Hawkins Bio

— The Corvey Poets Project at the University of Nebraska —

British Poetry of the later Eighteenth and Earlier Nineteenth Centuries

Bibliographical and Contextual Apparatus

Hawkins, Susannah

The Poetical Works of Susannah Hawkins. Dumfries: [John M'Diarmid and Co.], 1829. Pp. vi + 56.

Biographical Information

For nearly fifty years, she was known as the "wandering minstrel of the borders." In the earliest part of the 19th century, Susannah Hawkins (1787-1868) traveled house to house selling booklets of her poetry and searched the borders for natives of Dumfries, Scotland. "There were two forces a Dumfriesian in England could not escape - death and Susy Hawkins," asserted a fan from Manchester (DNB 9.225-26).

The daughter of blacksmith John Hawkins, this self described "Scottish Poetess" was born in 1781, near Burnswark near Ecclefechan, Dumfriesshire. She described her birthplace as the "famed camp of Burnswark, where the brave Caledonians fought against the Romans" (Hawkins, iii). She apparently attained some basic education and for much of the first half of her life toiled as a domestic servant, herd- and dairymaid at Gillesbie. According to her first publication's dedication to the Marchioness of Queensberry, it was during this part of her life that "the Muse first inspired" her. While watching over the master's cattle, Hawkins was inspired "to sing the praises of the great God, who favored [her] country with the light of truth, a righteous king, and just laws." Her poetry would reflect "the beauties of nature, love, admiration, and curiosity." A devoted practitioner of the "Protestant Faith - the Established Religion of the kingdom," (iii) she looked to God and Nature for meaning and motivation.

On her own Hawkins enhanced her basic education and began to write poetry. In 1826, during her late thirties, the manager of the Dumfries Courier, won over by her charm and colorful character, agreed to publish her poetical works with paper covers and free of charge. Her first edition, The Poems and Songs of Susannah Hawkins, consisted of 60 pages; later volumes contained as many as six more pages. From that time until 1861, a total of nine volumes were published. Apparently these little volumes "are more or less reprints of one another" (DNB 9.225-26); all of them are rare. It is possible that one or two more "editions" may be in existence.

I have found no documentation relating to Susannah Hawkins's marital status or whether she had any children, which leads me to conclude that she never married or had children. Certainly, topics such as the innocence of children and the wonder of love would have inspired multiple poems, had she a lover or offspring. She had at least one sibling, however, a brother.

Later in life, a bequest from Sir F. W. Johnstone, Wester Hall, Dumfriesshire, would grant her land for a cottage at Relief, located close to her brother's home in the Ecclefechan neighborhood. On March 29, 1868, she had an accident resulting in a fall and head injury. She died later that day at the age of 81.

Works Cited

Mandell, Laura. Hawkins, Susannah, 1781-1868. Critical Essay. Scottish Women Poets of the Romantic Period. Biography. 2001. 1 Dec. 2004. <http://www.alexanderstreet2.com/SWRPlive/bios/S7034-D001.html>
Stephen, Sir Leslie, and Sir Sidney Lee. The Dictionary of National Biography. [London:] Oxford UP, [1963-1965].
Bayne, T.W., and Couper, "Sarah. Hawkins, Susanna (1797-1868), poet." Oxford Dictionary of National Biography. 2004. Oxford University Press. 1 Dec. 2004. <http://0-ww.oxforddnb.com.library.unl.edu/view/article/12680>