Nathaniel Gould
Encyclopedia
Nathaniel Gould, always known as Nat Gould, (21 December 1857 – 25 July 1919) was a British novelist.
Gould was born at Manchester
, Lancashire
, the only surviving child of Nathaniel Gould, a tea merchant, and his wife Mary, née Wright. Both parents came from Derbyshire
yeomen families. The boy was indulgently brought up and well educated. His father died just before he was to have left school, and Gould tried first his father's tea trade and then farming at Bradbourne
with his uncles. Gould became a good horseman but a poor farmer. In 1877, in reply to an advertisement, he was given a position on the Newark Advertiser gaining a good all-round knowledge of press work. After a few years he became restless, and in 1884 sailed for Australia
, where he became a reporter on the Brisbane Telegraph in its shipping, commercial and racing departments. In 1887 after disagreements with the Telegraph management, Gould went to Sydney
and worked on the Referee as its horse-racing editor. Later Gould worked for the Sunday Times, and Evening News. Then followed 18 months at Bathurst as editor of the Bathurst Times during which he wrote his first novel, With the Tide, which appeared as a serial in the Referee. This was followed by six other novels in the same paper. In 1891 his first novel, With the Tide, was published in book form in England under the title of The Double Event and was an immediate success; it sold over 100,000 copies in its first ten years and was still in print in 1919. It was dramatized in Australia and had a long run in 1893. In 1895 Gould returned to England, he had been 11 years in Australia and he felt that his experiences had made a man of him.
Back in England, Gould began writing fiction, for many years writing an average of over four novels a year; about 130 are listed in Miller's Australian Literature. Gould also published in 1895 On and Off the Turf in Australia, in 1896 Town and Bush, Stray Notes on Australia; in 1900 Sporting Sketches; and in 1909 The Magic of Sport: mainly autobiographical. His novels attracted enormous public interest and his sales ran into many millions of copies. He travelled, retained his interest in racing to the end, and died on 25 July 1919. Nat Gould was buried at Bradbourne
in Derbyshire on 29 July 1919, and his grave is marked by a stone cross near the churchyard gates.
He married in Brisbane
, Miss Elizabeth Madelaine Ruska, and there were seven children of the marriage.
Gould was a modest man who did not take himself or his work too seriously. His advice to emerging writers was to 'write about men and things you have met and seen; take your characters from the busy world, and your scenes from Nature'. But within its limits his work was very good. He told a simple story exceedingly well in an unaffected way. Many of his books were concerned with horse racing, and no great originality of plot was to be expected, but they were written with such flair and genuine interest that their countless readers took up each book as it was published, confident in their belief that here was another rattling good story.
Gould was born at Manchester
Manchester
Manchester is a city and metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. According to the Office for National Statistics, the 2010 mid-year population estimate for Manchester was 498,800. Manchester lies within one of the UK's largest metropolitan areas, the metropolitan county of Greater...
, Lancashire
Lancashire
Lancashire is a non-metropolitan county of historic origin in the North West of England. It takes its name from the city of Lancaster, and is sometimes known as the County of Lancaster. Although Lancaster is still considered to be the county town, Lancashire County Council is based in Preston...
, the only surviving child of Nathaniel Gould, a tea merchant, and his wife Mary, née Wright. Both parents came from Derbyshire
Derbyshire
Derbyshire is a county in the East Midlands of England. A substantial portion of the Peak District National Park lies within Derbyshire. The northern part of Derbyshire overlaps with the Pennines, a famous chain of hills and mountains. The county contains within its boundary of approx...
yeomen families. The boy was indulgently brought up and well educated. His father died just before he was to have left school, and Gould tried first his father's tea trade and then farming at Bradbourne
Bradbourne
Bradbourne is a village and civil parish in the Derbyshire Dales district of Derbyshire, England. The village is just outside the Peak District National Park, and is 5 miles north of Ashbourne....
with his uncles. Gould became a good horseman but a poor farmer. In 1877, in reply to an advertisement, he was given a position on the Newark Advertiser gaining a good all-round knowledge of press work. After a few years he became restless, and in 1884 sailed for Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
, where he became a reporter on the Brisbane Telegraph in its shipping, commercial and racing departments. In 1887 after disagreements with the Telegraph management, Gould went to Sydney
Sydney
Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...
and worked on the Referee as its horse-racing editor. Later Gould worked for the Sunday Times, and Evening News. Then followed 18 months at Bathurst as editor of the Bathurst Times during which he wrote his first novel, With the Tide, which appeared as a serial in the Referee. This was followed by six other novels in the same paper. In 1891 his first novel, With the Tide, was published in book form in England under the title of The Double Event and was an immediate success; it sold over 100,000 copies in its first ten years and was still in print in 1919. It was dramatized in Australia and had a long run in 1893. In 1895 Gould returned to England, he had been 11 years in Australia and he felt that his experiences had made a man of him.
Back in England, Gould began writing fiction, for many years writing an average of over four novels a year; about 130 are listed in Miller's Australian Literature. Gould also published in 1895 On and Off the Turf in Australia, in 1896 Town and Bush, Stray Notes on Australia; in 1900 Sporting Sketches; and in 1909 The Magic of Sport: mainly autobiographical. His novels attracted enormous public interest and his sales ran into many millions of copies. He travelled, retained his interest in racing to the end, and died on 25 July 1919. Nat Gould was buried at Bradbourne
Bradbourne
Bradbourne is a village and civil parish in the Derbyshire Dales district of Derbyshire, England. The village is just outside the Peak District National Park, and is 5 miles north of Ashbourne....
in Derbyshire on 29 July 1919, and his grave is marked by a stone cross near the churchyard gates.
He married in Brisbane
Brisbane
Brisbane is the capital and most populous city in the Australian state of Queensland and the third most populous city in Australia. Brisbane's metropolitan area has a population of over 2 million, and the South East Queensland urban conurbation, centred around Brisbane, encompasses a population of...
, Miss Elizabeth Madelaine Ruska, and there were seven children of the marriage.
Gould was a modest man who did not take himself or his work too seriously. His advice to emerging writers was to 'write about men and things you have met and seen; take your characters from the busy world, and your scenes from Nature'. But within its limits his work was very good. He told a simple story exceedingly well in an unaffected way. Many of his books were concerned with horse racing, and no great originality of plot was to be expected, but they were written with such flair and genuine interest that their countless readers took up each book as it was published, confident in their belief that here was another rattling good story.
External links
- Nat Gould at Project GutenbergProject GutenbergProject Gutenberg is a volunteer effort to digitize and archive cultural works, to "encourage the creation and distribution of eBooks". Founded in 1971 by Michael S. Hart, it is the oldest digital library. Most of the items in its collection are the full texts of public domain books...
- Nat Gould at Nat Gould: His Life and Books