John Thomas Raymond.

Simon's great grandfather. Simon's mother's mother's father.

Portrait photograph of John Thomas. Born 6th February 1863. Photo circa 1915.

John Thomas with his wife, Mary Jane Evans (born 1870 died 1914), his daughter Gladys and his son in law William Thomas Johnson.

John's wife is holding Simon's mother Joan Johnson. About his wife, Simon has no details. Only this photograph.

The photograph is circa 1915 calculated from Joan's birth date being 1914.

John Thomas with Simon's mother Joan. John Thomas, you can say, was husband, a father, grandfather, an intellectual, an author and friend of poets.

SINGING FOR HEALTH BY THOMAS RAYMOND. His book, above, Singing for Health, was published in England in 1922 by CW Daniels LTD. Click on the book to read.

Charles William Daniel (1871-1955) was a writer and publisher who did much to disseminate Tolstoyan and pacifist ideas, and ideas about food reform and alternative medicine. The magazines that he edited and published included works by many of the advanced thinkers of the time.

Captured below are people mentioned by John Thomas in Singing for Health and I have assumed that their mention implies that each of them were well known by John Thomas hence their mention.

Reading about these people helps to form a picture of the life of John Thomas. These were his friends and acquaintances.

Stopford Augustus Brooke (1832 - 1916) was an Irish churchman, royal chaplain and writer. He was born in the rectory of Glendoen, near Letterkenny, Donegal, Ireland, of which parish his maternal grandfather, Joseph Stopford, was then rector.

On the inside cover of his book, John Thomas has written down one of Brooke's poems. I would be interested to know if another copy of this poem exists. Please reply to simprolaw@gmail.com.

Alfred Joyce Kilmer (1886-1918) was a young American poet who suffered a tragic death in World War I at the age of 31. His poem Trees is probably the most quoted poem in American history. John Thomas has written down this poem on page 2 of his book, Singing for Health.

In the introduction of his book John Thomas acknowledges Joseph Bibby and James Allen as friend and teacher.

The picture above, 125 Church Street in Stoke Newington, is today an Italian Pizza restaurant. 100 years ago it was Simon's great grandfather's address for correspondence.