William Conton
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William Farquhar Conton (5 September 1925 – 23 June 2003) was a
Sierra Leone Creole The Sierra Leone Creole people ( kri, Krio people) are an ethnic group of Sierra Leone. The Sierra Leone Creole people are lineal descendant, descendants of freed African-American, Afro-Caribbean, and Sierra Leone Liberated African, Liberated Af ...
educator, historian and acclaimed novelist.Conton, William Farquhar – Literary Map of Africa
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Background and early life

William Farquhar Conton was born on 5 September 1925 in
Bathurst, Gambia Banjul (,"Banjul"
(US) and
), officially the City of Ba ...
, to the union of Cecil Conton (1885–1926) and Olive Conton, née Farquhar. The Contons and Farquhars were first-generation
Sierra Leone Creoles The Sierra Leone Creole people ( kri, Krio people) are an ethnic group of Sierra Leone. The Sierra Leone Creole people are lineal descendant, descendants of freed African-American, Afro-Caribbean, and Sierra Leone Liberated African, Liberated Af ...
of
Caribbean The Caribbean (, ) ( es, El Caribe; french: la Caraïbe; ht, Karayib; nl, De Caraïben) is a region of the Americas that consists of the Caribbean Sea, its islands (some surrounded by the Caribbean Sea and some bordering both the Caribbean Se ...
origin who settled in Sierra Leone during the late nineteenth century. Cecil Barger Conton had been born in
Bermuda ) , anthem = "God Save the King" , song_type = National song , song = " Hail to Bermuda" , image_map = , map_caption = , image_map2 = , mapsize2 = , map_caption2 = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = , e ...
to William A. Conton (b. 1837) and Elizabeth Conton (b. 1857). Olive Farquhar was the daughter of Archdeacon Charles William Farquhar (d. 1928) of
Barbados Barbados is an island country in the Lesser Antilles of the West Indies, in the Caribbean region of the Americas, and the most easterly of the Caribbean Islands. It occupies an area of and has a population of about 287,000 (2019 estimate). ...
, a missionary in French Guinea.


Education

William Conton was educated at CMS Grammar School in Sierra Leone before proceeding to
Durham University , mottoeng = Her foundations are upon the holy hills (Psalm 87:1) , established = (university status) , type = Public , academic_staff = 1,830 (2020) , administrative_staff = 2,640 (2018/19) , chancellor = Sir Thomas Allen , vice_chan ...
in England, where he read for a
Bachelor of Arts Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four years ...
degree in History, graduating in 1947 as a member of St John's College. Conton also served in the
Officer Training Corps The Officers' Training Corps (OTC), more fully called the University Officers' Training Corps (UOTC), are military leadership training units operated by the British Army. Their focus is to develop the leadership abilities of their members whilst ...
during the
Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
.


Career

After graduating in 1947, he taught at
Fourah Bay College Fourah Bay College is a public university in the neighbourhood of Mount Aureol in Freetown, Sierra Leone. Founded on 18 February 1827, it is the first western-style university built in Sub-Saharan Africa and, furthermore, the first university-le ...
for the next six years, moving on to become principal of
Accra High School Accra High School is a Senior High school located in Accra, Ghana in West Africa. It initially started as a Boys School. History Accra High School was founded by the late Rev. James Thomas Roberts on 17 August 1923. The school, was located at b ...
in
Ghana Ghana (; tw, Gaana, ee, Gana), officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country in West Africa. It abuts the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean to the south, sharing borders with Ivory Coast in the west, Burkina Faso in the north, and To ...
. Returning to
Sierra Leone Sierra Leone,)]. officially the Republic of Sierra Leone, is a country on the southwest coast of West Africa. It is bordered by Liberia to the southeast and Guinea surrounds the northern half of the nation. Covering a total area of , Sierra ...
, he was principal of two high schools, before rising to be chief education officer in Sierra Leone.
Simon Gikandi Simon may refer to: People * Simon (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters with the given name Simon * Simon (surname), including a list of people with the surname Simon * Eugène Simon, French naturalist and the genus ...
, "Conton, William", in Gikandi (ed.), ''Encyclopedia of African Literature''. Routledge, 2002. .
He subsequently worked for
UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international cooperation in education, arts, sciences and culture. It ...
in
Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...
.


Writing

In 1960, Conton's novel ''The African'' was the twelfth book published in the important
Heinemann Heinemann may refer to: * Heinemann (surname) * Heinemann (publisher), a publishing company * Heinemann Park, a.k.a. Pelican Stadium in New Orleans, Louisiana, United States See also * Heineman * Jamie Hyneman James Franklin Hyneman (born Se ...
's African Writers Series. Partly autobiographical, it revolves around an African student in England from the fictional nation of Songhai, his romance with a white South African woman that ends tragically, and his political determination to bring down the apartheid system in South Africa. Although ''The African'' had widespread acclaim, critics such as Wole Soyinka were unimpressed with the novel and found the romantic aspects unconvincing, which he referred to as utopian "love optimism", and called the main character, Kamara, an "unbelievable prig". In 1961, Conton published his two-volume work entitled ''West Africa in History'', which covered various aspects of West African history and combined his interests and experience as a historian with his literary flair. In 1987, Conton published ''The Flights'', which is in some respects a sequel to ''The African'', and depicts Saidu, a political exile in England from the same fictional West African country of Songhai, who under psychological stress resorts to hijacking a commercial airliner to force the Songhai government to accede to his demands. Described by literature scholar Oyekan Owomoyela in ''The Columbia Guide to West African Literature in English since 1945'' as "Badly written and badly printed", the book has attracted little attention.


Personal life

In 1949, William Conton married
Bertha Yvonne Thompson Bertha Yvonne Conton, GCOR ( Thompson; 31 October 1923 – 1 May 2022) was a Sierra Leonean educator who was the principal, founder, and proprietress of Leone Preparatory School. Biography Conton was educated at St. Joseph's Primary School a ...
, an educator, principal, and school proprietress, and the couple had five children.


Later years

William Conton died in Freetown, Sierra Leone, in July 2003.


Works

*'' The African'', 1960. Republished in the Heinemann African Writers Series, 1964. *''West Africa in History'', 1961 *''The Flights'', 1987


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Conton, William Farquhar 1925 births 2003 deaths 20th-century novelists 20th-century Sierra Leonean writers Alumni of St John's College, Durham Conton family (Sierra Leone) Farquhar family (Sierra Leone) Fourah Bay College faculty Gambian writers People from Freetown Sierra Leone Creole people Sierra Leonean educators Sierra Leonean novelists Sierra Leonean people of Barbadian descent Sierra Leonean people of Bermudian descent Sierra Leonean people of British descent Sierra Leonean people of Caribbean descent Sierra Leonean writers