The grave of Rev Thomas Blacklock, Buccleuch Street

Thomas Blacklock (10 November 1721 – 7 July 1791) was a Scottish

poet A poet is a person who studies and creates poetry. Poets may describe themselves as such or be described as such by others. A poet may simply be the creator ( thinker, songwriter, writer, or author) who creates (composes) poems ( oral or wri ...

who went blind in infancy.

Life

He was born near Annan,

Dumfriesshire Dumfriesshire or the County of Dumfries or Shire of Dumfries (''Siorrachd Dhùn Phris'' in Gaelic) is a historic county and registration county in southern Scotland. The Dumfries lieutenancy area covers a similar area to the historic county. I ...

(now Dumfries and Galloway), of humble parentage, and lost his sight as a result of

smallpox Smallpox was an infectious disease caused by variola virus (often called smallpox virus) which belongs to the genus Orthopoxvirus. The last naturally occurring case was diagnosed in October 1977, and the World Health Organization (WHO) c ...

when six months old. He began to write poetry at the age of 12, and studied for the Church. He was appointed minister of

Kirkcudbright Kirkcudbright ( ; sco, Kirkcoubrie; gd, Cille Chùithbeirt) is a town, parish and a Royal Burgh from 1455 in Kirkcudbrightshire, of which it is traditionally the county town, within Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland. The town lies southwest of ...

, but was objected to by the

parish A parish is a territorial entity in many Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest, often termed a parish priest, who might be assisted by one o ...

ioners on account of his

blindness Visual impairment, also known as vision impairment, is a medical definition primarily measured based on an individual's better eye visual acuity; in the absence of treatment such as correctable eyewear, assistive devices, and medical treatment� ...

, and gave up the presentation on receiving an

annuity In investment, an annuity is a series of payments made at equal intervals.Kellison, Stephen G. (1970). ''The Theory of Interest''. Homewood, Illinois: Richard D. Irwin, Inc. p. 45 Examples of annuities are regular deposits to a savings account, ...

. During the 1750s he was sponsored by the empiricist philosopher

David Hume David Hume (; born David Home; 7 May 1711 NS (26 April 1711 OS) – 25 August 1776) Cranston, Maurice, and Thomas Edmund Jessop. 2020 999br>David Hume" ''Encyclopædia Britannica''. Retrieved 18 May 2020. was a Scottish Enlightenment phil ...

. He then retired to

Edinburgh Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian on the southern shore of t ...

, where he took in boarders and became a tutor, with considerable success. He studied divinity and was made D.D. in 1767 from the

Marischal College Marischal College ( ) is a large granite building on Broad Street in the centre of Aberdeen in north-east Scotland, and since 2011 has acted as the headquarters of Aberdeen City Council. However, the building was constructed for and is on long- ...

(later part of the

University of Aberdeen , mottoeng = The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom , established = , type = Public research universityAncient university , endowment = £58.4 million (2021) , budget ...

). He published miscellaneous poems, some of which are preserved in the "Village Hymns for Social Worship" written by Asahel Nettleton and published in 1826. He is chiefly remembered for having written a letter in 1789 to

Robert Burns Robert Burns (25 January 175921 July 1796), also known familiarly as Rabbie Burns, was a Scottish poet and lyricist. He is widely regarded as the national poet of Scotland and is celebrated worldwide. He is the best known of the poets who hav ...

, which had the effect of dissuading him from going to the

West Indies The West Indies is a subregion of North America, surrounded by the North Atlantic Ocean and the Caribbean Sea that includes 13 independent island countries and 18 dependencies and other territories in three major archipelagos: the Greate ...

, indirectly saving his life since the ship sank on the voyage. The building in which he lived (at the corner Chapel Street and West Nicolson) now contains two pubs: Peartree House and The Blind Poet (the walls of which are decorated with a number of Blacklock's poems).

Freemasonry

He was Initiated into Scottish Freemasonry in Journeymen Lodge of Dumfries, No.62, in 1754. The Lodge was renamed Thistle in 1803. Soon after moving to Edinburgh he Affiliated to Holyrood House (St. Luke's), No.44, (

), formally doing so on 18 April 1766. His Masonic relationship with his friend and fellow Freemason,

, has been mentioned elsewhere but remains to be fully explored.

Death

He died at his home in Crichton StreetEdinburgh Post Office Directory 1773 (off Chapel Street), Edinburgh, and was buried in the adjacent churchyard of St. Cuthbert's Chapel of Ease on Buccleuch Street. The grave lies on the west wall slightly to the north-west of the church.

References

External links

Letter dated 24 August 1789 to Robert Burns

Thomas Blacklock
at th
Eighteenth-Century Poetry Archive (ECPA)

St Cuthbert's Chapel of Ease
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Blacklock, Thomas 1721 births 1791 deaths 18th-century Ministers of the Church of Scotland Scottish blind people People from Annan, Dumfries and Galloway Robert Burns Scottish Freemasons Blind poets

Life

Freemasonry

Death

References

Further reading

See also

External links