Sarah Fuller Flower Adams
| Sarah Fuller Adams | |
|---|---|
|
Sketch of Adams, after an 1834 sketch by Margaret Gillies | |
| Born |
22 February 1805 Old Harlow, Essex, England |
| Died |
14 September 1848 (aged 43) London, England |
| Occupation | Poet |
| Nationality | British |
| Spouse | William Bridges Adams |
Sarah Fuller Adams (22 February 1805 – 14 August 1848) was an English poet and Unitarian. She is best known for writing the hymn "Nearer, My God, to Thee".
Early life and family
Sarah Fuller Flower was born at High Street, Old Harlow, Essex, the younger daughter of Benjamin Flower, editor[1] and the sister of composer Eliza Flower.[2] She was baptised at the Water Lane Independent Chapel in Bishops Stortford.[3]
Career
Her longest work is Vivia Perpetua, A Dramatic Poem (1841), having as its subject the life of the early Christians.
Adams was a Unitarian and wrote several hymns in her lifetime, among which are "Nearer, My God, to Thee" and "He sendeth sun, He sendeth shower". "Nearer, my God, to Thee" is of particular historical significance as it is reputed to have been the final piece played by eight musicians on the RMS Titanic as it sank on 14 April 1912.
Personal life
In 1834 Sarah married William Bridges Adams, polemicist and railway engineer. They lived at Loughton, Essex, where there is a blue plaque to the couple.
Death
Adams died from tuberculosis at the age of 43 and was buried at Harlow on 21 August 1848.[1]
Notes
- 1 2 Julian, John DD (1907), A Dictionary of Hymnology (2nd ed.), John Murray.
- ↑ Hale, Sarah Josepha Buell (1853). Woman's Record; Or, Sketches of All Distinguished Women, from the Beginning... Harper & bros. 874 pp.
- ↑ "England Births and Christenings, 1538-1975," database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:NPSW-JMN. Retrieved 4 October 2015), Sarah Fuller Flower, Sep 1806; citing , reference ; FHL microfilm 0566025 (RG4 661), 0566028 (RG4 661, 1647). Also at Ancestry.com. England & Wales, Non-Conformist and Non-Parochial Registers, 1567-1970 [database on-line] Subscription required. Retrieved 4 October 2015.
References
- Osbeck, Kenneth W, 101 Hymn Stories.
- Stephenson, HW (1922), The Author of Nearer, My God, to Thee.
- ——— (1931), Unitarian Hymn-Writers.
- "Titanic's Band". Titanic-Titanic. Retrieved 3 April 2013.
- Attribution
-
This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Gilman, D. C.; Thurston, H. T.; Colby, F. M., eds. (1905). "Adams, Sarah Fuller Flower". New International Encyclopedia (1st ed.). New York: Dodd, Mead.
External links
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Wikiquote has quotations related to: Sarah Fuller Flower Adams |
- Stephen, Leslie, ed. (1885). "Adams, Sarah Flower". Dictionary of National Biography. 1. London: Smith, Elder & Co.
- "Sarah Flower Adams", Poets' Corner (index entry), The other pages.
- Works by or about Sarah Fuller Flower Adams at Internet Archive
- Works by Sarah Fuller Flower Adams at LibriVox (public domain audiobooks)
