James Hutton 1818-1893

James Hutton was born in Calcutta, India, on 10 June 1818, the third son of merchant Thomas Hutton (1772 - 1856) and Janet Robertson (1881 - 1862).
His sisters and brothers were -

• Jean Lidderdale Hutton1803 – 1805
• Thomas Hutton1807 – 1874
• Eleanora Hutton1808 –
• Janet Hutton1810 –
• Elizabeth Hutton1811 –
• Katherine Hutton1813 –
• William Forbes Hutton1816 – 1896
• Arthur Hutton1820 – 1902
• Mary Hutton1822 –

James was a journalist and author both in India and in England. An obituary for James Hutton was published in an issue of St James Gazette dated 27 March 1893:

All who were personally acquainted with him, and many who knew him only in his writings , will regret to hear of the death of Mr James Hutton, who was, perhaps better known in India than even in England as one of the most active and one of the most able journalists of his time. He was the author, moreover, of several interesting and valuable books, including "England One Hundred Years Ago" ("England One Hundred and Thirty Years Ago" it might now be called), and a study of the Russian position in Central Asia, entitles, "The Aryan and the Cossack". Mr Hutton began life in the Indian army, which he quitted to take the editorship of an important Indian newspaper. Returning to England, he was associated with Mr G H Lewes, Mr Thornton Hunt, and Mr E F Piggott in the direction of the Leader newspaper, of which he was one time editor.

Mr Hutton was destined, however, like so many Liberals of those days, to become eventually a Conservative. He started some twenty-five years ago a morning paper called the Day, which represents the views of a particular section of the Conservative party, but failed, though conducted with great ability, to obtain their active support. After the non-success of the Day Mr Hutton went back to India for a time. He was, indeed, connected throughout his life with Indian journalism, now as editor, now as London correspondent. Dying at the age of seventy-five, after a severe illness extending over many years, he continued writing for the Madras Mail and other Indian papers, almost to the very last. Among the mourners at his funeral, which took place on Saturday at the Hammersmith Cemetery, were Colonel Smith, Colonel Marvin, Major Fenwick, Mr Treherne and Mr Sutherland Edwards.

In 1836 at the age of 18 James applied for a cadetship in East India Company armies. As indicated in the above obituary his career in the army was short as he left to become a journalist. He was editor of Allen's Indian Mail before returning to England to work on the Leader newspaper. In London in1867 he created and worked on the Day newspaper which lasted less than two and a half months. He then returned to India for a short time and back in England continued writing for Indian newspapers.

The 1861 England Census lists his occupation as editor of Allen's Indian Mail. It also states that he was a widower though no record has so far been located of this marriage. In the 1871 England and subsequent censuses his wife is listed as being Eliza Dearie Hutton born in Calcutta in 1836. They were therefore married between 1861 and 1871 but no record of the marriage has been located as yet.

The four censuses that record details of James Hutton list his address as:

• 1861 - 13 Bloomsbury Square, Bloomsbury (lodger)
• 1871 - 14 Aldridge Road Villas, Paddington
• 1881 - 27 Leamington Road Villas, Paddington
• 1891 - 1 Beauclerc Road, Hammersmith

Some of these buildings can be viewed via Google Maps.

Six books written by James Hutton, one book edited by him and another title that he translated have been located in libraries, chiefly the British Library but also four titles in the National Library of Australia.

• 1857 - A hundred years ago: an historical sketch 1755-1756
• 1857 - A popular account of the thugs and dacoits, the hereditary garotters and gang robbers of India
• 1863 - The horses of the Sahara and the manners of the desert by E Daumas (translated by James Hutton)
• 1871 - A Royal Commission for India
• 1874 - Missionary life in the South Seas
• 1875 - Central Asia: from the Aryan to the Cossack
• 1882 - James and Philip van Arteveld. Two episodes in the history of the fourteenth century
• 1885 - Selections from the letters and correspondence of Sir James Bland Burgess, Bart, sometime under secretary of state for foreign affairs (edited by James Hutton)

James Hutton died on 21 March 1893 at Hamersmith in England. He was buried at Hammersmith Cemetery four days later. He was survived by his wife, Eliza Dearie Hutton, who died in 1915.