Biography

He was the second son of John Aikin, M.D., and was born at Warrington

Warrington

Warrington is a town, borough and unitary authority area of Cheshire, England. It stands on the banks of the River Mersey, which is tidal to the west of the weir at Howley. It lies 16 miles east of Liverpool, 19 miles west of Manchester and 8 miles south of St Helens...

 in 1775. He was adopted, as a child, by his aunt, Mrs. Barbauld, and educated by her husband at his school at Palgrave

Palgrave

- Companies :*Palgrave Macmillan, an academic publishing company[The Palgrave Society], studying the history and genealogy of families with the surname Palgrave or any of its many variants.- People :*John Palsgrave - Companies :*Palgrave Macmillan, an academic publishing company[The Palgrave...

 in Suffolk

Suffolk

Suffolk is a non-metropolitan county of historic origin in East Anglia, England. It has borders with Norfolk to the north, Cambridgeshire to the west and Essex to the south. The North Sea lies to the east...

. He is the ‘little Charles’ of Mrs. Barbauld's ‘Early Lessons.’ From an early age he devoted himself to science,and aided his eldest brother, Arthur Aikin

Arthur Aikin

Arthur Aikin , English chemist, mineralogist and scientific writer, was born in Warrington, Lancashire into a distinguished literary family of prominent Unitarians....

, in his first published works and public lectures. Subsequently he applied himself to medicine, became a member of the Royal College of Surgeons, and was chosen secretary of the London Medical and Chirurgical Society. He married Anne, daughter of the Rev. Gilbert Wakefield, and died at his house in Bloomsbury Square

Bloomsbury Square

Bloomsbury Square is a garden square in Bloomsbury, Camden, London.- Geography :To the north of the square is Great Russell Street and Bedford Place, leading to Russell Square. To the south is Bloomsbury Way. To the west is the British Museum and Holborn tube station is the nearest underground...

on 20 March 1847. His works were: ‘Concise View of all the most important Facts that have hitherto appeared respecting the Cow Pox,’ (1800), Dictionary of Chemistry and Mineralogy (1807–1814), which he wrote in conjunction with his eldest brother.