Background

William Stobbs was born on June 27, 1914, in South Shields, England, United Kingdom.

Education

William studied at the Durham School of Art, graduating in 1938.

Career

In 1939, William was appointed as a draughtsman at Rolls Royce engineering company, where he was also involved in the development of Merlin engines. After World War II, he worked for Alvis Cars company. In 1948, William was made Head of the Design Department at the London School of Printing and Graphic Arts (present-day the London College of Communication), the post he held till 1958. Then, he moved to Kent, England, where, the same year, in 1958, he was made Principal of Maidstone College of Art (later known as the Kent Institute of Art & Design and present-day the University for the Creative Arts) and remained in that position until his retirement in 1979.

In addition, William had a parallel career, illustrating books, beginning with Ronald Syme's "Hakluyt's Sea Stories" in 1948. Other works he illustrated included "Magellan: First Around the World" (1953), "Balboa: Finder of the Pacific" (1956), "De Soto: Finder of the Mississippi" (1957), Chekhov's "Kashtanka" and Ruth Manning-Sanders' "A Bundle of Ballads" - both 1959's editions, among many others.

By 1973, Stobbs was writing original material, such as his "A Mini Called Zak", and supplying color illustrations, that became increasingly intricate throughout his career as the technology for color printing continued to improve. In the 1980's, he published a series of color picture books, including "Gregory's Dog" and "Gregory's Garden" (both 1984), and many other works, including "The Little Red Hen" (1987), "The House That Jack Built" (1987), "Who Killed Cock Robin?" (1990), "Les Grandes Routieres: France's Classic Grand Tourers" (1990), etc.

Achievements

• William Stobbs was a well-known author and illustrator of children's books, who gained prominence for the historical accuracy of his illustrations for children's historical novels by authors, including Henry Treece and Ronald Welch. Welch's "Knight Crusader", which William illustrated in 1954, won the Library Association's Carnegie Medal for outstanding book of the year in 1955. In 1959, William was awarded the Library Association's Kate Greenaway Medal for illustrating "A Bundle of Ballads", which was compiled by Ruth Manning-Sanders, and "Kashtanka", a translated version of Anton Chekov's story.

Works

More photos

• book

  • Henry Hudson

    (This work, written by Ronald Syme and illustrated by Will...)

    1955
  • De Soto: Finder of the Mississippi

    (This work, written by Ronald Syme and illustrated by Will...)

    1957
  • Magellan: First Around the World

    (This work, written by Ronald Syme and illustrated by Will...)

    1953
  • Good King Wenceslas

    (Good King Wenceslas and his servant admonish everyone to ...)

    1989
  • Poems from Ireland

    (This anthology, containing ten centuries of Irish poetry ...)

    1972
  • Kashtanka

    (This 1959's edition of the 1887's "Kashtanka" story, writ...)

    1959
  • A Bundle of Ballads

    (This work was compiled by Ruth Manning-Sanders and illust...)

    1959
  • Old World and New World Fairy Tales

    (This work was written by Amabel Williams-Ellis and illust...)

    1966
  • Gianni and the Ogre

    (This work was written by Ruth Manning-Sanders and illustr...)

    1970
  • The Clashing Rocks: The Story of Jason and the Argonauts

    (This work was written by Ian Serraillier and illustrated ...)

    1972
  • Mr. Gosling and the Runaway Chair

    (This work was written by John Cunliffe and illustrated by...)

    1978
  • Vinland the Good

    (This work was written by Henry Treece and illustrated by ...)

    1971
  • Knight Crusader

    (This work was written by Ronald Welch and illustrated by ...)

    1954
  • Balboa: Finder of the Pacific

    (This work was written by Ronald Syme and illustrated by W...)

    1956
  • Amerigo Vespucci: Scientist and Sailor

    (This work was written by Ronald Syme and illustrated by W...)

    1969
  • Francisco Pizarro: Finder of Peru

    (This work was written by Ronald Syme and illustrated by W...)

    1963
  • Hakluyt's Sea Stories

    (This work was written by Ronald Syme and illustrated by W...)

    1948
  • Athens at War

    (This work was written by Rex Warner and illustrated by Wi...)

    1970
  • Puss in Boots: Perrault's 'Maitre Chat!

    (A cat wins his master a fortune and the hand of a princess.)

    1975
  • The Land

    (This work was written by Ronald S. Barker and illustrated...)

    1960
  • Gregory's Dog

    (Gregory's dog won't sit. He won't fetch. He won't lie dow...)

    1984
  • A Mini Called Zak 1973
  • The Story of the Three Bears 1965
  • The Little Red Hen 1987
  • Story of the Three Little Pigs 1965
  • A Rolls Called Ark 1974
  • The House That Jack Built 1987
  • Who Killed Cock Robin? 1990
  • The Country Mouse and Town Mouse 1976
  • The Three Billy Goats Gruff 1967
  • Jack and the Beanstalk 1965
  • The Hare and the Frogs: An Aesop Fable 1978
  • Les Grandes Routieres: France's Classic Grand Tourers 1990

• illustration

  • Illustration for "The Patchwork Quilt and Other Poems"

  • Illustration for "Kashtanka"

  • Illustration for "Kashtanka"

  • Illustration for "Kashtanka"

  • Illustration for "Poems from Ireland"

  • Illustration for "Poems from Ireland"

  • Illustration for "Poems from Ireland"

  • Illustration for "Poems from Ireland"

  • Illustration for "Summer Visitors"

  • Illustration for "Poems from Ireland"

  • Illustration for "The Little Red Riding Hood"

Connections

William married fellow illustrator Brenda Dunn in 1938. The couple gave birth to two children and later divorced. In 1971, Stobbs married Joanna (Stubbs) Stobbs. Their marriage produced six children.

ex-wife:

Brenda Dunn

Wife:

Joanna (Stubbs) Stobbs