Primitive Methodist preacher and author, and later minister of the Catholic Apostolic Church, was born on 23 April 1821 in Whitehaven, Cumbria, and baptised in the local Wesleyan chapel. He trained as a compositor, probably on the Cumberland Pacquet before moving to Liverpool in the early 1840s, where he became a PM local preacher and then, in 1843, an itinerant. In his second station, Manchester (1844-45), Simpson met Mabel Ireland (1827-90), daughter of a local preacher, and they married in 1848.

From the beginning of his itinerancy Simpson contributed biographical sketches and obituaries to the PM Magazine. An obituary first published in the Pacquet in 1841 and expanded in the Magazine in 1843 formed the basis of his first book, The Prodigal Son; or, The History of Charles Beardslee. Produced by the Leeds PM printer ??? for the Connexional Book Room, it reached a fifth edition by 1850 and continued to sell well through the 1850s and 1860s. Simpson's partnership with Parrott led to a stream of books and periodical publications, some reflecting the style of contemporary Realist fiction. Meanwhile, Simpson was a popular preacher for Sunday school anniversaries and other special occasions.

In 1866 Simpson published a work criticising Joseph Barker, drawing attention to Barker's chequered career as MNC itinerant, Unitarian, and PM. Five years later, Simpson resigned from the PM itinerancy and joined the Catholic Apostolic Church (the Irvingites), justifying this change in Reasons for leaving the Methodist Ministry and for embracing the Work of God under the restored Apostleship (1871). He continued to speak at PM events, including a camp meeting at Middleton, near Oldham, in 1881, but he remained in the Catholic Apostolic Church, first in Manchester and then in Oldham, until his death on 17 January 1897.

Entry written by: DCD
Category: Person
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