Between the Admiralty and Plymouth (1805-1812)
Although
he regularly used sculpt or a derivation thereof, almost no work of
Cooke´s is ever signed fecit or drawn by. However, he did sell a
rather attractive view of the moon Drawn by John Cooke which
was printed and published by him on September
1st, 1808. The resulting plate was Engraved by Miss Mary
Cooke from a Drawing made from actual observations with an
excellent achromatic Telescope of Mr Dollands of 46 Inches focus with a Triple
Object glass of 3 Inches Aperture under the immediate direction of Willm
Kitchiner Esqre M.D. (Fig. 18).
This print (measuring 250 x 195 mm) reveals a number of new things about Cooke. We see an example of his artistic skills; there is an insight into his interest in things astronomical; we discover what could be a relative. The engraving is exceedingly well done and Miss Cooke was awarded the Silver Pallet from the Society for the Encouragement of Arts and Sciences on 30th May 1809.[1] The quality and the recognition by the Society suggest this was her Masterpiece, i.e. the piece she presented at the end of her apprenticeship. Miss Mary Cooke´s precise relationship to John has not yet been established but we know Mary was just 17 when the print was published: John would have been 25 and working for David Steel when she was born. She could well have been a cousin or niece, but daughter cannot be ruled out. The print would reappear in Cooke´s Synopsis of Geography in 1812.
Fig. 18. The Moon in her mean libration; engraved by Miss Mary Cooke.
Despite this output, John Cooke`s business life
appears to have been somewhat unstable. In May 1809 he spent at least a month
in prison again for debt and probably lost his apprentice. In a handwritten
letter to the County of Middlesex Justices, John Robert Thompson alleges that
his Master, John Cooke Engraver, has neglected to instruct him adequately, is absent
for long periods and “has been the past five weeks in prison for debt”.[2] The handwritten
petition is held at the Metropolitan (City of London) Archives and gives some idea
of Cooke´s life at the time:
To the Worshipfull the Justices for the County of
Middlesex in Sessions assembled. The humble Petition of John Robert Thompson
most humbly sheweth that your Petitioner was said Apprentice to Mr John Cooke
Engraver for the Term Seven Years from the Tenth of November One Thousand Eight
Hundred and Seven to Learn the Trade of an Engraver for which the sum of Eighty
Pounds was paid to this John Cooke as a consideration by your Petitioners Father
since deceased. Your Petitioner has served two Years and a half of his time and
has not been put put forward in his his Master having been Absent at sundry times
for months together during which times your Petitioner was wholly without
instruction and at other times Mr John Cooke has employed your Petitioner
principally in White Washing and Painting about his house Running of Errands
Washing Dishes Printing and carrying about Pocket Books to sell. And your
Petitioners Master Mr John Cooke now his and has been this five weeks in a Prison
for Debt and your Petitioner has been during that time Wholly left to himself
with to himself without any body to instruct him in his Business. Your
Petitioner therefore humbly hopes your Worships will take the Promises into your
Consideration and grant him such relief as to your Worships may seem meet and
your Petitioner will Ever Pray.
The earlier trade cards of John and
Mrs Cooke suggest a possible husband-wife relationship. If, indeed, the Mrs
Cooke on the trade card of 1805 (Howell Street) was his wife we would expect to
find children listed, but with no marriage certificate and no death certificate
for a Mrs Cooke that fits, the suspicion is that John Cooke was too busy at
that time to marry. We might also expect to find a reference to a Mrs Cooke in
Thomson´s letter, especially if she had also been in an allied trade: surely,
she could have used the young man´s assistance.
Instead,
there is strong evidence to imply that on 9th November 1809, John Cooke
married Elizabeth Beecham of St Martin in the Fields at St. James in
Westminster (Fig. 19). Certainly, two people of these names married and,
although the two churches are only half a mile apart, they are quite a long distance
from Cooke´s last address in Camden and almost a mile from his next in Holborn.
John would have been 44 at the time but we have no information concerning the age
of Elizabeth. Both bride and groom signed for themselves, indicating literacy.
It may be chance, but from 1813 we find a married couple, John and Elizabeth Cooke, in Stonehouse, and we have the births of six children recorded, the first born in 1812 and registered in Plymouth.
Fig. 19. Entry No. 397 shows marriage of John Cooke to Elizabeth Beecham.
However, John
Cooke of London would soon be linked for the first time with Devon, and more especially
Plymouth. A Plan of the Town of Plymouth Dock was surveyed, drawn, and published by T Richards of Totnes, Devon and was published
in October 1810 (19). This very detailed
map had been prepared for the St Aubyn family: a family associated with Devon and
Cornwall and who still lease parts of St Michael’s Mount, part of their property
from 1660. The signature clearly indicates that the engraver, John Cooke, London,
was late Engr to the Admiralty. The John Cooke referred to
here was not local, and he might not have visited Plymouth, but he executed the
plan on behalf of an influential Cornish client with land in Devon and seems to
have come into contact with a local publisher, not otherwise known for cartographical
output. When a simplified copy of this appeared the following year, also by
Cooke (20), the link was strengthened but not immediately.
Of
the 21 cartographic works[3]
identified as engraved by a John Cooke of either London or with no address, all
of these can be assigned to a period up to 1812 (entries 1-21 in the Cartobibliography) and range from the charts for David
Steel to A General Synopsis Of Geography,
by John Cooke Late Geographer to the Admiralty.
Links to sections of I - London
John Cooke of Howland Street (1799-1805)
The Ladies Circular Atlas and “Mr Barrow”
The Rev. Thomas Smith & The Universal Atlas
John Cooke and the Admiralty (1802-1805)
Between the Admiralty and Plymouth (1805-1812)
Links to section II - Plymouth.
Stonehouse (1813-1845)
Napoleon and Cooke´s first Plymouth engravings
The Copper-Plate Engraving, and Printing Office (1815-21)
John Cooke of Union Street, Stonehouse (1823-1845)
Summary
Return to Introduction
Link to IV: Short List of John Cooke's works.
Notes to Between the Admiralty and Plymouth (1805-1812)[1] Volume 27 of their Transactions (p.20).
[2] How the case was settled is, as yet, unknown. However, the facts mirror
to some extent what we know of John Cooke at this time. He could have been visiting
Plymouth or Totnes. Document MJ/SP/05/005 held by the London Metropolitan Archives.
[3] Not including multiple maps in one work.
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