James Raine

Who was James Raine?

James Raine was an English antiquarian and topographer. A Church of England clergyman from the 1810s, he held a variety of positions, including librarian to the dean and chapter of Durham and rector of Meldon in Northumberland.

A friend of Robert Surtees, whom he assisted in his work, he founded the Surtees Society in Robert's honour after the latter's death in 1834. Raine served as secretary for the society, and by the time of his death in 1858 he had edited seventeen volumes for it, in addition to numerous other published works.