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At the Circulating Library

A Database of Victorian Fiction, 1837–1901

A Database of Victorian Fiction, 1837–1901

Author: Annie Cox

Author: Annie Cox (1845–1919)

Alternate Name(s): Annabel Gray (pseudonym); Wilson (maiden name); Elma (pseudonym)

Biography: Annie Cox was born in 1845 in London, the daughter of Thomas Cutsforth Wilson, a timber merchant. At the age of nineteen, she married John Henry Cox, a merchant and the son of William Collins Cox. The couple lived in Manchester and had two sons, Claude Collins (born 1866) and William Edward (born 1867). John left his wife in 1870 and Annie later petitioned successfully for a divorce on grounds of adultery coupled with cruelty (finally granted in 1882). In the meantime, Annie turned to writing fiction beginning with Estella (1876) under the pseudonym "Elma." Presumably motivated by her financial situation, she became a prolific serial author under the pseudonym "Annabel Gray," publishing twelve novels and novellas in The London Journal, four more in The London Reader, and one in Tinsley's Magazine in addition to numerous essays and short stories. (Many of her novels did not appear in volume form.) Her productivity declined by the end of the century and, in poor health, she successfully applied to the Royal Literary Fund in 1914. She died in 1919 in London.

Author Tags:

References: Allibone; British Census (1861, 1871, 1881, 1891); The Literary Year-Book (1904); Morning Post (16 February 1865); Probate; RLF (case number 2947); Times (27 March 1919)

Fiction Titles:

  1. Estella: A Novel.  2 vol.  London: Tinsley Brothers, 1876.
  2. Margaret Dunbar: A Novel.  3 vol.  London: Tinsley Brothers, 1879.
  3. A Romance of Regent Street: A Novel.  3 vol.  London: Tinsley Brothers, 1881.
  4. 'Twixt Shade and Shine.  3 vol.  London: Tinsley Brothers, 1883.
  5. Unmasked: A Novel.  3 vol.  London: Tinsley Brothers, 1884.
  6. Musical Snares: or, The Little Agency in Moon Street.  1 vol.  London: John Maxwell, 1885.
  7. Jerome: A Novel.  3 vol.  London: Swan Sonnenschein, 1891.
  8. Through Rifted Clouds: A Novel.  2 vol.  London: Remington, 1891.
  9. Comrades.  1 vol.  London: H. J. Drane, 1896.
  10. Forbidden Banns.  1 vol.  London: F. V. White, 1899.
  11. The Mystic Number Seven.  1 vol.  London: Simpkin, 1900.
  12. A Child of Art.  1 vol.  London: Simpkin, 1901.