Henry Atkinson (1781–1829) was a British mathematician and astronomer whose interests extended to economics, engineering, and philosophy.
[1] Born in West Harle, Northumberland, Atkinson was the son of a schoolmaster who allowed him to take over the teaching at Bavington School when he was only thirteen.
In 1808, he finally moved to Newcastle upon Tyne, where he continued to teach and began to establish a reputation as a scholar.
[2][3] He encountered significant barriers to advancement of his academic career due to his dissenting religious views.
He was a leader in the Newcastle Unitarian church and was closely affiliated with its controversial minister, William Turner.