Spencer Cowper (1713–25 March 1774) was Dean of Durham Cathedral from 1746 to 1774, known also for his early contributions to meteorology and his liking for poetry and music.
Life and work
Cowper was the younger son of William Cowper, the first Earl and the first Lord Chancellor of Great Britain, and his second wife Mary Clavering. He was the cousin of the poet William Cowper.
He was educated at Exeter College, Oxford, matriculating in 1729 aged 16, graduating B.A. 1732, M.A. 1734, B.D. & D.D. 1746.
Along with his religious duties as Dean of Durham, he kept a naturalist's journal which included records of the local meteorology.
Some of Cowper's sermons survive, as does a collection of his letters published in 1956.
Cowper married Hon. Dorothy Townshend on 12 May 1743. Dorothy Townshend (5 May 1714-19 May 1779) was the eldest daughter of Charles, Viscount Townshend and his second wife, Dorothy Walpole.