“Saving Brinton” – a delight to watch
The film Saving Brinton ran last night (18 Dec 2019) on Vermont Public Television. I was clicking channel after channel, waiting for commercials to be done, when I came upon it – paused – and stayed. What a delight to watch!
At the heart are the Brintons – husband and wife Frank and Indiana Brinton – who were involved in a number of concerns, including early (late 19th and early 20th century) Silent-era FILM exhibition. At the heart, also, and what grabbed my attention, is the collector / saver of the Brinton treasure trove, Michael Zahs.
The vintage films are FASCINATING – and you can find more about them online, thanks to the University of Iowa Libraries. With their use of astonishing film techniques (no ‘CGI’) and stunningly-vivid hand-coloring (done, of course, frame-by-frame), the films are indeed treasures from the vaults of early cinematography.
A finding aid (same link, above) will help those interested in learning more about the overall collection. And the Brinton collection IS unique – as it includes original equipment, handbills, glass slides, memorabilia, diaries and press clippings. Estimated at 9,000 items, at one point in the documentary, a reporter (?) asks, How many items; and either mishears or doesn’t take in that Zahs says “thousands”. I found myself nodding in agreement when the reporter leaves, and Zahs mutters, Thought he’d stay longer. Me, too!
Which is why I want more about Michael Zahs, as well as the collection! His history with the items is touched upon very lightly, but what resonated with me is how many YEARS went by where he seemed the only one interested in what he was preserving. Saving Brinton shows how that became no longer the case, with visits to professors, preservationists, even the Library of Congress; and finally enthusiastic audience members sitting in Bologna’s city square and in the World’s Oldest Continuously Operating Movie Theater, “The State Theater,” in Washington, Iowa.
One should never discount the filmmakers – Tommy Haines, John Richard, and Andrew Sherburne. Their interest in bringing the Brintons & Zahses to a wider audience must be warmly applauded.
As someone with my own (minor, in comparison) project, it is the interest of others giving a tremendous BOOST to Zahs that offered the most compellingly-heartfelt moments. There are always cinephiles in awe over early films; but to have – finally – a home for this collection at the University of Iowa, felt like vindication of Zahs’ dedication over (now nearly) forty years. His wife, too, putting up with the saving and hoarding (let’s face it…) that goes along with collecting. The ‘secret history of cinema,’ as one review claimed for Saving Brinton, the documentary also touches upon the ‘secret history of saving’. Sometimes it only takes one person, picking up the baton from another one person in the past, to ignite a passion in others. “Doesn’t really interest anybody but me” is something we all can say about our “object” of a passion. It sure is nice to come across other like-minded people, isn’t it?
footnote: I’ve just realized (reading a review of the 2018 theatrical release) that Saving Brunton is 90-minutes in length. The PBS series, America Reframed, has evidently edited this down to 55 minutes. Cutting a third is a disservice to this film. It may explain why I thought I had “missed things” by momentary inattention. Vimeo (stream or download) or Amazon (disc or stream) offer the full “directors’ cut” of the documentary. Note the Amazon reviewer who says “it’s at least 30 minutes too long”… I’d like to be able to judge for myself.
An interesting read is the original Kickstarter campaign for Saving Brinton.
Goslings’ Bank Ledgers
Notice of a mid-May blog post by Barclays, the bank which (after an 1896 amalgamation with Goslings & Sharpe and several other banks) today is still doing business at the Fleet Street, London, premises of the family banking firm GOSLINGS & SHARPE. In Mary Gosling’s lifetime the partners included her brothers and father.
I’ve long known of the firm’s archives – quite intact after more than 200 years; Linda Slothouber, in researching her book Jane Austen, Edward Knight & Chawton: Commerce and Community, found that the Goslings’ ledgers included Edward Austen Knight‘s accounts.
It was QUITE heartwarming to learn, since I’ve never visited the bank’s archives myself, that my suggestion to Linda resulted in a good exchange after she contacted Barclays. Their archives is one of the places on my “little list” that I’ll get to some day. But, as the bank isn’t my main concern, books like Linda’s help fill in some blanks.
It’s also WONDERFUL to find a history like this dissertation by Gareth David Turner, “English Banking in the 18th Century: Bankers, Merchants and the Creation of the English Financial System.”
I’ll remind readers of a couple of old “finds” :
- Francis Bennion’s memories of working at Goslings and his reproduction of the small booklet of the firm’s history. [NB: some text is cut off on some pages.]
- the Smith&Gosling post about silhouettes of the Sharpe family (sold at auction)
TODAY’s “find” is an on-going project, concerning the ledgers of Goslings & Sharpe: LEGENDS IN THE LEDGERS is Barclays’ blog post about their project. The post also has the best representation of the old business sign “the 3 Squirrels”:
Which THIS is not – click to their blog to see a full-color close-up.
The emblem exists even on firm checks.
The family diaries and letters seldom mention the firm – although Emma’s great aunt Mrs Thomas Smith had several meetings with William Ellis Gosling (Mary’s eldest brother) over her finances. Banking back then wasn’t just standing behind the counter, greeting customers!
One of the stories mentioned in the Barclays blog is the Great Beer Flood of 1814 (yes, you read that right…). “Millions of pints of beer” flooded the area around the brewery of Meux & Co. Goslings had a “voluntary account” that raised funds for victims of the catastrophe.
The ledgers of Goslings & Sharpe (though there were other partners, in earlier days, I will use the name most associated with the firm) come in at a whopping 654 ledgers! It is said, in a family letter, that Mr. Gosling was very reluctant to give his blessing for his eldest daughter’s marriage to Langham Christie because discussion of Elizabeth’s dowery came at the same time that the bank was paying out its dividends…
So I’m always keeping my eyes and ears open about the family banking concerns.
Bath History Journal
March 2021: Have *finally* relocated the digital back issues of “Bath History Journal”. Will be at work on fixing the broken links below. In the meantime, here is the link for Bath History, No. 1 thru No. 15 (up to 2019)
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I wanted to alert readers, since links can be somewhat “unhandy” to locate, of a FABULOUS online resource pertaining to a myriad of topics all pertaining to BATH, ENGLAND. Bath History is a journal, now up to volume 13, published in 2013 (not yet digitized).
Two useful links to the articles are,
- Volume indexes, via the Bath History website – most of the articles are linked.
- PDF articles – Bath Spa University; the downside is the lack of article names. Either now where to look, or love a surprise. HELPFUL TIDBIT: vol. 10 has an index to vols 1 thru 10.
There are so many interesting articles, that here I will only name a few:
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Anne Buchanan – Charles Dickens and the Guild of Literature and Art Ticket, 1851 [vol 11; not yet digitized)
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Angus R. Buchanan – Brunel in Bath [vol. 10]
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Stephen Marks – The Journals of Mrs Philip Lybbe Powys (1738-1817), A Half Century of Visits to Bath [vol. 9]
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Jean Manco – Saxon Bath: The Legacy of Rome and the Saxon Rebirth [vol. 7]
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Nicholas von Behr – The Cloth Industry of Twerton from the 1780s to the 1820s [vol. 6]
I will make special mention of three articles:
- Deirdre Le Faye has a Jane Austen-related article, entitled ‘A Persecuted Relation’: Mrs Lillingstone’s Funeral and Jane Austen’s Legacy.
- another “Bath Widow” tale is brought to our attention by Hilary Arnold in Mrs Margaret Graves and her Letters from Bath, 1793-1807.
- and a particular favorite diarist, Katherine Plymley – who shows up in the Ladies of Llangollen blog! – gets a nod from Ellen Wilson in A Shropshire Lady in Bath, 1794-1807. Plymley was a subject in Liz Pitman’s book Pigsties and Paradise: Lady Diarists and the Tour of Wales.
While searching for the article links I stumbled upon THIS surprise: images of two Margaret Graves letters! Chosen a “Gem from the Archive” by Who Do You Think You Are? magazine in 2013. A little more ‘sleuthing’ and a few more really neat tidbits popped up too:
- Gem from the Archive – two Margaret Grave letters (show in full)
- Devon Heritage Services Newsletter (2012) – more about Margaret Graves & her letters at the archive, part of the Simcoe Family Archive
- Devon Archives online catalogue
- John Graves Simcoe’s biography of course mentions Margaret Graves, but it’s the biography of Elizabeth Postuma Simcoe, 1762-1850 which has piqued my interest; author Mary Beacock Fryer has also published on Francis Simcoe (Our Young Soldier)
One Woman’s Belongings, circa 1811
William in Hampshire sent this link to the National Archives blog, asking if this Mary Smith could be in any way connected to the Smiths of Suttons. As you might imagine: LOADS of Marys and LOTS of Smiths in the world!
But the story, about a poor woman in the lunatic asylum, is fascinating if only for the wealth of items she brought with her in a small wooden box. What I found MOST intriguing were the miniatures. Surely, they represented her family – several adults and even a baby. Of course today no one has a clue as to the identity of the sitters – nor does the repository have much information on this particular Mary Smith.
click to read Mary’s full story
Peopling the Georgian House
Although centered on teaching history to school children, I highly recommend looking over the materials at Peopling the Georgian House. A useful look inside a Bristol residence, picking apart the rooms in the townhouse, as well as its people. Surprising to me was information about the Pinney family:
- domestic staff included two ‘slaves’ – Pero Jones (gentleman’s valet); and Fanny Coker (lady’s maid), who becomes manumitted.
- poet Robert Southey was a visitor.
- a Pinney connection to Horatio Nelson.
- the residence used SPEAKING TUBES in order to communicate upstairs to downstairs! Find out why we use the phrase “to bend one’s ear”…
- and FABULOUS to see the house (illustration left) broken down floor by floor – from attics to 2nd, 1st and ground floor, until down in the cellars, two levels below ground!
After READING about the house, how about a TOUR through it: The Georgian House Museum has a brief online presence – including “Life below Stairs”, and tells who used the “plunge pool” located in the basement. Alas, an actual walk through the property must wait until after April 3rd (closed for winter).
Lovers’ Lettercase
Always a joy to read, Sabine has a post about a true *find*: what seems to be an embroidered silk lettercase, c1800. Click on the picture to go to the page and be ready to be AMAZED!
Clothing circa 1800
Just discovered this fascinating blog (in German and English):
Its subject matter deals in all things from the time period of my beloved Smiths & Goslings! Recent entries are the birthday of Goethe; and a couple lovely portraits assessed for their clothing and hair styles. Check it out!
Erlestoke – home of the “energetic” Joshua Smith
The following is from an 1853 volume of Burke’s A Visitation of the Seats and Arms of the Noblemen and Gentlemen of Great Britain, vol 2:
“ERLESTOKE PARK, Wiltshire, about seven miles south-west of Devizes, the property of Mrs. Watson Taylor, by whom it is let on a yearly lease to Lord Broughton de Gyfford. This estate, together with that of Eddington [sic], where formerly stood an old family mansion of the Dukes of Bolton, belonged at one time to Peter Delmé, Esq., and of him it was purchased about the year 1780, by Joshua Smith, Esq., M.P. for Devizes, who so completely altered the whole domain, as scarcely to leave it a single trait of its original character. The fine old trees in the park may be said to be almost the only remains of the bygone period. The pleasure grounds, the plantations, all sprang up under the hand of the energetic proprietor; even a new village started into life, like a second Aladdin’s palace. The old house at Stoke Park, which was built close on the edge of a small stream at the foot of the hill, was pulled down, and a new mansion erected on the brow of a steep knoll, or eminence, partly embosomed in noble forest trees, and partly open to distant prospects. The building, composed of a fine white free-stone, was begun in 1786, and finished in five years. Together with the offices, it extends from east to west three hundred and fifty-six feet in front, in the centre of which is a Doric colonnade, opening into a very handsome hall, forty feet in length, and two-and-thirty feet in breadth. It is ornamented with a screen of six fluted Corinthian columns, and communicates with the drawing-room, dining-room, library, and other apartments. The first of these is thirty feet by twenty-four, its length being apparently enlarged, from the effect produced by two mirrors, placed at the opposite ends of the apartment.
The dining-room, to the east, communicates with the library, which faces the north, the former being thirty-six feet by twenty-four, while the latter is forty feet long, and twenty-six feet wide. West of this is the breakfast-room, which, with a large dressing-room, constitutes the ground suite of apartments.
In this noble mansion lived the family of the Smiths, in a manner worthy of its splendour; but they have now all descended to the grave, or are scattered and dispersed. In 1820, the executors of the late Simon Taylor, Esq., bought the manor and estate of Erle Stoke, with those of Edington and Coulston, for two hundred and fifty thousand pounds. They were settled upon Mrs. Watson Taylor, as sole heiress of her uncle, on the death of her only brother, Sir Simon B. Taylor (who died unmarried in the year 1815), the whole, with other landed property, being entailed on the heirs male and female in succession, of George Watson Taylor, Esq., M.P., and his wife, the above lady. Many large additions have been made to these extensive domains.
The present park and pleasure grounds consist of about six hundred acres, distinguished by a great variety of surface, with bold eminences, narrow, winding valleys, and wood and water in abundance. About a mile to the south of the House is the northern boundary of Salisbury Plain, presenting a lofty ridge, that extends in an undulating and irregular line, from west to east, for the distance of several miles. Towards the north this plain slopes rapidly, abounding in deep romantic dells, that are mostly covered with a thin turf; but on the Erle Stoke estate, it is clothed with thick and extensive plantations of firs, beech, larch, and other indigenous timber. From one of these hollows rises an abundant spring of fine water, that meanders through a secluded pleasure ground, and in places expands into small lakes, having in its passage over the ridges of rock formed several beautiful cascades. Upon reaching the park, the accumulated waters swell into a broad and noble sheet, that from the north and west sides of the House presents a most pleasing feature in the landscape.
The approach and entrance to the mansion were formerly on the south; but on that side, a few years ago, a flower garden was laid out, and enclosed from the park by a light, high, wire fence; a new road was also made, and an entrance portico erected, on the north side of the House. Other improvements have been effected, the only change for the worse being the dispersion of the excellent collection of pictures made by Mr. Watson Taylor, some of which present very choice specimens of ancient and modern art.”
What a fascinating find! It’s so easy to imagine young Augusta, when she lived here, getting her letter from Charles Smith which caused such “agitation” in early diary entries in 1798. Sadly, Erle Stoke/Erlestoke burned — as little now exists of Joshua’s house as he left when building his home.
Would LOVE to hear from anyone with further information — or illustrations — of Erle Stoke Park!
A New Addition to our Family
It’s always wonderful when I come across a new “illustration” of a family member — this one I grabbed from Wikipedia’s entry on Sir Michael Seymour — he is the Rev. Richard Seymour’s brother. Sir Michael followed in his father’s footsteps; both were navy men (and, I hate to tell you, both named Michael!).
Sir Michael Seymour, the father, died in 1834 — an important year for Richard (he and Fanny married in October of that year).
As you can see here, Sir Michael Seymour, the son, lived a longer life (born in 1802, he died in 1887).
I have a cruder picture of a young Richard Seymour — it is a photo of a drawing, which is why the quality is not high (but I’ve never come across the original painting); do you think they look alike, these brothers?
Sir Michael was the husband of Dora K. (Dora Knighton, but Richard always referred to her as Dora K. in his diaries because the Seymours likewise had a SISTER named Dora!). Dora K., of course, was the daughter of Sir William Knighton — the subject of Charlotte Frost’s new biography.
I Want to Read…
…DIARIES and LETTERS!
It occurred to me that blog readers might be interested in a bit of “hmmm… what’s she raising money for??” explanation. (see the Austen Book Raffle posts).
I’m more than happy to bend a few “eyes” (and ears) about my research project! (As friends and family know, to their detriment…)
To start at the very beginning: I visited Northern Wales — Llangollen to be exact — and was just ENCHANTED with the story of the Ladies of Llangollen, Sarah Ponsonby and Eleanor Butler. I began collecting “first-hand” information, and posted it on my website. Surprisingly, there was abundant material! Though much found was of the second-hand, mythic variety, there were some great finds.
One “find” was a Duke University diary. Once belonging to MARY GOSLING, the diary turned out to contain several trips – to the English coast, to the battlefields of Waterloo, and a certain trip to Ireland that took the Gosling family through Northern Wales. And — wait for it! — they visited with the Ladies! Were shown around Plas Newydd (the home of the Ladies of Llangollen; now a museum), in fact!
But who were these GOSLINGS??
(And, by the way, Mary hadn’t much to about the Ladies, other than what was already known about them – ie, how they dressed and how they never travelled far from home.)
With the internet, I struck gold. Found a series of diaries written by Lady Smith, the 2nd daughter of William Gosling of Roehampton Grove, a banker. Now, in Mary Gosling’s diary, there was a man who brought his family to see Bank of Ireland currency MADE. Who, other than a banker, would have the ability to go that? And Mary had them departing from “Roehampton”!
But, without seeing these later diaries of Lady Smith’s, it was mere supposition that Mary Gosling = Lady Smith.
The main reason these Lady Smith diaries were listed online was that they were included in part of an exceptional large microfilm collection. Essex County was in PART FIVE, which I learned was a far cry from Part One — the only series owned by the closest “big” educational facility within easy driving: Dartmouth College (New Hampshire). Oh, the drive home that day was a disappointment.
Again: thankfully the internet — and online college & university catalogues — helped me track down a handful of places with the full series (or at least through series five). A trip to Colonial Williamsburg brought me within easy distance of one of those few: Old Dominion University. I’ve never seen such a lovely library! And once I found the rolls of film with Lady Smith’s diaries, I was well rewarded: There was the SAME handwriting, the same reference to “My Sister” (Mary never calls Elizabeth Gosling anything other than “my Sister”.)
I had found my girl!
Or, should I say girls — for that day I spotted my first reference to young Emma:
If I had KNOWN that in looking up some Jane Austen books I’d have found ALL of Charles Joshua Smith’s siblings, I would have saved myself TONS of digging… Alas, it’s almost a “happier” circumstance to piece the family together: 9 Smith siblings in all!
“Mr Austen, Mr Knight, and Mrs Leigh Perrot” in the diary entry above (Emma and Edward’s first child’s christening!) were the giveaways about the Jane Austen connection.
And thanks to that connection I got to see TONS of diaries and letters and memorabilia (for instance, a lock of young Drummond Smith’s hair!) at the Hampshire Record Office, when I lived in England for two months in 2007 in order to transcribe as much material as possible. For most of the time, I worked six days a week at the archive (thanks to their generous hours) and on the seventh — well, I began well: reading and reviewing the work of previous days, but it was summer and, yes, some Sundays I spent in the park near Winchester’s town hall.
I had already inter-library loaned those rolls of microfilm with Lady Smith’s diaries; purchased a roll of film with all of the existing diaries written by Charles Joshua Smith (Mary Gosling’s husband; Emma Smith’s eldest brother), which the Essex Record Office houses. Now I had a growing collection of letters and diaries by the likes of Emma, her mother Augusta Smith, her sisters Augusta, Fanny and Maria; a diary series belonging to Fanny’s eventual husband, the Rev. Richard Seymour was briefly worked on at the Warwickshire Record Office (their hours were much shorter than HRO’s…).
In short, I’ve seen much, typed a LOT, and still there is more material for me to “visit” — if not in person (expensive) then via film.
And that’s where the Book Raffle comes in. Edward Austen (later Austen Leigh) made some delightful silhouettes, and his descendent, Freydis Welland, put them together into a book, originally published by private press: A Life in the Country. The pictures are accompanied by Jane Austen quotes. The book was then published “commercially” by the British Library.
Two Teens in the Time of Austen 