Collection of letters related to Charles and Mary Lamb, 1797-1868 and undated.

Record ID: 
287742
Accession number: 
MA 225.1-34
Credit: 
Purchased by Pierpont Morgan, 1907.
Description: 
34 items, unbound ; size varies
Notes: 

Sarah Stoddart was the sister of Sir John Stoddart, kings advocate at Malta. In 1808 she married William Hazlitt (1778-1830); in 1822 they were divorced.

Summary: 

Collection consists of 3 manuscript poems in the autograph of Charles Lamb (MA 225.1-2, 19); 12 autograph letters from Charles Lamb to various recipients including William Hazlitt, Robert Southey and Sarah Stoddart; 8 autograph letters from Mary Lamb primarily to Sarah Stoddart; and 4 letters concerning the Lambs. Charles Lamb's letters discuss his writings, acquaintances (especially Coleridge), and family (especially his and Mary's adopted daughter Emma Isola). Mary Lamb's letters discuss Sarah Stoddart's family and love life and frequently allude to her own bouts of depression and mental illness. Letters and manuscripts in the collection are described in 27 individual catalog records (MA 225.1-27). With 7 engraved portraits of Charles Lamb.

Housed in: 
Blue cloth drop-spine box (36.8 cm)
Provenance: 
The bulk of the collection was purchased by Pierpont Morgan from the dealer J. Sabin in 1907; some items were added to the collection later.