WYKES, Henry John

1850 - 1916

Henry John Wykes was born at Southam, Warwickshire in 1850, son of John Wykes, a grocer, who died shortly before his son's birth, and his second wife Elizabeth née Arch (c1816-11 August 1900), who married at Southam in 1848, his first wife was Eliza Anne Douglas, who married at Southam on 27 January 1841. In 1851, Henry was an 8-month-old, living with his 34-year-old widowed mother, who had taken over the family grocer's shop, at Coventry Street, Southam with his three stepsiblings. His mother married secondly at Southam in 1853, Peter Crawford (c1808-12 September 1882), a church missionary, and they moved to Halesworth in Suffolk. In 1871, 20-year-old Henry was a clerk, living with his mother and 63-year-old stepfather at Holton Road, Halesworth where stepfather Peter Crawford died the following year. In 1881, 68-year-old widow Elizabeth Crawford, was living at Soap House Hill, Halesworth, Suffolk with her 30-year-old son Henry, 'a companion to an invalid gentleman', with Henry's cousin 27-year-old Sarah Arch. Henry studied at Ipswich School of Science and Art, passing his perspective examinations in 1886 and drawing in 1888 and oil & watercolour in 1893. In 1891 Henry and his mother were living at 65 Berners Street, Ipswich, where Henry was a 'teacher of drawing and an accountant' but had moved to 2 Wilberforce Street, Ipswich by the time of his mother's death in 1900 where Henry was living in 1901 'an artist in oil and watercolour' with a housekeeper. A member and exhibitor at the Ipswich Fine Art Club from 1901 until his death and exhibited from 2 Wilberforce Street, Ipswich in 1901 three oil paintings, 'Sandy Lane, Belstead', 'Crane Hill, Ipswich' and 'View on London Road', in 1912 two oils 'Sproughton Hall' and 'View of Little Bealings' and four watercolours 'The Gipping, Bramford', 'View in East Bergholt', 'Sproughton Bridge and Mill' and 'Washbrook Bridge', in 1916 four works 'View of Little Bealings', 'Bramford Church from the Meadows', 'The Gipping, Bramford' and 'The Meadows, Sproughton'. Henry John Wykes died at 2 Wilberforce Street, Ipswich on 29 February 1916, he was unmarried.

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Works by This Artist