Henry Bourne (c.1694 – 16 February 1733) was an
English
English usually refers to:
* English language
* English people
English may also refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England
** English national ide ...
historian, who is remembered for his ''Antiquitates Vulgares'' (1725), a pioneering work in the field of
folklore
Folklore is shared by a particular group of people; it encompasses the traditions common to that culture, subculture or group. This includes oral traditions such as tales, legends, proverbs and jokes. They include material culture, ranging ...
studies, and for his substantial history of his home town of
Newcastle upon Tyne
Newcastle upon Tyne ( RP: , ), or simply Newcastle, is a city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England. The city is located on the River Tyne's northern bank and forms the largest part of the Tyneside built-up area. Newcastle is ...
(1736).
Bourne was born in Newcastle, the son of Thomas Bourne, a tailor, in about 1694: he was baptised on 16 December 1694. His father originally had him apprenticed as a
glazier
A glazier is a tradesman responsible for cutting, installing, and removing glass (and materials used as substitutes for glass, such as some plastics).Elizabeth H. Oakes, ''Ferguson Career Resource Guide to Apprenticeship Programs'' ( Infobase: ...
; but he showed such promise that he was sent to the
Royal Free Grammar School in Newcastle, where he flourished, eventually winning a scholarship to
Cambridge
Cambridge ( ) is a university city and the county town in Cambridgeshire, England. It is located on the River Cam approximately north of London. As of the 2021 United Kingdom census, the population of Cambridge was 145,700. Cambridge bec ...
under the tutelage of The Reverend Mr.
Thomas Atherton, a fellow
Novocastrian.
in Newcastle in 1724 and held the position until his death in 1733.
In 1725 Bourne published his most acclaimed work, ''Antiquitates Vulgares, or, Antiquities of the Common People''. This provided a record of various folk customs and ceremonies in England, although its more pragmatic aim was to identify those customs that might be encouraged, and those that should be abolished or regulated.
His huge and very complete history of Newcastle was not quite finished upon his death in Newcastle on 16 February 1733. It was published posthumously in 1736 under the title ''The History of Newcastle upon Tyne, or the Ancient and Present State of that Town''.