Thomas Thornton (1751/2-1823)
Sporting Tour through the Northern Parts of England, and a great part of the Highlands of Scotland, published 1804.
"…my boat, called the Gilbratar, which I had sent forward to Glen Ennoch, had the day before been carried, with infinite difficulty, within half a mile of the loch, by the help of horses, and the exertions of twenty men; and, that by the same means, she would most certainly be afloat by eight the next morning; all hands were ordered to be employed in packing up and preparing the nets, provisions, &c. proper for our plan of char-fishing in the lake and Mr Gerrard’s intention to complete his views…"
Thomas ThorntonThornton, who studied at the University of Glasgow in the late 1760s, was an eccentric Yorkshire sportsman and bon-viveur. He spent a fortune on organising an elaborate angling and shooting tour of the Cairngorms in 1784 . Having chartered a sloop for himself, his party, dogs, hawks and guns, he organised for supplies to be sent by road ahead of times. These included floored tents complete with doors and stoves and allowed him to entertain his visitors with lavish dinners.
The animal painter and sculptor George Garrard was among the party: his sketches were later used to illustrate Thornton’s account of his tour. Eventually published in 1804, his Sporting Tour is a pioneer of what would become a prolific 19th-century type of travel writing.
