S. Wilton (Samuel Wilton) Rix

Known in print as S. Wilton Rix, Samuel Wilton Rix was a 19th-century English author associated with Beccles, Suffolk. He is best known for historical works such as Brief Records of the Independent Church at Beccles, Suffolk and Nonconformity, the Development of a Principle, both of which reflect a strong interest in religious dissent and local history.

His writing has the feel of careful preservation rather than grand storytelling. In Brief Records of the Independent Church at Beccles, Suffolk, he set out to record the history of a local congregation, its ministers, and the wider rise of Nonconformity in East Anglia, suggesting a writer who cared deeply about memory, community, and the passing on of religious heritage.

Rix has also been noted in regional art records in Suffolk, which point to his connection with the cultural life of Beccles beyond his published books. Even where biographical details are scarce, his surviving works give a clear sense of a thoughtful local historian writing to keep the stories and convictions of earlier generations alive.