Hobart Town 1879 At the Australian census of 1881, Tasmania was recorded as having a population of 115,705. Of these, 21,118 people lived in Hobart. Hobart was by this time an established city, the capital of the island state, with elegant sandstone buildings and the same well functioning institutions found in Britain: Parliament, Courts and … Continue reading Cold Blows the Wind – Streets and Lanes of Hobart Town
History
Cold Blows the Wind – Author Talk
In September 2022, I gave a talk at my local library about the research behind my novel Cold Blows the Wind and the reason I decided to tell Ellen Thompson and Harry Woods’s story as fiction rather than non-fiction. I am sharing the PowerPoint I used for the talk with narration added so those who … Continue reading Cold Blows the Wind – Author Talk
Christmas – A Time of Cheer for All in Hobart Town
When we think of a 19th century Christmas, I suspect most of us think of an idealized image – the decorated tree with toys and gifts, stockings hanging from the mantelpiece stuffed with oranges and nuts, the table groaning under the weight of roast beef, ham and roasted potatoes, not to mention the flaming brandy … Continue reading Christmas – A Time of Cheer for All in Hobart Town
‘No pen can write, no tongue can tell the aching’ – Transported convicts, love tokens and tattoos
Ships in the Thames by Samuel Atkins c.1790Courtesy of the National Library of Australia This article was first published in the February 2022 edition of Historical Times a free interactive digital magazine issued every month full of news, reviews, offers and articles from a wide range of historical authors and experts, well known and not so. If … Continue reading ‘No pen can write, no tongue can tell the aching’ – Transported convicts, love tokens and tattoos
A Christmas Stocking
Christmas stockings and ‘stocking fillers‘ are now a traditional part of Christmas. A quick consultation with those two noisy colleagues Drs Google and Wikipedia will tell you that this tradition had its origin in the story of St Nicholas, initially secretly, providing three bags of gold as dowries for the three daughters of a poor … Continue reading A Christmas Stocking
Take the Head of a Black Sheep – Tudor Medicine at Home
Most people in the Tudor period lived in the countryside and unlike us, with our local GPs and ready access to Dr Google, they did not have doctors or apothecaries nearby, even if they could afford them. The bulk of everyday medical care took place within the home with the main practitioners the women of … Continue reading Take the Head of a Black Sheep – Tudor Medicine at Home
The Queen’s Rival by Anne O’Brien
Today I'm delighted to be sharing an excerpt from Anne O’Brien's The Queen's Rival, a novel of Cecily Neville, Duchess of York. The Queen's Rival has been recently released in paperback. Duchess Cecily teaches a lesson in Ludlow Castle, October 1459 We were in occupation of one of the corner chambers in the old gatehouse … Continue reading The Queen’s Rival by Anne O’Brien
Wanted A Husband
Matrimonial advertisements were a common feature of the Wanted section of Australian newspapers in the second half of the 19th century; however, those placed by women were far less common than those by men. This is to be expected, in part, seeing that in the 19th century men outnumbered women, particularly in the earlier years, … Continue reading Wanted A Husband
Wanted! A Wife.
A few months back, while looking at the Wanted ads in issues of the Hobart Mercury of 1878, I was surprised to find, in amongst those for capital hearses, magpies and generally useful boys, an advertisement headed Wanted, a Wife. Mercury, Tas, 22 March 1878 Initially, I was interested to see if ‘Bachelor’ had advertised … Continue reading Wanted! A Wife.
‘WANTED a BOY to make himself generally useful.’
In the 19th century the front page of newspapers was not the place for lurid headlines and large photographs designed to catch the eye. It was a serious place where births, marriages and deaths were announced; timetables for ferries listed; ‘superior’ accommodation, government tenders and everything from grain, newly milled flour and candles to ladies’ … Continue reading ‘WANTED a BOY to make himself generally useful.’
Catherine Meyrick 