William Wakeman on Inishmurray

W. F. Wakeman was born in Dublin in 1822, the son of a bookseller and publisher with an address in D'Olier Street. Taught drawing by George Petrie, he became a draughtsman in the Topographical Department of the Ordnance Survey. Many of his drawings of views and antiquities from this period are held by the Royal Irish Academy.

After the department was abolished by the Ordnance Survey he taught drawing in St. Columba's College in County Meath, where he wrote and illustrated "Handbook of Irish Antiquities" in 1848 and later at Portora Royal School in Enniskillen.

He contributed many articles to archaeological journals and gradually abandoned art for archaeology with the exception of illustrating archaeological works and the great Sligo collections for Colonel Cooper. Among the books he illustrated were two with Sligo connections - "Parishes of Ballysodare and Kilvarnet" by Archdeacon O'Rorke and "Irish Lake Dwellings" by Colonel Wood Martin.

Wakeman wrote several books on Irish antiquities including "Three Days on the Shannon", "A Guide to Lough Erne", "Guide to Dublin" and "Account of the Island of Inishmurray". He also wrote a series of articles on "Old Dublin" for the Dublin Evening Telegraph newspaper.

He died in Coleraine on October 15th 1900.

"Drawings from the Island of Inishmurray" produced between 1879 and 1881, consisting of 80 sheets.