James Haughton (5 May 1795 – 20 February 1873) was a
IrishIreland is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island in the world. It lies to the north-west of continental Europe and is surrounded by hundreds of islands and islets. To the east of Ireland, separated by the Irish Sea, is the island of Great Britain...
social reformer and temperance activist.
Life
Haughton, son of Samuel Pearson Haughton (1748–1828), by Mary, daughter of James Pim of Rushin, Queen's County (now
County LaoisCounty Laois is one of the traditional counties of Ireland and is located within the province of Leinster. Its name was formerly spelt as Laoighis and Leix....
), Ireland, was born in
CarlowCarlow is an inland town in the south-east of Ireland in County Carlow, 84 km from Dublin. The town numbers about 20,000 people, 3,000 of whom are students. The River Barrow flows through the town, and forms the historic boundary between counties Laois and Carlow: the Local Government Act...
and educated at Ballitor,
County KildareCounty Kildare is one of the traditional counties of Ireland. It is located within the province of Leinster and was named after the town of Kildare . Kildare is the 25th largest of Ireland’s 32 counties in area and ninth largest in terms of population...
, from 1807 to 1810, under James White, a quaker. After filling several situations to learn his business, in 1817 he settled in
DublinDublin is the largest city and capital of Ireland. It is officially known in Irish as Baile Átha Cliath or Áth Cliath ; the English name comes from the Irish Dubh Linn meaning "black pool". It is located near the midpoint of Ireland's east coast, at the mouth of the River Liffey and at the...
, where he became a corn and flour factor, in partnership with his brother William. He retired in 1850. Although educated as a Friend, he joined the Unitarians in 1834, and remained throughout his life a strong believer in their tenets.
He supported the anti-slavery movement at an early period and took an active part in it until 1838, going in that year to London as a delegate to a convention. Shortly after the Temperance campaigner, Father Mathew, took the pledge, 10 April 1838, Haughton became one of his most devoted disciples. For many years he gave most of his time and energies to promoting total abstinence and to advocating legislative restrictions on the sale of intoxicating drinks.
In December 1844 he was the chief promoter of a fund which was raised to pay some of the debts of Father Mathew and release him from prison. About 1835 he commenced a series of letters in the public press which made his name widely known. He wrote on temperance,
slaverySlavery is a form of forced labor in which people are considered to be the property of others. Slaves can be held against their will from the time of their capture, purchase or birth, and deprived of the right to leave, to refuse to work, or to receive compensation...
, British India, peace,
capital punishmentCapital punishment or the death penalty, is the execution of a person by judicial process as a punishment for an offense. Crimes that can result in a death penalty are known as capital crimes or capital offences....
, sanitary reform, and education. His first letters were signed ‘The Son of a Water Drinker,’ but he soon commenced using his own name and continued to write till 1872. He took a leading part in a series of weekly meetings which were held in Dublin in 1840, when so numerous were the social questions discussed that a newspaper editor called the speakers the "Anti-everythingarians". In association with
Daniel O'ConnellDaniel O'Connell , known as The Liberator, or The Emancipator, was an Irish political leader in the first half of the nineteenth century...
, of whose character he had a very high opinion, he advocated various plans for the amelioration of the condition of Ireland and the
Repeal of the UnionThe Repeal Association was an Irish mass membership political movement set up by Daniel O'Connell to campaign for a repeal of the Act of Union of 1800 between Great Britain and Ireland....
, but was always opposed to physical force. He became a vegetarian in 1846, both on moral and sanitary grounds. For two or three years before his death he was president of the Vegetarian Society of the United Kingdom. He was one of the first members of the Statistical Society of Dublin, 1847, a founder of the Dublin Mechanics' Institute, 1849, in the same year was on the committee of the Dublin Peace Society, aided in abolishing
Donnybrook FairDonnybrook is a district of Dublin, Ireland. It is situated on the southside of the city, in the Dublin 4 postal district, and is home to the Irish state broadcaster RTÉ. It was once part of the Pembroke Township...
1855, and took a chief part in 1861 in opening the
Botanic GardensThe National Botanic Gardens are located in Glasnevin, 5 km north-west of Dublin city centre, Ireland. The 27 acres , are situated between the River Tolka and the Prospect Cemetery...
at Glasnevin on Sundays.
He died at 35 Eccles Street, Dublin, on 20 Feb. 1873, and was buried in
Mount Jerome CemeteryMount Jerome Cemetery is situated in Harold's Cross on the south side of Dublin, Ireland. Since its foundation in 1836, it has witnessed over 300,000 burials...
24 Feb. in the presence of an immense crowd of people.
He was the father of the scientist
Samuel HaughtonSamuel Haughton , Irish scientific writer, the son of James Haughton , was born at Carlow....
.
Publications
- ‘Slavery Immoral,’ 1847
- ‘A Memoir of Thomas Clarkson,’ 1847
- ‘A Plea for Teetotalism and the Maine Liquor Law,’ 1855.