Newcastle University

Joseph Crawhall the second 1821-1896: The Newcastle Wood Engraver

Joseph Crawhall the second was born at West House, Newcastle in 1821, the eldest son of Joseph Crawhall the industrialist. He was married with 5 children, the most famous of which was Joseph Crawhall the third who worked as an artist mainly in Scotland and was associated with the Glasgow boys.

As well as running the family ropery business with his brothers, Crawhall's artistic energy was spent illustrating, making wood cuts and producing books. He also had a great interest in music, landscape painting and fishing. This is shown by the first ever book he produced in 1859, 'The compleatest angling booke that euer was writ' which he illustrated and printed himself.

Charles Keene, the famous illustrator of Punch, was a close friend of Crawhall and they collaborated on many drawings and cartoons for this publication. The Art Gallery and Museum, Kelvingrove, Glasgow, has a collection of 18 albums of such drawings.

Crawhall was also a great friend to the descendents of Thomas Bewick and was an executor to Bewick's last surviving daughter Isabella Bewick.

His interest in art extended to him being joint secretary of the Newcastle Arts Association in 1878 and being sole secretary in 1880.

Over the years he wrote or produced several books including a 2nd edition of 'The compleatest angling booke' which contained some new illustrations by his son Joseph junior and James Guthrie. Several other books contained wood engravings by the artist, many of which were by Andrew Tuer, including 'Old London Street Cries and the cries of today' 1885. Tuer was also interested in the commercial possibilities of Crawhall's family Christmas cards (Felver 1972).

In 1890 Crawhall and his wife moved to Ealing near to their eldest daughter Elspeth but later lived quite a nomadic lifestyle moving north to Rothbury for the summer and back to London for the winter. But by now Crawhall's health was failing and he was diagnosed with cancer. He died in 1896 back in London in his temporary home.

The exhibition gives you the opportunity to see the variety of artistic work Crawhall undertook, from making Christmas cards for the family to wood engraving, illustrating and other commercial work most of which was undertaken whilst running the family ropery business with his brothers. Crawhall may not be as famous an engraver as Bewick, but his contribution to 19th century illustration is most certainly a valuable one. Material used:

Clarke Collection:
A collection of right merrie garlands for north country anglers
Chorographia (Crawhall reprint of Gray's Chorographia)

Rare Books Collection:
A Jubilee thought
Old London Street Cries and the cries of today by A Tuer (Including some Crawhall illustrations)
The compleatest angling booke that euer was writ
Gray's Chorographia, A survey of Newcastle Upon Tyne 1649 (Original)

Friends Collection:
A Christmas card
Advertisement for Pears' Soap
A letter to Charles Mitchell, local shipbuilder and fellow art enthusiast
Old Aunt Elspa's ABC

Miscellaneous Collections:
A watercolour from the Crawhall family jottings albums
Woodblocks from our woodblock collection

Further information is available in: 'Joseph Crawhall: The Newcastle Wood Engraver (1821-1896)' by Charles S Felver. (Shelfmark: 769 CRA(Fel) )