Legacy
After his death, a monument to Clarkson was erected in 1879, at Wadesmill, that reads: "On this spot where stands this monument in the month of June 1785 Thomas Clarkson resolved to devote his life to bringing about the abolition of the slave trade."
Another monument, the Clarkson Memorial, was erected in his birthplace of Wisbech to commemorate his life and work. The Clarkson School, Wisbech is named after him. A pub in Wisbech is named the Clarkson Arms and is opposite a tree lined road named Clarkson Avenue. A secondary school (The Queen's School) was closed and reopened after renovation in September 2007 as the 'Thomas Clarkson Community College'.
In 1996 a tablet was dedicated to his memory in Westminster Abbey, near the tomb of William Wilberforce.
Several other roads in the United Kingdom are named after him, for example in Hull, the home town of William Wilberforce, Cambridge and Ipswich, Suffolk.
One of his descendants, Canon John Clarkson, continues in his footsteps as one of the leaders of the Anti-Slavery Society.
In the 2006 film Amazing Grace, Clarkson was played by the British actor Rufus Sewell.
After the abolition of slavery in Jamaica in 1834 and subsequent establishment of Free Villages for the settlement of newly freed slaves, the town of Clarksonville, named in his honour, established in St. Ann, Jamaica.
In July 2010 the Church of England Synod decided to honour Clarkson and Olaudah Equiano on the day that William Wilberforce is also remembered - July 30. An initial celebration was held in Playford church on July 30, 2010.
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Famous quotes containing the word legacy:
“What is popularly called fame is nothing but an empty name and a legacy from paganism.”
—Desiderius Erasmus (c. 1466–1536)