William Smallwood

SMALLWOOD, William. b. Kendal, Westmorland, 31 December 1831; d. Kendal, 6 August 1897. He studied the organ as a boy under John Camidge of York (the younger, 1790-1859, before Camidge’s illness of 1848). He was appointed organist of Kendal Parish Church at the age of 15 in 1847, and held the post until his death fifty years later. He wrote a ‘Pianoforte Tutor’ which, according to the Musical Times, had ‘an immense sale’; and published song collections such as ‘Flowers of Melody’, ‘Home Treasures’, ‘Youthful Pleasures’, and ‘Classics at Home’. Smallwood is known for three tunes. Two of them, HAMPSTEAD and SMALLWOOD, are found in some evangelical books, such as Grace Hymns (1977). The third,...