William Ewart - Eaton Place, London, UK
N 51° 29.868 W 000° 09.086
30U E 697718 N 5709032
This blue plaque, to William Ewart, is on the wall of a house on the south east side of Eaton Place.
Waymark Code: WMEHV4
Location: London, United Kingdom
Date Posted: 06/01/2012
Views: 1
The blue plaque, that is in good condition,
reads:
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London County Council
William
Ewart
1798 - 1869
Reformer
lived here
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The Spartacus website (visit
link) tells us:
"William Ewart was born in Liverpool in 1798.
An active social reformer, Ewart was elected as MP for Bletchingly in 1828. At
first Ewart concentrated on legal reform and played an important role in the
abolition of capital punishment for minor offences.
In the 1840s, Ewart, now MP for Dumfries, turned his attention to working class
education. Ewart joined forces with the MP for Salford, Joseph Brotherton, and
the Chartist, Edward Edwards, to draft a Public Libraries Act. Ewart faced
considerable hostility from the Conservatives in the House of Commons. It was
argued that the rate paying middle and upper classes would be paying for a
service that would be mainly used by the working classes. Ewart was therefore
forced to make several changes to his proposed legislation before Parliament
agreed to pass the measure.
The Public Libraries Act became law in 1850. Whereas William Ewart wanted all
boroughs to have the power to finance public libraries, the legislation only
applied to those boroughs with populations of over 10,000. The Borough Councils
also had to obtain the consent of two thirds of the local ratepayers who voted
in a referendum. Other restrictions included that the rate of no more than a
halfpenny in the pound could be levied. Furthermore, this money could not be
used to purchase books.
When Ewart retired in 1868 he had served in the House of Commons for forty
years. William Ewart died in 1869."