Samuel Peploe Wood (17 February 1827 – 30 July 1873) was an English sculptor and painter. His sculpture can be seen on many churches and public buildings in England, and there are a number of his sketches and watercolours at Staffordshire County Museum.Copp, C.J. (ed), ''Thomas Peploe Wood: Staffordshire Artist'', Staffordshire County Council (2009). Samuel Peploe Wood c1860 P81

Early life and education

Samuel Peploe Wood was born in

Great Haywood Great Haywood is a village in central Staffordshire, England, just off the A51 and about northwest of Rugeley and southeast of the county town of Stafford. Population details taken at the 2011 census can be found under Colwich. Haywood ...

Staffordshire Staffordshire (; postal abbreviation Staffs.) is a landlocked county in the West Midlands region of England. It borders Cheshire to the northwest, Derbyshire and Leicestershire to the east, Warwickshire to the southeast, the West Midlands Cou ...

on 17 February 1827, the youngest of seven children of Joseph and Alethea Wood, and younger brother of the painter Thomas Peploe Wood (1817–1845). In 1841 he was bound as an apprentice to the Trubshaws, local architects but did not complete his apprenticeship. Instead, in 1846 he went to

Milan Milan ( , , Lombard: ; it, Milano ) is a city in northern Italy, capital of Lombardy, and the second-most populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of about 1.4 million, while its metropolitan city h ...

, Italy to train in the studio of the sculptor Rafaelle Monti(1818–1881). While studying in Milan, Wood joined

Giuseppe Garibaldi Giuseppe Maria Garibaldi ( , ;In his native Ligurian language, he is known as ''Gioxeppe Gaibado''. In his particular Niçard dialect of Ligurian, he was known as ''Jousé'' or ''Josep''. 4 July 1807 – 2 June 1882) was an Italian general, patr ...

's forces and saw some service in 1848.

Career

He was back in England by 1851 and began his career as a sculptor, setting up a studio in

Lichfield Lichfield () is a cathedral city and civil parish in Staffordshire, England. Lichfield is situated roughly south-east of the county town of Stafford, south-east of Rugeley, north-east of Walsall, north-west of Tamworth and south-west of B ...

, Staffordshire. Wood undertook work on many Staffordshire and west Midlands buildings, including the reredos at All Angels' Church, Colwich; corbels and bosses at St. Stephen's Church,

, an oak lectern for Stowe by Lichfield; and a crucifixion and resurrection at Ashbourne, Derbyshire. He also sculpted fireplaces at Bishton Hall, Staffordshire, the figure of Victory on

Burslem Burslem ( ) is one of the six towns that along with Hanley, Tunstall, Fenton, Longton and Stoke-upon-Trent form part of the city of Stoke-on-Trent in Staffordshire, England. It is often referred to as the "mother town" of Stoke on Trent. T ...

Town Hall and worked on the facade of

Birmingham Town Hall Birmingham Town Hall is a concert hall and venue for popular assemblies opened in 1834 and situated in Victoria Square, Birmingham, England. It is a Grade I listed building. The hall underwent a major renovation between 2002 and 2007. It no ...

. In 1866 he carved a large and elaborate memorial cross to his brother and other members of his family, still standing in the churchyard of St. Michael and All Angels Church, Colwich.

Personal life

He married Amelia Illingworth at Bispham, Lancashire on 28 August 1853, and they had one child, Florence, born in Lichfield, Staffordshire in 1855. Samuel Peploe Wood died on 30 July 1873 from

cancer of the tongue Oral cancer, also known as mouth cancer, is cancer of the lining of the lips, mouth, or upper throat. In the mouth, it most commonly starts as a painless white patch, that thickens, develops red patches, an ulcer, and continues to grow. When on ...

and was buried at Colwich, Staffordshire. He is the grandfather of the Scottish nationalist Wendy Wood (1892–1981) and great grandfather of the musician

Spike Hughes Patrick Cairns "Spike" Hughes (19 October 1908 – 2 February 1987) was a British musician, composer and arranger involved in the worlds of classical music and jazz. He has been called Britain's earliest jazz composer. Later in his career, he ...

(1908–1987)Hughes, Spike, ''Opening Bars – Beginning an Autobiography''. London: Pilot Press Ltd (1946). and physicist

J. B. Gunn John Battiscombe "J. B." Gunn (13 May 1928 – 2 December 2008), known as Ian or Iain, was a British physicist, who spent most of his career in the United States. He discovered the Gunn effect, which led to the invention of the Gunn diode, t ...

(1928–2008).

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Wood, Sameul Peploe English sculptors English male sculptors 1827 births 1873 deaths People from the Borough of Stafford Deaths from cancer in England Deaths from oral cancer 19th-century British sculptors 19th-century English painters English male painters 19th-century English male artists