Subseries

This subseries focusses on Reverend John Pilkington, who lived in Lancashire, England, from 1690 to 1774. It is composed of selections from his memoirs, copied into a notebook by his descendant Susanna Withington Wise, and typewritten notes about the notebook's origins.

The first page of the notebook bears the title "Selections from the Memoirs of the life of my great great grandfather, the Revd. John Pilkington, who was born March 26th 1690 at Bolton in Lancashire and died in 1774 at Walton le Dale, in the same county, where he had resided upward of 50 years." Of a religious nature, the text is dotted with biblical references and passages. Taken out of context, the excerpts selected by Susanna Withington Wise resemble ruminations or a sermon, rather than a veritable memoir. These reflections discuss moral dispositions, virtuous behaviours and how to approach religious practice. For example, Pilkington criticizes the lack of enthusiasm demonstrated by some regular churchgoers: "Our attendance upon divine appointments should be early, regular, serious. I have observed the practice of some to be such, as if they were afraid of being at the beginning of the service, have a custom of coming late when the service is begun rather than come in, not considering how they disturb others. Some by their drowsy sleepy behaviour show the service is not pleasant or entertaining to them." In the Reverend's opinion, while the pursuit of pleasure is not prohibited, such efforts must be for noble purposes and may originate in religious practice. He does not hesitate, for example, to revel in the beauty of nature heightened by the resurgence of spring, which he believes can lead to religious feelings. At the same time, he criticizes the quest for sensual gratifications and frivolous distractions, like games of chance and horse racing, whose pleasures vanish quickly, bringing nothing but disappointment and dissatisfaction. As a whole, these selections reflect on the role of appetites and inclinations that, although they are very human characteristics, must nonetheless, in Reverend Pilkington's opinion, remain controlled by reason and religion.

The author of the typewritten notes (one of John Racey and Susanna Withington Wise's great-grandchildren) uses the handwritten notes added later to the first page of the notebook to trace its origins. According to this writer, the Memoirs of John Pilkington were preserved by the Reverend's grandson, Joseph Beeby Wise. Susanna Withington Wise, the latter's granddaughter, later transcribed these selections. A handwritten note in the notebook says it was "given to Harriet S. Racey by her father in 1904."