BIB_ID
421595
Accession number
MA 1352.659
Creator
Maynard, Frederick, active 19th century.
Display Date
London, England, 1854 October 10.
Credit line
Purchased with the assistance of the Fellows, 1951.
Description
1 item (8 pages) ; 17.7 x 11.4 cm
Notes
This letter and other materials concerning Caroline Maynard Thompson were sent by Dickens to Angela Burdett-Coutts on November 17, 1854. The page numbers in the upper lefthand corner were added by him and ran consecutively through the enclosures. See MA 1352.389 for a full description of the materials enclosed and where they are currently held.
Contains a note at the top from Dickens: "I received the following letter, from a correspondent quite unknown to me, while I was at Boulogne. I think, in the beginning of October."
Written from "23 Bute Street. / Old Brompton."
On mourning stationery.
The letter is part of a collection, MA 1352, which consists of letters from Charles Dickens to the Baroness, to her companion Hannah (Meredith) Brown, or the latter's husband, William Brown; with 70 letters written by others to Miss Coutts or to Dickens in his capacity as her unofficial almoner; and a few others. See the collection-level record for more information.
Contains a note at the top from Dickens: "I received the following letter, from a correspondent quite unknown to me, while I was at Boulogne. I think, in the beginning of October."
Written from "23 Bute Street. / Old Brompton."
On mourning stationery.
The letter is part of a collection, MA 1352, which consists of letters from Charles Dickens to the Baroness, to her companion Hannah (Meredith) Brown, or the latter's husband, William Brown; with 70 letters written by others to Miss Coutts or to Dickens in his capacity as her unofficial almoner; and a few others. See the collection-level record for more information.
Provenance
The letters formed part of the Burdett-Coutts sale (Sotheby, 17 May 1922); they were purchased for Oliver W. Barrett in whose collection they remained until it was sold by his son (Parke-Bernet, 31 October 1951).
Summary
Describing the case of his elder sister, Caroline Maynard Thompson; saying that she lived with a man outside of wedlock for nine years, during which time she kept and educated himself and their sister; writing that at the age of 17 he was articled to an architect; saying that two years into his apprenticeship his sister's protector left her and she was "plunged in great distress with the chances of a frightful life before her," and that his articles were cancelled, "which has marred my progress in the profession, and prevented me returning her that kindness which she showered upon me when I was unable to help myself;" saying that he cannot currently support her and is looking for an employment or situation that would make her "independent of me, till I had advanced further in the world;" explaining why he is writing to Dickens specifically; assuring him that his sister "must not be judged by her unhappy condition, for I affirm in spite of it - a more virtuous minded woman never lived. You I am sure would not judge her harshly did you know all particulars of her past life;" saying that he is confident that Dickens would not reveal the contents of this letter to anyone and listing the names of the architects for whom he worked as a sign of his trust; appealing to Dickens for advice or assistance.
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