– Letter (412) to George Smith, February 1859 –
Every year, on a Sunday, close to what would have been Elizabeth Gaskell’s birthday, Gaskell Society members assemble at Brook Street Chapel in Knutsford. We lay flowers on Elizabeth’s grave
Mr Simms Olde Sweet Shoppe: Purveyor of the Finest Confectionery, is a rapidly-growing chain of shops selling old-fashioned humbugs, lollipops and other traditional sweets in large, screw-topped bottles. Their popularity
Following my last ‘Tea at Cranford’ post, I will now consider the dangers which may have been lurking in those dainty sandwiches, ‘cut to the imaginary pattern of excellence that
Tea plays an integral role in Elizabeth Gaskell’s novel Cranford. Grown in India, a British colony, and imported by the East India Company, it became a national beverage found in
Meta and Julia Gaskell purchased 84 Plymouth Grove 16 years after their father’s death [see my previous blog] and remained there until their own deaths Julia in 1908 and Meta
That is the question! Volunteers at Elizabeth Gaskell’s House are often asked whether Elizabeth ever bought 84 Plymouth Grove. The answer is definitely not, but her daughters, Meta and Julia,
https://vimeo.com/522747640 Libby Tempest, Chair of the Gaskell Society, tells us about how she came to know and love the work of Elizabeth Gaskell and the ‘excellent women’ of Cranford in particular.
In January 2021, Dr Diane Duffy ran a discussion session on the short story, ‘The Sexton’s Hero’ about a daring rescue on Morecambe Bay. You can read her blog post
In March 2021, we were delighted to welcome the historian, biographer and retired teacher, Joanna Williams. Alice Hadfield Petschler (1830-1897) was the photographer, poet and “lunatic” whose case helped