Charles Overton (1805–1889) was a British cleric and writer.

Early life and education

Overton was born in

York York is a cathedral city with Roman origins, sited at the confluence of the rivers Ouse and Foss in North Yorkshire, England. It is the historic county town of Yorkshire. The city has many historic buildings and other structures, such as a ...

, the sixth son of

John Overton John Overton may refer to: People *John Overton (printseller) (1640–1713), seller of prints and maps who succeeded Peter Stent *John Overton (priest) (1763–1838), English clergyman *John Overton (judge) (1766–1833), judge at the Superior Cour ...

(1763–1838), rector of St. Margaret's and St. Crux. He was brought up to be a civil engineer, and was not sent to university; but in 1829 he was ordained deacon by

Edward Venables-Vernon-Harcourt Edward Venables-Vernon-Harcourt (10 October 1757 – 5 November 1847) was a Church of England bishop. He was the Bishop of Carlisle from 1791 to 1807 and then the Archbishop of York until his death. He was the third son of the George Venables-V ...

, the

Archbishop of York The archbishop of York is a senior bishop in the Church of England, second only to the archbishop of Canterbury. The archbishop is the diocesan bishop of the Diocese of York and the metropolitan bishop of the province of York, which covers th ...

. He was for a short time assistant curate of Christ Church, Harrogate, but in the year of his ordination moved to

Romaldkirk Romaldkirk is a village in Teesdale, in the Pennines of England. The village lies within the historic boundaries of the North Riding of Yorkshire, but has been administered by County Durham since 1974. It is thought that the name might be derive ...

near

Barnard Castle Barnard Castle (, ) is a market town on the north bank of the River Tees, in County Durham, Northern England. The town is named after and built around a medieval castle ruin. The town's Bowes Museum's has an 18th-century Silver Swan automato ...

Career

Overton received priest's orders in 1830 from

John Bird Sumner John Bird Sumner (25 February 1780 – 6 September 1862) was a bishop in the Church of England and Archbishop of Canterbury. Early life John Bird Sumner was born in Kenilworth, Warwickshire, on 25 February 1780. He was the eldest son of the R ...

Bishop of Chester The Bishop of Chester is the Ordinary of the Church of England Diocese of Chester in the Province of York. The diocese extends across most of the historic county boundaries of Cheshire, including the Wirral Peninsula and has its see in the C ...

, who in 1837 was presented him to the vicarage of

Clapham Clapham () is a suburb in south west London, England, lying mostly within the London Borough of Lambeth, but with some areas (most notably Clapham Common) extending into the neighbouring London Borough of Wandsworth. History Early history T ...

, then in

West Riding of Yorkshire The West Riding of Yorkshire is one of three historic subdivisions of Yorkshire, England. From 1889 to 1974 the administrative county County of York, West Riding (the area under the control of West Riding County Council), abbreviated County ...

. In 1841 Sumner presented him to the vicarage of Cottingham, near Hull, where he spent the remainder of his life. He was an evangelical and active parish priest in a scattered parish, which then included

Skidby Skidby is a small village and civil parish in Yorkshire Wolds of the East Riding of Yorkshire, England. It is situated about north-west of Hull city centre, west of Cottingham and south of Beverley. The civil parish contains mainly agricul ...

and Newland. The parish church of Cottingham was restored, a parsonage and schools were built, and the income increased, while schools and vicarage houses were built at Skidby and Newland.

Works

Overton wrote both in prose and verse. The most popular of his works was ''Cottage Lectures on Bunyan's "Pilgrim's Progress" practically explained'' (1847 first part, 1849 second part), well received by UK and US evangelicals. A poem ''Ecclesia Anglicana'' (London, n.d.) was written at Romaldkirk to celebrate the restoration of

York Minster The Cathedral and Metropolitical Church of Saint Peter in York, commonly known as York Minster, is the cathedral of York, North Yorkshire, England, and is one of the largest of its kind in Northern Europe. The minster is the seat of the Archbis ...

after its partial destruction by the arsonist Jonathan Martin; a later edition appeared in 1853. It was good-humouredly satirised by

Thomas Moore Thomas Moore (28 May 1779 – 25 February 1852) was an Irish writer, poet, and lyricist celebrated for his ''Irish Melodies''. Their setting of English-language verse to old Irish tunes marked the transition in popular Irish culture from Irish ...

in a

parody A parody, also known as a spoof, a satire, a send-up, a take-off, a lampoon, a play on (something), or a caricature, is a creative work designed to imitate, comment on, and/or mock its subject by means of satiric or ironic imitation. Often its subj ...

. Other works were: *''Cottage Lectures on the Lord's Prayer practically explained; delivered in the Parish Church of Cottingham'' (1848). *''The Expository Preacher; or St. Matthew's Gospel practically expounded in Cottingham Church'' (1850, 2 vols.). *''A Voice from Yorkshire: a Scene at Goodmanham, in the East Riding, A.D. 627, with Notes'' (1850), about Godmundingham. *''The History of Cottingham'' (1860). *''The Life of Joseph, in twenty-three Expository Lectures'' (1866).

Later life and death

Overton died on 31 March 1889, and was buried at Cottingham.

Personal life

In 1829 Overton married Amelia Charlesworth; she died in 1885. By her he had a family of four sons and three daughters.

Notes

Attribution {{DEFAULTSORT:Overton, Charles 1805 births 1889 deaths 19th-century English Anglican priests English antiquarians Clergy from York