Henry Hetherington Emmerson (11 November 1831 – 28 August 1895), commonly known by his initials H. H. Emmerson, was an English painter and illustrator. Emmerson (''née'' Hetherington). At the age of 13, he went to

Newcastle Newcastle usually refers to: *Newcastle upon Tyne, a city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England *Newcastle-under-Lyme, a town in Staffordshire, England *Newcastle, New South Wales, a metropolitan area in Australia, named after Newcastle ...

, where he studied painting and engraving under

William Bell Scott William Bell Scott (1811–1890) was a Scottish artist in oils and watercolour and occasionally printmaking. He was also a poet and art teacher, and his posthumously published reminiscences give a chatty and often vivid picture of life in the ...

at the Government School of Art. After some two and a half years under Scott's tutelage, Emmerson was sent to Paris to study for six months as the beneficiary of a clergyman who had taken interest in his work. After his return, he was accepted into the

Royal Academy The Royal Academy of Arts (RA) is an art institution based in Burlington House on Piccadilly in London. Founded in 1768, it has a unique position as an independent, privately funded institution led by eminent artists and architects. Its pur ...

in London. Upon his return to northern England, he lived in

Ebchester Ebchester is a village in County Durham, England. It is situated to the north of Consett and to the south east of Whittonstall. The village sits at the intersection of the A694, which runs from Consett to Swalwell, and the B6309, which connects ...

and met his soon-to-be wife. Emmerson was a founding member and first president of the Bewick Club, a Newcastle association of painters and illustrators that also included among its founders the likes of Robert Jobling,

Ralph Hedley Ralph Hedley (31 December 1848 – 14 June 1913) was a realist painter, woodcarver and illustrator, best known for his paintings portraying scenes of everyday life in the North East of England. Biography Born in Gilling West near Richmond, N ...

, John Surtees, and Thomas Dickinson. Notable paintings of Emmerson, some of which hung in the Royal Academy, include ''The Queen's Letter'', ''The Critics, The First Suit'', and ''The Foreign Invasion''. His paintings of children were numerous and well known, with several being reproduced and popularised as engravings. A total of 58 works by Emmerson were exhibited at the Royal Academy during his lifetime. Edith Emmerson, Aged 3 - H

Emmerson also provided illustrations to children's books, including ''Afternoon Tea'' (1880) with J. G. Sowerby, and ''The May Blossom'' (1881), both published by

Frederick Warne & Co Frederick Warne & Co. is a British publisher founded in 1865. It is known for children's books, particularly those of Beatrix Potter, and for its Observer's Books. Warne is an imprint of Penguin Random House, a subsidiary of German media cong ...

. ''Afternoon Tea'', although well received by reviewers attracted a bit of controversy, as some claimed it was a cheap derivative of ''

Under the Window ''Under the Window: Pictures & Rhymes for Children'' (London, 1879) was Kate Greenaway's first children's picture book, composed of her own verses and illustrations. Selling over 100,000 copies, the toy book was a commercial success, helped launch ...

'', a popular 1879 book by Kate Greenaway. Greenaway herself considered the book "blatant piracy", while Sowerby argued the illustrations were not imitations but merely in the same genre. Emmerson was also well known as a runner in his time. As a child, he was said to be the fastest of his age in the world; a challenge was placed in ''

Bell's Life in London ''Bell's Life in London, and Sporting Chronicle'' was an English weekly sporting paper published as a pink broadsheet between 1822 and 1886. History ''Bell's Life'' was founded by Robert Bell, a London printer-publisher. Bell sold it to William I ...

'' to run against any boy his age, and was never accepted. Emmerson was an ardent runner even to the end of his life, as well as an avid follower of the Rockcliff Football team. Emmerson married Mary Bolton of Ebchester on 15 August 1857, and they had five daughters and two sons, both of whom were also artists. He died in his home in

Cullercoats Cullercoats is a coastal settlement in the metropolitan borough of North Tyneside, Tyne and Wear, North East England. Historically in Northumberland, it has now been absorbed into the wider Tyneside conurbation, sitting between Tynemouth to the ...

on 28 August 1895 at the age of 63, and was buried in Preston Cemetery in

North Shields North Shields () is a town in the Borough of North Tyneside in Tyne and Wear, England. It is north-east of Newcastle upon Tyne and borders nearby Wallsend and Tynemouth. Since 1974, it has been in the North Tyneside borough of Tyne and Wea ...

. In December 1895, an exhibition of his collected work was held in Newcastle. Emmerson claimed to be of the family that produced the poet and philosopher

Ralph Waldo Emerson Ralph Waldo Emerson (May 25, 1803April 27, 1882), who went by his middle name Waldo, was an American essayist, lecturer, philosopher, abolitionist, and poet who led the transcendentalist movement of the mid-19th century. He was seen as a champ ...

, although biographical details published after his death suggest the relation was probably very remote.

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* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Emmerson, Henry Hetherington 1831 births 1895 deaths 19th-century English painters English male painters People from Chester-le-Street People from Ebchester People from Cullercoats 19th-century English male artists