Abel Heywood facts for kids

Abel Heywood (born February 25, 1810 – died August 19, 1893) was an English publisher, a person who wanted big changes in society, and a mayor of Manchester. He believed everyone should have access to information and worked hard to make newspapers affordable for ordinary people.

Early Life and Learning

Abel Heywood was born into a poor family in Prestwich. When his father died in 1812, his family moved to Manchester. Abel only had a basic education at the Anglican Bennett Street School. At just nine years old, he started working in a warehouse, earning a small amount each week.

He loved learning on his own and went to the Mechanics' Institute to study more. After losing his factory job, he opened a penny reading room in Manchester around 1831. This was a place where people could read newspapers and books cheaply.

Abel became an agent for a newspaper called The Poor Man's Guardian. Back then, the government put a special tax, called a stamp duty, on newspapers to make them expensive and stop many people from reading them. Abel refused to pay this tax because he believed everyone should have access to news. In 1832, he was sent to prison for four months for not paying a large fine. Even though he faced more fines later, he kept fighting for cheap newspapers. His bookselling business in Oldham Street became very successful.

Fighting for Change

For many years, Abel Heywood was involved in the lively world of social change in Manchester. In 1828, he joined protests to improve how the Mechanics' Institute was run. This institute was supposed to help working people learn, but wealthy members had all the power. They chose who ran the institute, and ordinary members had to pay high fees and weren't allowed to discuss politics or read newspapers there.

Abel and other members demanded the right to choose some of their own leaders. When their demands weren't fully met, they started a new group called the New Mechanics' Institute. Eventually, many members left the old institute, which forced it to become more democratic and listen to its members.

Even with his strong beliefs, Abel's business grew. He became active in public life, joining the Commissioners of Police in 1836. This group was like a town council and was in charge of things like paving streets and keeping the city clean.

Abel Heywood was also a strong supporter of the Chartist movement. Chartists were people who wanted more rights for working-class people, including the right to vote. His business published many of the movement's reading materials, including the Northern Star newspaper. He often used his own money to help Chartist leaders, like Feargus O'Connor, when they needed bail. In 1841, he was chosen as the treasurer for the National Charter Association. He also worked hard to make Manchester an official city, and once it was, he was elected to the city council in 1843.

A Mayor and Publisher

Abel Heywood became an alderman (a senior member of the city council) in 1853. He tried to become a Member of Parliament for Manchester in 1859 and 1865 but was not successful.

He served as the Mayor of Manchester twice. His first term was from 1862 to 1863, during a difficult time known as the cotton famine. He became mayor again from 1876 to 1877. A big achievement during his time as mayor was helping to complete the Manchester Town Hall, a very important building for the city.

In 1866, Abel Heywood noticed that working-class people were starting to travel by train for fun. He saw that there were no affordable travel guides for them. So, he began to publish a series of Penny Guides. These were small, cheap travel guides that covered places like Buxton, Southport, Bath, and the Isle of Wight. The first guide for Bakewell and Haddon Hall came out in 1893. By 1912, his company had published about one hundred different guidebooks!

The large clock bell of the Manchester Town Hall, which weighs over 8 tons, is named Great Abel after him. It has his initials, AH, and a line from a poem by Tennyson: Ring out the false, ring in the true.

Family Connections

Abel Heywood's wife was the widow of the previous mayor, Thomas Goadsby. Abel also had a son named Abel who continued his publishing business. His eldest daughter, Jane, married Robert Trimble in 1856. The Trimble family later moved to Taranaki in New Zealand in 1875.

See also

• Heywood Guides