William Harrison Ainsworth – The Lancashire Novelist
Most of the readers who enjoy nineteenth century literature today, are not familiar with the novels of William Harrison Ainsworth. Yet Ainsworth enjoyed a spectacular success in his own time. The son of a Manchester solicitor, he found the glittering prizes of fame and fortune in the Capital at the age of only thirty. But when fashionable London’s ardour cooled, it was his native city that provided him with the ultimate honour and recognition. Since his death in 1882, his works have fallen almost completely from the favour of the critical and publishing establishment, and from the reading public.
He was a great friend of Crossley's, and many of the stories for his historical romances were sourced either from Crossley's personal collection or from Chetham Society volumes.
