James Hatley Frere facts for kids

James Hatley Frere (born 1779, died 1866) was an English writer who studied biblical prophecy. He also created a special system called a tactile alphabet to help blind people learn to read.

Life Story of James Hatley Frere

James Hatley Frere was born in 1779. He was the sixth son of John Frere, who lived in Roydon, South Norfolk and Beddington, Surrey. In 1809, James married Merian Martin. They had six sons together:

• Hatley Frere (1811–1868)
• Chales Frere (1813–1884)
• John Alexander Frere (1814–1877)
• Edward Daniel Frere (1816–1881)
• Constantine Frere (1817–1905)
• William Theodore Frere (1820–?), who sadly died as a baby.

In 1825, Frere met Edward Irving. Frere's ideas about biblical prophecy influenced Irving. James Hatley Frere passed away on December 8, 1866, at his son John Alexander Frere's home in Shillington, Bedfordshire.

Inventor of a Reading System

Around 1838, Frere invented a tactile alphabet. This was a phonetic system, meaning it focused on sounds, to teach blind people how to read. He worked with a blind person who helped him improve his ideas.

Frere's letters were made from simple shapes like straight lines, half circles, hooked lines, and angles. He also used hollow and solid circles. He came up with a clever idea called 'return' lines. This meant that readers would read a line from left to right, and then the next line from right to left, like an ox plowing a field (boustrophedon). The letters themselves were even reversed on the return lines! While his system helped people learn to read quickly, it sometimes made pronunciation a bit tricky. By 1871, it was only used in a few places.

Frere also created a cheap way to make his books. He used copper wire to form the letters. These wire letters were placed on a tin plate that had been treated with a special solution. When heat was applied, the letters would stick to the plate. These plates could then be used to print books with raised letters. Other inventors, like T. M. Lucas and William Moon, later used Frere's stereotyping method.

Writings on Prophecy

James Hatley Frere was very interested in biblical prophecy. He was a premillennialist, which means he believed that Jesus would return to Earth before a thousand-year period of peace.

With help from Miss Yates, Frere was able to print 'The Book of the Prophet Isaiah' using his special printing method (London, 1843–9). Here are some of his other works:

• A Combined View of the Prophecies of Daniel, Esdras, and S. John (1815): This book suggested new ideas about the Second Coming (the return of Jesus). These ideas caught the attention of Henry Drummond and led to important meetings. In this book, Frere also suggested that Napoleon was a powerful enemy figure mentioned in prophecy.
• On the General Structure of the Apocalypse (1826): A short introduction to understanding the book of Revelation.
• Eight Letters on the Prophecies relating to the last times (1831): More letters about prophecies.
• Three Letters on the Prophecies (1833): A follow-up to his earlier letters.
• The Art of Teaching to Read by Elementary Sounds (1840): This book explained his phonetic reading system.
• A Letter to Lord Wharncliffe (1843): A letter defending his phonetic method of teaching the blind to read.
• "The Harvest of the Earth," prior to the vintage of wrath (1846): A book discussing prophecies related to the Evangelical Alliance.
• The Great Continental Revolution (1848): This book looked at prophecies and how they might relate to events happening in Europe around 1847-1848.
• Preface to the Second Edition of the Great Continental Revolution (1849): An update to his book about prophecies and current events.
• Notes, forming a brief Interpretation of the Apocalypse (1850): Short notes explaining the book of Revelation.
• Directions for Teaching the Blind to Read on the Phonetic Principle (1851): Instructions on how to use his reading system for the blind.
• Grammar [embossed] for the Blind on the Principle of the Combination of Elementary Sounds (1851): A grammar book for the blind, using his sound-based reading system.