passed away at age 87 on 5 June 1908 in Wandsworth, Surrey.
Selected publications
- Vegetarian Cookery for the Million (published in six editions between 1864 and 1865)
- Job Caudwell's Threepenny Pledge Book (released in 1865)