Ellison Hawks (13 March 1889 – 5 April 1971) was a British writer on popular science and technology topics. He wrote numerous books explaining the working of gadgets and the manufacture of industrial products. From 1921 he became an editor of ''

Meccano Magazine ''Meccano Magazine'' was an English monthly hobby magazine published by Meccano Ltd between 1916 and 1963, and by other publishers between 1963 and 1981. The magazine was initially created for Meccano builders, but it soon became a general hobby ...

'' while also serving as the advertising manager for Meccano, the producer of

do-it-yourself "Do it yourself" ("DIY") is the method of building, modifying, or repairing things by oneself without the direct aid of professionals or certified experts. Academic research has described DIY as behaviors where "individuals use raw and semi ...

science and engineering kits.

Life and work

Hawks was born in Hull to Rowena Reynard (Hull) and Matthew Hawks. In 1901 his family lived in Lower Bebington, Cheshire and he was educated at Bebington College, followed by studies at Rock Ferry, Wirral and Manchester. He became a clerk at the Commercial Union in Leeds in 1914. He took an interest in motorcycles, racing and also joined the Leeds Astronomical Society in 1908, becoming its secretary in 1911. He also edited the magazine of the Astronomical Society and began to give talks on popular science and published his first book in 1910. He became a

Fellow of the Royal Astronomical Society (Whatever shines should be observed) , predecessor = , successor = , formation = , founder = , extinction = , merger = , merged = , type = NGO ...

. He co-authored ''Water in Nature'' with

William Coles Finch William Coles Finch (1864–1944) was a British historian and author of a number of books on Kent-related topics. He is best known for writing ''Watermills and Windmills'', published in 1933 and reprinted in 1976, which is considered a standa ...

in 1914. In World War I he worked as a motorcycle despatch-rider with the Royal Navy and was later commissioned in the 49 Territorial Division of the

Royal Field Artillery The Royal Field Artillery (RFA) of the British Army provided close artillery support for the infantry. It came into being when created as a distinct arm of the Royal Regiment of Artillery on 1 July 1899, serving alongside the other two arms of t ...

. He rose to the position of captain and then joined the artillery and saw action in the

Battle of the Somme The Battle of the Somme ( French: Bataille de la Somme), also known as the Somme offensive, was a battle of the First World War fought by the armies of the British Empire and French Third Republic against the German Empire. It took place bet ...

where he fell to gas warfare. He later worked as assistant provost marshal in the Northern Command. After the war, he pursued a career in writing and joined ''Meccano'' run by

Frank Hornby Frank Hornby (15 May 1863 – 21 September 1936) was an English inventor, businessman and politician. He was a visionary in toy development and manufacture, and although he had no formal engineering training, he was responsible for the inven ...

later becoming its advertising manager in 1921. Hawks worked as a general editor of Amalgamated Press from 1936 to 1940. He published a wide range of books and articles in periodicals. He married Edna Fawcett and they had a son and two daughters.

References

External links

Biography

Bees, Shown to the Children (1912)

Britain's Fighting Forces (1940)

The Marvels And Mysteries Of Science (1939)

The Romance of Transport (1931)

The Starry Heavens (1933)

Pioneers of Plant Study (1928)

The Microscope (1920)
* {{authority control English science writers 1889 births 1971 deaths