Early Life
He was born in London of working class parents on 24 August 1794. His father and a short-lived older brother were also named William. Not much is known of his mother, except the maiden name of Bedborough, birthplace of Reading, England and wedding date of 13 August 1792. He developed a love of plants in his youth and became a gardener, first in the East of England, then at a nursery north of London and eventually for a wealthy family in Stoke Newington. Being of a religious nature, he applied to train as Christian missionary for the London Missionary Society and was accepted to the school.
Read more about this topic: William Ellis (missionary)
Famous quotes related to early life:
“Many a woman shudders ... at the terrible eclipse of those intellectual powers which in early life seemed prophetic of usefulness and happiness, hence the army of martyrs among our married and unmarried women who, not having cultivated a taste for science, art or literature, form a corps of nervous patients who make fortunes for agreeable physicians ...”
—Sarah M. Grimke (1792–1873)