John Pounds of Portsmouth was famous in the 19th Century. His life, dedicated to teaching, feeding and clothing the poorest children from the most wretched parts of Portsmouth sparked a revolution in the education of the poor.

Countless column-inches were dedicated to him in newspapers, his name was invoked by education reformers, his example led to tens of thousands of impoverished children being educated in Ragged Schools throughout Britain - and strangely, few of those who drew inspiration from him ever met him.

Reverend Henry Hawkes of the Unitarian Church, Portsmouth,...