William John Hardy (29 September 1857 – 17 July 1919) was an English

archivist An archivist is an information professional who assesses, collects, organizes, preserves, maintains control over, and provides access to Document, records and archives determined to have long-term value. The records maintained by an archivist c ...

and

antiquarian An antiquarian or antiquary () is an fan (person), aficionado or student of antiquities or things of the past. More specifically, the term is used for those who study history with particular attention to ancient artifact (archaeology), artifac ...

Life

He was born in London, the younger son of Sir William Hardy. Hardy like his father was connected with the

Historical Manuscripts Commission The Royal Commission on Historical Manuscripts (widely known as the Historical Manuscripts Commission, and abbreviated as the HMC to distinguish it from the Royal Commission on the Historical Monuments of England), was a United Kingdom Royal Com ...

, and became known as a learned legal antiquarian and inspector for the Commission. He also set up a business with William Page, his brother-in-law, as record agent; Hardy employed Page, an engineer, and trained him as a historian. Hardy & Page worked in particular on the

Hertfordshire Hertfordshire ( or ; often abbreviated Herts) is one of the home counties in southern England. It borders Bedfordshire and Cambridgeshire to the north, Essex to the east, Greater London to the south, and Buckinghamshire to the west. For govern ...

county records, for a county council pioneering the maintenance of its local archives. This work and that of

George Herbert Fowler George Herbert Fowler (4 September 1861, Lincoln – 15 August 1940, Aspley Guise) was an English zoologist, historian and archivist. Fowler was educated at Marlborough College, Eton College and Keble College, Oxford. From 1887 to 1889 he was a ...

for

Bedfordshire Bedfordshire (; abbreviated Beds) is a ceremonial county in the East of England. The county has been administered by three unitary authorities, Borough of Bedford, Central Bedfordshire and Borough of Luton, since Bedfordshire County Council wa ...

proved widely influential. The firm was taken over by his son,

William Le Hardy Lieutenant-Colonel William Henry Clement Le Hardy (1889 – 28 December 1961) was an English archivist. Early life Le Hardy was born into a family of archivists. His great-uncle, Sir Thomas Hardy and his grandfather Sir William Hardy were Deputy ...

. Hardy was Hon. M.A. of Durham University, and was a

Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries A fellow is a concept whose exact meaning depends on context. In learned or professional societies, it refers to a privileged member who is specially elected in recognition of their work and achievements. Within the context of higher education ...

, serving on its Council. He died at

Sidlesham Sidlesham is a small village and civil parish, on the Manhood Peninsula, five kilometres (3 miles) south of Chichester in the Chichester District of West Sussex, England. It has a small primary school. The area has had a prebendary since med ...

, near

Chichester Chichester () is a cathedral city and civil parish in West Sussex, England.OS Explorer map 120: Chichester, South Harting and Selsey Scale: 1:25 000. Publisher:Ordnance Survey – Southampton B2 edition. Publishing Date:2009. It is the only ci ...

, from

heart failure Heart failure (HF), also known as congestive heart failure (CHF), is a syndrome, a group of signs and symptoms caused by an impairment of the heart's blood pumping function. Symptoms typically include shortness of breath, excessive fatigue, a ...

Works

He edited State Papers, and ''Documents Illustrative of English Church History'' with Henry Gee. He also edited ''Middlesex and Hertfordshire Notes and Queries'' from 1895 to 1898, and the first six volumes of '' The Home Counties Magazine'', 1899 to 1904. Other works included: *''A Calendar to the Feet of Fines for London and Middlesex'' (1892) *''Book-Plates'' (1893) *''The Handwriting of the Kings and Queens of England'' (1893) * ''Lighthouses, Their History and Romance'' (1895) *''Documents Illustrative of English Church History'' (1896) with Henry Gee *''A History of the Rolls House and Chapel'' (1896) *''The Stamp Collector'' (1898) with

Edward Denny Bacon Sir Edward Denny Bacon, KCVO (29 August 1860 – 5 June 1938)Biography
in the ...

*''Middlesex County Records'' (1905) *''Report on the Manuscripts of the Earl of Verulam, Preserved at Gorhambury'' (1906) *''Bedfordshire County Records'' (1907) with William Pagearchive.org, vol. 1vol. 2
an
vol. 3

References

* :s:The Times/1919/Obituary/William John Hardy

Notes

External links

''Archives Network Wales'', Hardy and Page
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hardy, William John English antiquarians 19th-century antiquarians 20th-century antiquarians English archivists People associated with The National Archives (United Kingdom) 1857 births 1919 deaths 19th-century English historians 20th-century English historians People from Sidlesham