Barbara Hofland

Hofland, Barbara née Wreaks, previously Hoole, 1770—1844

by Benjamin Colbert

Barbara Wreaks was born in Sheffield, daughter of Robert Wreaks (d. 1773), ironmonger, and brought up by an aunt upon his death. In 1796 she married Thomas Bradshawe Hoole (1766-99), a merchant. After his untimely death, she turned to literary composition to support her infant son. Even before remarrying the landscape painter Thomas Christopher Hofland (1777-1843; ODNB) in 1810, she began to establish her reputation as a poet and children's writer. She continued to publish poetry, novels, drama, and textbooks, her chief fame resting on the works in genres intended for children (including the storybook travelogues listed in this database).

Sources:

Butts, Dennis. 'Hofland [née Wreaks], Barbara (bap. 1770, d. 1844), children's writer and novelist'. Oxford Dictionary of National Biography. 23 Sept. 2004. Oxford University Press. Web. 29 Jan. 2016. https://doi.org/10.1093/ref:odnb/13457

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