William Carus Wilson William Carus Wilson William Carus Wilson (7 July 1791 – 30 December 1859) was an English churchman and the founder and editor of the long-lived monthly "The Children's Friend". He was the inspiration for Mr Brocklehurst, the autocratic head of Lowood School, depicted by Charlotte Brontë in her 1847 novel "Jane Eyre". He was born at Heversham as William Carus. While he was a child his father (also called William) inherited an estate at Casterton, near Kirkby Lonsdale in Westmorland and took on the surname Wilson (which was a condition of the bequest). His father served as one of Cockermouth's
Jane Eyre with the sisters, but St. John remains aloof. The sisters leave for governess jobs, and St. John becomes somewhat closer to Jane. St. John learns Jane's true identity and astounds her by telling her that her uncle, John Eyre, has died and left her his entire fortune of 20,000 pounds (equivalent to just under $1.7 million in 2018). When Jane questions him further, St. John reveals that John Eyre is also his and his sisters' uncle. They had once hoped for a share of the inheritance but were left virtually nothing. Jane, overjoyed by finding that she has living and