The Gaskells in Wales
To celebrate our forthcoming Conference in Caernarfon, North Wales, Dr Diane Duffy has revisited the works and letters of Elizabeth and her family to learn more about their links with Wales.
Croeso I Gymru – Welcome to Wales
This year the Gaskell Society Conference goes to Caernarfon. Dr Diane Duffy explores Elizabeth’s associations with North Wales and finds they’re very mixed.
‘This Land of Song’ – part 3
Gaskell and the Perception of Wales in Eighteenth and Nineteenth-century Writing The last section ended on a note of sexual licence creeping into the interpretation of Nest’s behaviour, which may have been a nod to a political debate in the … Continued
The Gaskell Memorial Service
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 and on that of our much-missed Secretary and Founder member, … Continued
Tea at Cranford II – Our Daily Bread
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 existed in Miss Matty’s mind, as being the way which … Continued
Tea at Cranford I – Charlotte Brontë and the Great Victorian Tea Fraud
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 practically every household. But tea was more than just an … Continued
Elizabeth Gaskell’s House – the final chapter
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 in 1913. Marianne, Elizabeth’s eldest daughter was still alive at … Continued
To Buy or Not to Buy?
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, did purchase the property in 1900, many years after both … Continued
Locations in ‘The Sexton’s Hero’
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 about it. We’ve since been contacted by Pauline Kiggins, a … Continued
Mental Illness and the Victorians – the Case of Alice Hadfield Petschler
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 to lead changes in the law on how the mentally … Continued