Abel Chapman

Abel Chapman (4 October 1851 – 23 January 1929) was an English, Sunderland-born artist, hunter-naturalist and travel writer. He contributed in saving the Spanish Ibex from extinction and helped in the establishment of South Africa's first game reserve. He published several popular travelogues which made use of his illustrations and photographs.

Early life

Chapman was born at 212 High Street, Bishopwearmouth, on 4 October 1851. He was the eldest child of Edward and Jane Chapman, née Crawhall and came from a long line of sportsmen who were both accomplished hunters and acclaimed naturalists.

His grandfather, Joseph Crawhall, was an accurate grouse shot in Hexhamshire, as well as being a founder member of the National History Society of Northumbria. His uncle, George Crawhall, was described by Chapman as "a typical sportsman of the old school – the mentor to whom I owe the best grounding in field-craft."

Chapman's first experiences of hunting were in Northumberland, where he fell in love with nature at the same time as shooting. He often made drawings of the birds he saw and shot there. But it was a friend he made at Rugby School (1864-1869), F. C. Selous, who inspired his lifelong love of travel and adventure – a world away from the moors of Northumberland. Years later, he co-authored a hunting book with Selous, called The Big Game of Africa and Europe.

He worked from 1875 with the family brewing and wine business of T. E. Chapman and son. The family also owned the Lambton Brewery in Sunderland. He was a partner and sold off the enterprise in 1897.