Abel Chapman
| Abel Chapman | |
|---|---|
 |
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| Born |
4 October 1851 Bishopwearmouth |
| Died | 23 January 1929 (aged 77) Houxty |
| Nationality | British |
Abel Chapman (1851–1929) was an English, Sunderland-born hunter-naturalist. He saved the Spanish Ibex from extinction and helped in the establishment of South Africa's first game reserve.
Abel Chapman was born at 212 High Street, Bishopwearmouth, on 4 October 1851. He was the eldest child of Edward and Jane Chapman and came from a long line of sportsmen who were both accomplished hunters and acclaimed naturalists.
His grandfather, Joseph Crawhall, was an accurate grouse shot in Hexhamshire, as well as being a founder member of the National History Society of Northumbria. His uncle, George Crawhall, was described by Chapman as "a typical sportsman of the old school – the mentor to whom I owe the best grounding in field-craft."
Chapman's first experiences of hunting were in Northumberland, where he fell in love with nature at the same time as shooting. He often made drawings of the birds he saw and shot there. But it was a friend he made at Rugby School, F C Selous, who inspired his lifelong love of travel and adventure – a world away from the moors of Northumberland. Years later, he co-authored a hunting book with Selous, called The Big Game of Africa and Europe.
Chapman joined his father's firm, the Sunderland-based Lambton Brewery, after leaving Rugby, travelling to Portugal, Spain and Morocco as part of his work in the wine trade. The visits were not confined just to work, however, as they allowed him to broaden his knowledge of wildlife by fishing and shooting.
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