John (Shepherd) Claridge

John Claridge is known as the shepherd behind The Shepherd of Banbury's Rules to Judge of the Changes of the Weather, a work first published in the eighteenth century and later reissued in multiple editions. Library and collection records consistently identify him as "John Claridge, shepherd," and link him with the long-lived popularity of these weather rules.

The book presents forecasts grounded in "forty years experience," drawing on careful attention to wind, rain, snow, and other signs of changing weather. Later editions describe the work as combining practical observation with explanations shaped by Newtonian natural philosophy, which helps explain why it appealed to both everyday readers and more curious scientific audiences.

Some sources also connect him with Hanwell near Banbury, helping place him in the rural world that gave the book its authority. Reliable biographical details beyond his authorship and reputation as the Shepherd of Banbury are scarce, so the surviving picture is a simple but memorable one: a working shepherd whose observations became a well-known weather guide.