John Francis Brewer

John Francis Brewer (1865-1921) was a late Victorian and Edwardian English novelist, journalist and organist.[1]

John Francis Brewer
An American edition of ‘The Curse Upon Mitre Square’ written by John Francis Brewer in 1888

Family and early life

Brewer was born in Kensington, London, on 25 November 1864. He was the eldest son of the architectural illustrator Henry William Brewer, and brother to the artists Henry Charles Brewer and James Alphege Brewer. Their grandfather was the historian John Sherren Brewer and their great uncle was E. Cobham Brewer, compiler of Brewer's Dictionary of Phrase & Fable.[2] Brewer was educated at Kensington Catholic Public School and studied the organ privately with Robert Sutton-Sawby.[1]

In June 1905, Brewer married Katherine, née Fuller, the widow of the late Henry Edyvean-Walker, the Squire of Bilton, Rugby, at St Mary of the Angels, Bayswater church in London. She had three sons from her first marriage, and was reputed to be an organist herself.[2]

Brewer's father and paternal grandfather, John Sherren Brewer, were notable adherents of the Oxford Movement, inspired by Augustus Pugin and others.[3] Henry William Brewer and his family, including John Francis Brewer, became high-profile converts to the Roman Catholic Church.[2]

Professional life

In 1881, at the age of just 18, Brewer was appointed as organist of the Jesuit Church of the Immaculate Conception, Farm Street, Mayfair in London. He held the post until 1916, when he was succeeded by the Belgian Guy Weitz, a student of Widor and Guilmant.[4] Brewer was also a composer.[5]

In additional to being an organist, Brewer was the author of "three very bright novels" (as described by the ‘Catholic Who’s Who and Year Book 1908’), including 'The Speculators: A Comedy' (1897) and an anonymous novel.[6] Today he is best known for his 1888 short gothic novel, 'The Curse Upon Mitre Square', inspired by the Whitechapel Murders. The book was the first literary adaption of the Jack the Ripper murders, and was written and published at speed only weeks after Catherine Eddowes was killed in Mitre Square. Inspired by the architectural scenes of ancient London by Brewer's father, Henry William Brewer, Brewer Senior created a frontispiece for the book bearing his initials.[7] The book remains in print.[8][9]

Brewer contributed articles, including music criticism, to a number of magazines. In 1887 and 1888 he collaborated with the editor of The Girl's Own Paper, Charles Peters, describing trips they had taken together which appeared in the publication.[10][11] These included trips to Norway,[12] Northern Italy (1887) and Central Italy (1888).[13]

Brewer died on 15 June 1921.[1]

References
  1. Dunham, Benjamin (2021). Etched in Memory: The Elevated Art of J. Alphege Brewer. Peacock Press. p. 9. ISBN 978-1914934131.
  2. Dunham, Benjamin (2021). Etched in Memory: The Elevated Art of J. Alphege Brewer. Peacock Press. p. 9. ISBN 978-1914934131.
  3. O'Donnell, Rory (December 2021). "Restoration of H W Brewer's 1858 bird's eye watercolour of St Cuthbert's College Ushaw co Durham". The Pugin Society. Retrieved 16 December 2021.
  4. "John Francis Brewer". Biographical Dictionary of the Organ. Biographical Dictionary of the Organ. Retrieved 19 December 2021.
  5. "Deaths: John Francis Brewer". The Musical Times. 62 (943): 654. 1921. Retrieved 19 December 2021.
  6. "John Francis Brewer". Catholic Who's Who and Year Book 1908. 1908. Retrieved 19 December 2021.
  7. Dunham, Benjamin S. (Summer 2020). "The Curse upon Mitre Square: Penny Dreadful or Catholic Tract?". East London Historical Society Newsletter: 17–18. Retrieved 30 January 2023.
  8. Brewer, John Francis (1889). The curse upon Mitre square. A.D. 1530-1888. New York: J.W. Lovell Company. OCLC 43935642.
  9. Woods and Baddeley, pp. 61–62
  10. Dunham, Benjamin (2021). Etched in Memory: The Elevated Art of J. Alphege Brewer. Peacock Press. p. 19. ISBN 978-1914934131.
  11. "John Francis Brewer". The Girl's Own Paper. Lutterworth. Retrieved 19 December 2021.
  12. Brewer, John Francis (1888). "A Holiday in Norway" (PDF). The Girls' Own Paper. Retrieved 15 December 2021.
  13. Brewer, John Francis (1888). "The Bachelors in Central Italy". The Girl's Own Paper. 9. Retrieved 19 December 2021.
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