Historical figures in Kew

For my final article of this scheme, I decided to look around my local area to see what famous people lived here. And to my surprise, there were a lot more historical figures than I thought.

To begin, just a couple of minutes from Kew Gardens, two of the most influential directors of the place, Sir William Hooker and his son, Sir Joseph Hooker have a plaque. Born in Norwich, 1785, William Hooker quickly developed a passion for botany. After being appointed professor of Botany at Glasgow University, he was appointed director of the Botanic Gardens at Kew. He was a predominant figure for the gardens, increasing its size from 11 acres to 75 acres of botanic gardens and 270 of pleasure grounds. After his death in 1865, his son was made assistant to his father and succeeded him as director. Joseph Hooker died himself in 1911. Their contributions to what are known as the largest botanical gardens in the world led to their plaque on Kew Green.

Another plaque I saw was just a couple of minutes from my house, belonging to Danish-French impressionist painter Camille Pissarro. Camille Pissarro was an impressionist painter born on the island of Saint Thomas, in 1830. His importance resides in his contributions to impressionism. Pissarro is the only artist to have shown his work at all eight Paris Impressionist exhibitions, from 1874 to 1886. He inspired many for years on end, thanks to his stylistic and revolutionary approach to his art, becoming one of the most influential French painters to date. He died in 1903 and has a Plaque on Kew Green to remember the time he spent here in 1892.

The final plaque I found in my local area belonged to film actress Barbara Everest. She was born in Surrey, 1980 and made her screen debut in the 1916 film The Man Without a Soul. On stage, she also delivered a performance as Queen Anne in the 1935 play Viceroy Sarah. However, her most famous role was in the 1944 film Gaslight, where she played the rather deaf servant, Elizabeth. After starring in over 75 films and plays over her lifetime, she passed away in February 1968. The plaque she has is on her house in Kew, to remember what she accomplished in her life.

If you have the time, I recommend taking a look around your local area to see what there is, you never know what you might find. Over the course of this scheme, I have discovered so much more about my local area, and you can to.