The Christmas Pantomime – #ChristmasCountdown Door no. 9

Posted on 9 December, 2018 by nspeccoll

Page from Illustrated London News, Volume 92 (19th Century Collection, 19th C. Coll ILL 030)

Page from Illustrated London News, Vol. 92, dated 7th January 1888. Illustrations shows various different pantomime costumes including characters Puss in Boots, The Queen, The Blondin Donkey and Cupid.

Have you been to any pantomines this Christmas season yet?

Illustrated London News is part of our 19th Century Collection and 20th Century Collection. You can find this volume and other Illustrated London News on our Library Catalogue here.

Butcher’s Market – #ChristmasCountdown Door no. 8

Posted on 8 December, 2018 by nspeccoll

#CollectionsCaptured
Door no. 8

Butcher Market, Avenue (Local Illustrations, ILL/11/206)

General plan of the Butcher and Vegetable Markets (Local Illustrations, ILL/11/206)

These two illustrations depict the interior of the Butcher’s Market, which is now known as the Grainger Market in Newcastle. A great place to visit to pick up some unique Christmas gifts!

Grainger Market opened its doors in 1835 and is named after Richard Grainger (1797 – 1861) the builder, developer and entrepreneur behind the Market. At the time it was the largest in Britain covering two acres with 12 entrances and 243 shops and stalls.

Originally it was a meat and vegetable market but the flesh-market section was optimistically large and so other goods like baskets and pottery were introduced.

On October 22nd 1835 a celebratory dinner was held in the market attended by 2000 men including John Dobson (1787 – 1865) and Grainger. Over 300 women were allowed to watch the feast in a specially constructed gallery!

Daguerrotypes – #ChristmasCountdown Door no. 7

Posted on 7 December, 2018 by nspeccoll

#ChristmasCountdown
Door No. 7

Daguerrotype of The American Falls, 1840 (Daguerrotypes, DAG/2)

The Horseshoe Falls, part of Niagra Falls Daguerrotype

Daguerrotype of The Horseshoe Falls, part of Niagra Falls, 1740 (Daguerrotypes, DAG/5)

Daguerrotypes were an early form of photography. They were produced using an early photographuc process involving an iodine-sentitised silvered plate and mercury vapour. This photographic method does not permit reproduction so the images are unique.

These particular ones are significant as they are some of the first known images of the Clifton Hotel and Niagra Falls.

You can see other Daguerrotypes of Niagra Falls on CollectionsCaptured.

Crawhall’s Old Aunt Elspa’s ABC – #ChristmasCountdown Door no. 6

Posted on 6 December, 2018 by nspeccoll

#ChristmasCountdown
Door No. 6

Page from Old Aunt Elspa’s ABC (Joseph Crawhall Collection, Crawhall 50)

Y
For Youngsters,
and Yawning,
and Yelling,
Yahoo!

Is this something that you’ll be doing on Christmas morning?

Old Aunt Elspa’s ABC is an alphabet book containing woodblock printed letters, with associated images, detailing the alphabet, created by Joseph Crawhall II.

Joseph Crawhall II was born in Newcastle in 1821 and was the son of Joseph Crawhall I, who was a sheriff of Newcastle. As well as running the family ropery business with his brothers, he also spent his time illustrating, making woodcuts and producing books.

See the full book online via CollectionsCaptured.

Interested in more from Joseph Crawhall II? Find more in the Joseph Crawhall II Collection and Joseph Crawhall II Archive.

Student Sports – #ChristmasCountdown Door no. 3

Posted on 3 December, 2018 by nspeccoll

#ChristmasCountdown
Door no. 3

Students Scottish dancing, 1963 (University Archives, NUA/018179-7)

Judo match, 1963 (University Archives,
NUA/018179-14)

Fencing class, 1963 (University Archives, NUA/018179-4)

These three photographs show students practicing sporting activities. What activities will you be getting up to during this festive period? Has much changed today since 1963?

You can see more from the University Archives on CollectionsCaptured.

Thomas Baker Brown – Story of a local Tommy – November 2018

Posted on 12 November, 2018 by nspeccoll

Photograph of Thomas Baker Brown in uniform wearing an ‘Imperial Service Badge’. Baker Brown (Thomas) Archive, TBB/1/3/1

This month, marks 100 years since the end of the 1^st World War. Our Treasure of the Month is part of the archive of Thomas Baker Brown. Born locally in Tynemouth, he served in France during the 1^st World War, was taken a prisoner of war in 1918 and served as a member of the Home Guard during the 2^nd World War despite suffering sight damage attributed to his time in captivity.

A highlight of the archive from the period of the 1^st World War is a series of over 300 letters written at regular intervals to his family. These cover the period from when he joined the army as an 18 year old, his training for, and participation in the Great War, his time as a Prisoner of War and his return home from Germany at the end of the war. Together they combine to tell a captivating first hand account of his journey from a civilian to an experienced member of the forces fighting in France and give a fascinating insight into daily life of those who fought for the country.

Thomas Baker Brown was born in Linskill Street, Tynemouth on the 22^nd of December 1896 to parents Thomas Baker Brown and J.H. Brown, he had an older brother and would go on to have a younger sister. He remained with his family, living in and around Tynemouth, until he joined the army in late November 1915, a month before his 19^th birthday.

After joining the army he spent 4 months training at a base near York at Scarcroft School. Whilst there he regularly wrote to family updating them on his progress through training and his life as a young soldier. At this stage his letters detail the training he has undertaken, life in the barracks and other local men who have signed up to fight.

Letter from Thomas Baker Brown to his mother from a training camp in York. He describes getting used to life the military life and applying for a transfer to the signallers. The letter is written from 9th Platton, ‘C’ Company, 2/6th Northumberland Fusiliers, Scarcroft Schools, York. Baker Brown (Thomas)Archive, TBB/1/1/1/1/42

This letter (above) is typical of those written whilst Baker Brown was at the training camp. In this letter he writes about getting used to military life and requesting a transfer the Signallers.

By July 1916 he’d joined the 2/6th Northumberland Fusiliers, 32nd Division as a signaller and travelled to France with them. Their number included his brother, George, who had signed up after his younger brother. He went on join the ranks taking took repeated turns on the front line, being awarded the Military Cross for his heroism and bravery in March 1917. Throughout this time he continued to keep in regular contact with his family back in Tynemouth whilst fighting and remaining uninjured. His letters home from the front discus his experiences on the front line, the weather in France, replies to the letters and parcels he was receiving from home, and the often sad fate those he knew from his home area who were wounded, or worse, in action.

Letter from Thomas Baker Brown to his father from France. He discusses friends who have died or been wounded, meeting his brother George and his plans to perhaps perform in a concert. The letter is signed Derek, a nickname used by Thomas Baker Brown. This letter is accompanied by an ‘honesty envelope’. Baker Brown (Thomas) Archive, TBB/1/1/1/1/216

In this letter from November 1917 (above), he talks about receiving a copy of the Shields Daily News from his parents and mentions other men from his local area who have died and been wounded recently.

He remained in France until late March 1918 when he was taken prisoner on the Arras Front at Bullecourt and transferred to Germany where he was held in Prisoner of War camps. He spent much of his time as a Prisoner of War in a camp at Limburg where he was required to work as a miner in a coal mine adjacent to the camp. Once he became a prisoner of war the frequency of his communications declined and were restricted to briefer postcards lacking the detail of his earlier letters.

As the war drew to a close and the armistice agreement was signed morale amongst the guards lessened to the extent that Baker Brown and 5 other detainees were able to walk out of camp on the morning of the 17^th of November 1918 and attempt to travel home. He, and several other prisoners, made their way to a camp in the Netherlands where he was able to write to his parents letting them know the circumstances of his escape and his expectation of being home in time for Christmas.

Letter written on YMCA headed paper, from Thomas Baker Brown to his mother from a British Concentration Camp in Holland. He writes that he has crossed the frontier along with an Italian man, and they have ‘been dodging about Holland’ and now expect to be home for Christmas. Baker Brown (Thomas) Archive, TBB/1/1/1/1/305

Several years later he suffered damage to his eye sight which doctors attributed to his time as a prisoner of war. This would prevent him from re-joining the army and participating abroad in World War Two. However, he was able to join the Home Guard and play his part in the defence of the country. A number of items including diaries, correspondence and other documents covering his time as a member of the 4th Battalion Northumberland (Hexham) Home Guard form a significant part of the archive.

Images of the letters featured in this post, along with a selection of others written by Baker Brown to family during World War One, are available here on Collections Captured. A full online catalogue of the Thomas Baker Brown Archive is available here, along with the catalogue here of the archive Sir Lawrence Pattinson, another local man whose military career included the First World War.

400th Anniversary of the Death of Sir Walter Raleigh – October 2018

Posted on 29 October, 2018 by nspeccoll

The morning of the 29^th October marks 400 years since the execution of Sir Walter Raleigh, beheaded at the Palace of Westminster under the auspices of King James I.

Raleigh is perhaps best known in the popular imagination as a courtier and favourite of Queen Elizabeth, and their relationship has often been speculated on and dramatised. Yet Raleigh was also a poet, a writer, a soldier, a sailor, and an adventurer, and embodied the idea of the ‘Renaissance Man’.

Spread from Raleigh's The Prerogative of Parliaments

A two-page spread from our 1628 copy of Raleigh’s The Prerogative of Parliaments in England, showing extensive annotations by a previous owner [Post-Incunabula, PI 328.42 RAL]

Raleigh’s life and career included many of the most events during this turbulent period of national history. Like many gentlemen of his social class, Raleigh gained military experience during the bloody English conquest of Ireland, where he infamously oversaw the massacre of 600 Italian and Spanish soldiers after they had surrendered at the Siege of Smerwick in 1580.

He was also instrumental in England’s early attempts to colonise North America, financing and planning expeditions to the Virginia region throughout the 1580s. The famous ‘Lost Colony’ of Roanoke, where the colonists disappeared with barely a trace, was one of his initiatives. In popular tradition, Raleigh is often attributed to bringing the potato and tobacco to Europe, although there is little historical evidence to suggest this. He did, however, make smoking tobacco popular at court.

As well as sending expeditions to North America, Raleigh was interested in Guiana, in modern-day Guyana and Venezuela. He believed that the fabled ‘El Dorado’ was found there, and that there were mountains of gold to be discovered. He led an expedition there in 1595, but returned to England empty-handed later that year.

After the death of Elizabeth in 1603 and the accession of James I to the throne, Raleigh was arrested for his involvement in the Main Plot against James. He was imprisoned in the Tower of London, where he remained until 1616. It was during his incarceration in the Tower that Raleigh produced most of his prose works.

The title page from our 1652 edition of Raleigh’s The History of the World, showing an engraving of the author. Raleigh wrote the History during his long imprisonment in the Tower of London between 1603-1616. A substantial piece of scholarship, the book mainly deals with Biblical history, and the histories of ancient Greece and Rome [Bradshaw Collection, Bradshaw 930 RAL Folio]

Much of Raleigh’s career was defined by Protestant England’s long conflict with Catholic superpower Spain: his colonisation ventures in the New World would have allowed the English more opportunity to attack Spanish colonies; he surveyed and assessed coastal defences during the Spanish Armada of 1588; he took part in the Capture of Cadiz in 1596, and was a Rear Admiral in another attack on Spain in 1597.

However, on his release from the Tower in 1616, the political landscape had changed, and England’s position was no longer defined by antagonism with Spain. After being pardoned by James, Raleigh led another expedition to Guiana in 1617. His men attacked a Spanish outpost in the area, and Raleigh’s son and namesake Walter was killed in the skirmish. Although they searched for gold, they found none.

When Raleigh returned to England in early 1618, tired and disillusioned, the Spanish ambassador demanded justice for the attack in Guiana. James, eager to avoid a major crisis with Spain, ordered Raleigh’s arrest and execution.

Raleigh was a complex man, living in a complex time. The 400^th anniversary of his death provides us with an opportunity to assess his life, works, and legacy.

A map from our 1628 edition of The History of the World. This is one of the many detailed maps found throughout the book [Sandes Library, Sandes 174]

Agatha Christie and Archaeology – September 2018

Posted on 3 October, 2018 by nspeccoll

Agatha Christie is the world’s best-selling crime novelist; but did you know that she also worked in the field of archaeology alongside her second husband, the distinguished archaeologist Sir Max Mallowan? From the 21^st Century Collection, this month’s treasure is Agatha Christie and Archaeology, edited by Charlotte Trümpler, which celebrates Christie’s relationship with archaeology, exploring what life was like working and travelling around archaeological digs in the Middle East in the 1930s to the 1950s, and detailing the extraordinary relationship between Christie’s books and the field of archaeology.

First published as part of a major exhibition at the British Museum in 2001-02 and translated from German, this book details Christie’s contribution to the excavations led by her husband at various sites in Syria and Iraq, including the ancient Assyrian city of Nimrud which has since been destroyed. With reflections from those who worked as part of the excavation teams, the book describes everyday life for Christie and her husband at the digs (including anecdotes of Christie piecing together pottery shards and cleaning ivory fragments using hand lotion and face cream).

Christie photographed many of the finds, some of which are now held in the British Museum. These are explored in the book, as well as details and stills from two films she made of the excavation sites that have never been shown publically. The book also provides photographs of Agatha and Max, in addition to examples of photographs taken by Christie of late-1930s Syria and of Iraq between 1948 and 1958. Demonstrating Christie’s unique perspective on archaeological digs in these areas, Agatha Christie and Archaeology also explores the differences between her attitude to the Orient, and those of previous European travellers in the Middle East, including Gertrude Bell whose extensive archive is held in Special Collections.

Many of Christie’s best-loved and most well-known novels featuring Hercule Poirot, such as Murder on the Orient Express (1934), Murder in Mesopotamia (1935), Death on the Nile (1937) and Appointment with Death (1937), take place in the Middle East and feature settings of archaeological sites; Agatha Christie and Archaeology uncovers some of the little-known connections between the fictional dramas and characters of the novels and their basis on real-life events and people, such as Christie’s own adventurous travels to excavation sites.

Why not visit Special Collections to take a look at some of the examples of Christie’s work held here? There are children’s versions of Death on the Nile and Crooked House in the Booktrust Collection, and the little-known Star Over Bethlehem and Other Stories – a collection of religious stories and poems generally thought to be aimed at children that Christie published under her married name – is held in the Brian Alderson Collection.

In-Tract After all These Years

Posted on 3 September, 2018 by nspeccoll

Cheque found in ‘Mr Mill’s Subjections of Women’, from Joseph Cowen to the London Society for Women’s Suffrage (Cowen Tracts, V.40 n.2)

As students of the Museum and Heritage Studies Masters course at Newcastle University, we recently undertook a 30-day work placement with the Special Collections team at Newcastle University Library. The main focus of this placement was to research and develop a temporary exhibition showcasing some of the archival material held in Special Collections.

This year marks the centenary of the 1918 Representation of the People Act, which granted some women the right to vote in this country for the very first time, and we decided to take this as our inspiration for the exhibition. Entitled, ‘The North’s Forgotten Female Reformers’, the exhibition celebrates the involvement of Northern women in movements which fought for various causes, including female suffrage, education, homosexual equality and foreign policy.

Researching the exhibition has allowed us to explore a range of archives held in Special Collections but to begin our research, we read some of the printed pamphlets contained in the Cowen (Joseph) Tracts to provide some context and understanding of the attitudes the British public had regarding women’s suffrage and their place in society. Whilst looking for one particular pamphlet entitled, ‘Mr Mill’s Subjection of Women’, we made an interesting and unexpected discovery. Nestled in the first page of this pamphlet – perhaps to mark the page – was a receipt for a cheque for one guinea made out to the London National Society for Women’s Suffrage (LNSWS) from Joseph Cowen himself.

‘Mr Mill’s Subjection of Women’ (Cowen Tracts, V.40 n.2)

The LNSWS was formed in 1867 and was one of the earliest Suffrage societies. Cowen is remembered as a well-known politician and MP for Newcastle upon Tyne who was interested in the social, educational, economic and political issues of his day. The discovery of his cheque is tangible evidence that he was an active supporter of women’s suffrage. The discovery of this item in a volume of Tracts adds further significance, as this collection of tracts was Cowen’s own collection of pamphlets and articles which reflected his personal interest in the social, educational, political and economic issues of the day, including foreign policy, women’s rights, religion, education and public health.

Cowen’s cheque can be seen in the exhibition, ‘The North’s Forgotten Female Reformers’, curated by the two Museum and Gallery Studies students, alongside many other treasures from Newcastle University’s Special Collections and Archives. The exhibition is on show on Level 2 of the Robinson Library from Monday 6^th of August.

Written by two Art Gallery, Museum and Heritage Studies Masters students, Katie Cumming and Mariance Spence, whilst undertaking a 6 week placement to create ‘The Norths Forgotten Female Reformers’ exhibition.

The Sopwith Diaries

Posted on 16 August, 2018 by nspeccoll

Newcastle University Library Special Collections and Archive hold the Thomas Sopwith Diaries covering the period 1828-1879.

Thomas Sopwith (1803-1879), as well as being a successful engineer who contributed extensively to the Victorian railway and mining industries, Thomas Sopwith was the author of a set of diaries that now live in the Special Collections archives.

Born in Newcastle in 1803, Sopwith discovered his love of writing as a teenager, and from the age of 18 kept a careful account of his every move in a series of pocket-sized hardback diaries. With only a few breaks, at times when he was really busy, he continued to write for the next 58 years, creating 168 volumes in total.

Sopwith was passionate about his work, and his dairies are a fastidious account of his meetings, projects and professional engagements. From 1845 to 1871 he was the chief agent of Allenheads lead mines in Durham and felt it would be imprudent to discuss the finer points of his role, reserving his diaries for more personal news.

Before his move to Allenheads, however, he worked as a kind of engineer-about-town, surveying railways, giving evidence in mining enquiries and touring the country with his renowned 3D models of the Forest of Dean coalfields. And documenting it all in often absurd levels of detail in his diaries.

One of the most striking things about the diaries is the sheer number of prominent Victorian figures who make an appearance. Sopwith was good friends with William Armstrong and George and Robert Stephenson and must have known nearly all the major names in science and engineering at the time. One week he might be staying with the Brunel family, the next he’d be dining with the King of Belgium, before travelling round the Norwegian fjords with Robert Stephenson. Sopwith was full of praise for almost everyone he knew and was a man who really valued his friendships.

Page from Sopwith’s diary dated April 1828 (Thomas Sopwith Diaries, TS/1/1)

When he wasn’t hobnobbing with the great and the good, Sopwith spent time at home with his large family. Married three times and widowed twice, Sopwith had eight children (two died in infancy) and doted on them all. His wayward eldest son Jacob caused him a great deal of worry and – spoiler alert – the diaries contain a fair few deaths, often prompting pages of reflection by Sopwith on religion and fate.

Many of his descendants went on to prominent careers themselves; one daughter married an MP, one grandson became the Archdeacon of Canterbury and another was an aircraft designer whose son was a racing car driver.

The diaries are littered with pencil and watercolour sketches and Sopwith often pasted in newspaper cuttings or even a menu from a banquet he attended in Belgium. The handwriting is immaculate and Sopwith’s use of symbols for days of the week, abbreviations and explanatory diagrams shows his love of efficiency.

Page from diary dated 24th April 1828, depicting a watercolour sketch of Abbotsford (Thomas Sopwith Diaries, TS/1/1)

Sopwith’s diaries also give a charming account of middle-class life in Victorian Newcastle. Sopwith was a frequent guest at Mr Donkin’s dinner parties in Jesmond and in the 1840s lived in a house he had had built on St Mary’s Place, nowadays part of Lloyds Bank. He maintained an interest in his family’s furniture-making business and was most indignant to discover that a railway viaduct was to be built right next to his workshop on Painter Heugh, blocking the natural light – a rare case of opposition to the railways.

Pedantic to the extreme, Sopwith’s exacting nature seeps through the pages of his diary in a surprisingly charming manner. From the intricate contents pages and indexes of the volumes themselves to his use of a telescope to make sure the children at Allenheads school turned up on time, Sopwith was nothing if not meticulous.

Index to the notebooks from no.1-no.33, 1829-1842 (Thomas Sopwith Diaries, TS/1/1)

Why did Sopwith keep such detailed diaries? He seems to have really enjoyed the process of recording and reflecting on his daily activities, and frequently mentions his joy in re-reading old passages and remembering old friends.

The diaries are so detailed that it’s hard not to get sucked in to the soap opera of Sopwith’s life. The sometimes dry accounts of his engineering work and academic interests – one diary includes a 13 page report from a lecture on fattening cattle – is always balanced with anecdotes from his family life or his fussy musings on the state of modern society.

Reading the whole set of diaries might be a tall order, but dipping into a volume or two opens up a window onto one of Victorian Newcastle’s most notable figures.

Written by special guest, Mark Sleightholm