Katherine Hankey
Arabella Katherine Hankey (12 January 1834 – 9 May 1911) was an English missionary and nurse who is best known for being the author of the poem The Old, Old Story, from which the hymns "Tell me the old, old story" and "I Love to Tell the Story" were derived.
Also recorded as Arabella Katherine Hankey
Katherine Hankey
Helen Jane Arundel Miles · File:Old Old Story.djvu · Public domain
- Name
- Arabella Katherine Hankey
- Born
- 12 January 1834
- Birthplace
- London, England
- Died
- 9 May 1911
- Occupation
- Missionary, Nurse, Poet
VALÉORINE Encyclopedia
VALÉORINE documentary reading
Documentary summary
Arabella Katherine Hankey (12 January 1834 – 9 May 1911) was an English missionary and nurse who is best known for being the author of the poem The Old, Old Story, from which the hymns "Tell me the old, old story" and "I Love to Tell the Story" were derived.
Admitted source layer · organised and presented by VALÉORINE
Reference Check
Propose documentary evidence for Katherine Hankey. A contribution is never written directly as fact: identity, source, rights and evidence gates still decide.
Sign in to contribute
Documentary evidence
Documentary basis
Authority files
wikidata · Q4952497 · wikipedia · Katherine Hankey
In this article
Key facts
Key facts
• Name — Arabella Katherine Hankey • Born — 12 January 1834 • Birthplace — London, England • Died — 9 May 1911 • Occupation — Missionary, Nurse, Poet • Notable Works — "The Old, Old Story"
Biography
Biography
Hankey was born in 1834, the daughter of a prosperous banker in London. Her family were devout Anglicans and members of the Clapham Sect. She was inspired by the Methodist revival of John Wesley and organised and taught in Sunday schools in London. She then did missionary work as a nurse in South Africa, assisting her brother. In 1866, she had a serious illness and was bedridden for a long convalescence. During this time, Hankey wrote her long poem, titled Tell me the Old, Old Story of unseen things above, with 50 verses in two parts: The Story Wanted and The Story Told. Hankey's masterpiece was put to music by the American composer William Howard Doane. She recovered from the illness and lived to the age of 77, dying in 1911.
illustration from File:Old Old Story.djvu
Helen Jane Arundel Miles · File:Old Old Story.djvu
illustration from File:Old Old Story.djvu
Helen Jane Arundel Miles · File:Old Old Story.djvu
Citations
References
Each reference names the institution holding it, so a reader may go to the document itself.
reference work
Secondary witnessreference work
Secondary witness
The Encyclopedia exists whether or not anything is for sale. Corrections are recorded rather than overwritten, and every version of this record is kept. Published 19 August 2026.
Elsewhere in Books
39,078 published records in this field, each with its sources named.
- Katherine BooAuthor
- Katherine Doyley DyerAuthor
- Katherine DunnAuthor
- Katherine Garrison ChapinAuthor
- Katherine IndermaurAuthor
- Katherine JohnsonAuthor
- Katherine LarsonAuthor
- Katherine MacLeanAuthor
Best supported in this field
For owners
Own a work by Katherine Hankey?
A specialist will read what you send and tell you what the house can establish, what it cannot, and whether the object is suited to sale. There is no charge and no obligation. The object stays with you throughout; nothing is shipped to us unless it is arranged in writing beforehand.