ABSTRACT
Samuel Wilderspin was born on 23 March 1791 in Homsey, near London, the son of Alexander and Ann Wilderspin. 1 His mother dedicated him, her only child to live, to some special work for humanity. 2 He was baptised on 10 April 1791 in the Swedenborgian Chapel in Great East Cheap, London. The beautiful cap he wore at the christening was made by his mother, who, according to family tradition, also made his other clothes, except for his shoes, which were made by his father. 3
Although baptised in London, Wilderspin spent his infancy in idyllic surroundings in Homsey along the banks of the New River, its channel now straightened by the hand of man, but then a meandering stream which came down from Hertfordshire to provide London with its principal water supply. On approaching H ornsey the river swung in a wide arc, enclosing the village on three sides with a border of trees and grassy banks which added much to its rural charm. After skirting the old parish church with its ivy-covered tower (the only part of the building still standing today) the river turned southward again, passing east of Homsey Wood before making its final run to Islington and the reservoirs of Clerkenwell.4
