James Anson Farrer

Born in London on July 24, 1849, James Anson Farrer was an English barrister and writer, often published as James A. Farrer. He studied at Balliol College, Oxford, was called to the bar at the Middle Temple in 1875, and later lived in Ingleborough in Yorkshire. Contemporary reference works also note that he married Elizabeth Georgiana Anne Reynell-Pack in 1877.

Farrer wrote across an unusually broad range of subjects, which helps explain why he still feels interesting today. His books include Crimes and Punishments, Primitive Manners and Customs, Military Manners and Customs, Books Condemned to Be Burnt, and Paganism and Christianity. Taken together, they show a writer drawn to the history of beliefs, institutions, and everyday human behavior.

What makes his work stand out is its mix of learned research and readable, opinionated prose. He was not just cataloging facts: he liked to ask why societies punish, censor, worship, and cling to custom, and that questioning spirit gives his nonfiction much of its lasting character.