“Memorial Plaque to George Moore,” by John Acton-Adams

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Memorial plaque to George Moore (1806-1876)

John Acton-Adams (1830-1910)

c.1876

White marble profile bust on a slate-grey background

Cumbrian-born George Moore, a man of terrific energy and commitment, made his fortune in the lace business, and, while adamantly refusing to take public office himself, was a prominent Liberal and philanthropist. Acton-Adams presents him as every inch a forward-looking Victorian gentleman. [Commentary continues below.]

Photograph and text” by Jacqueline Banerjee, 2013.

[This image may be used without prior permission for any scholarly or educational purpose as long as you (1) credit the photographer and (2) link your document to this URL or cite it in a print one. Click on the image for a larger picture.]

The inscription on the memorial describes Moore as: "A man of rare strength and simplicity of character, / active benevolence and wide influence. / A yeoman's son, / he was not born to wealth, but” by ability and industry he gained it, / and he ever used it / as a steward of God and a disciple of the Lord Jesus Christ, / for the furtherance of all good works."

Samuel Smiles, in his glowing 460-page biography of Moore, tells us that the main memorial to Moore,” by which the public sought to remember him and express their feelings about him ("to perpetuate his name and as a tribute of love"), was the establishment of the George Moore Education Trust. This offered scholarships to those who hoped to better themselves — as Moore had so successfully done himself.

Moore had been knocked over in the street” by a bolting horse and fatally injured, so people were particularly shocked” by his death. Smiles reports that, when preaching a few days later, the Bishop was almost overcome” by tears as he said:

We have lost one whom, according to human estimate, we could least afford to lose: an earnest-hearted servant of the Lord Jesus, who devoted his clear head, his mighty energies, and the princely wealth which,” by his own power and industry and God's blessing on them he had earned, to the furtherance of godliness and to the welfare of his brethren: a man standing almost” by himself — at least I never saw any one like him; a man whom all will miss, from the very highest to the very lowest: a man whose place it seems almost impossible to fill: a man, I may add, concerning whom it is the less necessary I should say much, because all here knew him well. Yes, George Moore has been taken from us! He rests from his labours, and his works do follow him; and he leaves to us all the noblest and best of legacies — the memory of a holy life and the precious possession of a good example. [425-26]

As will be clear from all this, Moore was truly "a Smilesian hero on a grand scale" (Garnett).

Related Material

Carlisle Cathedral

Bibliography

Garnett, Jane. "Moore, George (1806–1876)." Oxford Dictionary of National Biography. Online ed. Web 24 July 2014.

Smiles, Samuel. George Moore, Merchant and Philanthropist. London: George Routledge & Sons, 1879. Internet Archive. Uploaded” by the University of California Libraries. Web 24 July 2014.

Last modified 24 July 2014