Helen Allingham RWS (nee Paterson; 26 September 1848 - 28 September 1926) was an English watercolourist and illustrator of the Victorian era. Biography: Helen Mary Elizabeth Paterson was born on 26 September 1848, at Swadlincote in Derbyshire, the daughter of Alexander Henry Paterson, a medical doctor, and Mary Herford Paterson. Helen Paterson was the eldest of seven children. The family moved to Altrincham in Cheshire when she was one year old. In 1862 her father and her three-year-old sister Isabel died of diphtheria during an epidemic. The family then moved to Birmingham, where some of Alexander Paterson's family lived. 1] Paterson showed a talent for art from an early age, drawing some of her inspiration from her maternal grandmother Sarah Smith Herford and aunt Laura Herford, both accomplished artists of their day. Her younger sister Caroline Paterson also became a noted artist. She initially studied art for three years at the Birmingham School of Design (founded 1843). From 1867 she attended the National Art Training School in London, which had a separate division for women; her aunt Laura Herford had previously studied there. The School is presently the Royal College of Art............ Juliana Horatia Ewing (nee Gatty) (3 August 1841 - 13 May 1885) was an English writer of children's stories. She displayed sympathetic insight into children's lives, admiration for things military, and strong religious faith. Youth and marriage: Known as Julie, she was the second of ten children of the Reverend Alfred Gatty, vicar of Ecclesfield in Yorkshire, and Margaret Gatty, who was herself a children's author. The children were educated mainly by her mother, but Julie was often the driving force behind their various activities: drama, botany etc. Later she was responsible for setting up a village library in Ecclesfield and helped out in the parish with her three sisters. Early stories of hers appeared in Charlotte Yonge's magazine Monthly Packet. On 1 June 1867, she married Major Alexander Ewing (1830-1895) of the army pay department. He was also a keen churchgoer, who shared his wife's interest in literature. Within a week of their marriage, the Ewings left England for Fredericton, New Brunswick, Canada, where he had received a new posting. They remained there for two years, before returning to England in 1869 and spending eight years in the army town of Aldershot. Although her husband was sent overseas again, to Malta in 1879 and Sri Lanka in 1881, Ewing's poor health would not allow her to accompany him. The Ewings moved to Trull, Somerset, on his return in 1883, and in 1885, to Bath, in the hopes that the change of air would do her good. However, her health continued to deteriorate, and after two operations, she died there on 13 May 1885.She was given a military funeral at Trull three days later. Her sister Horatia Katharine Frances Gatty (1846-1945) published a memorial of Julie's life and works which includes a publication history of her stories. A later selection includes some of Julie's letters and drawings about Canada. A biography by Gillian Avery appeared in 1961...................