Series 4, no. 44 Spring 2019 ISSN 1744-3180 NEWS FROM THE CHAIR Happy New Year from CILIP Library & Information History Group, and I hope that all of you had a peaceful and enjoyable Christmas break. Our first newsletter of the year includes some very recent history, with Bill Petersen’s account of his recreation of William Morris’s library; an article on Charles Fraser-Mackintosh and his book collection from the 2018 Ollé Award-winner Melanie Mainwaring-McKay, who used her award to travel to Bournemouth and Edinburgh to look for evidence of Fraser- Portrait of Charles Fraser- Mackintosh's book collecting activities; and a Mackintosh, from Yachting and Electioneering in the write-up from our two bursary winner’s of last Hebrides by Hector Rose year’s Women and Print conference, Frances Mackenzie (1887) FM3257. Marsh and Beth Slater. Image credit: Melanie Manwaring-McKay with Sadly we say goodbye to Gregory Toth who is permission from Inverness stepping down as Events Coordinator. Library. See p. 2 for Although only in position for twelve months Melanie's article on research Greg threw himself into the role and ensured she conducted thanks to our that 2018 was a memorable year for library James Ollé award. history tours and visits, and we thank him again for his hard work - as a parting gift we also have Greg’s account of our committee visit CONTENTS to Leeds Central Library in November. FEATURE ARTICLE: CHARLES FRASER-MACKINTOSH We are still looking for someone to take over P. 2 from Greg, so if you like organising events and VIRTUAL HISTORIC LIBRARY: WILLIAM MORRIS P. 4 are keen to promote interesting libraries, contact me via the Group's website or social NEWS P. 6 media pages (we're on Twitter and Facebook) LECTURES, SEMINARS AND EVENTS P. 8 to find out more about what the role entails CONFERENCES P. 10 and to apply. REPORTS P. 14 On behalf of the Library and Information AWARDS AND BURSARIES P. 19 History Group, I wish you all a very successful EXHIBITIONS P. 21 and productive 2019. PUBLICATIONS P. 22 Dan Gooding BACK MATTER P. 23 Chair, CILIP Library & Information History Group LIHG Newsletter Series 4 no. 44 Spring 2019 FEATURE ARTICLE he lost his seat, and thereafter devoted his time to his studies. He died at his Melanie Manwaring-McKay was the 2018 winner Bournemouth residence in of the James Ollé award, which allowed her to 1901. hunt for Charles Fraser-Mackintosh's possible THE LIBRARY PROVIDES A Bournemouth library. Fraser-Mackintosh’s book collection SNAPSHOT OF FRASER- MACKINTOSH'S WIDE- N SEARCH OF A LOST LIBRARY reflects his interest in I : the history of the RANGING INTERESTS CHARLES FRASER-MACKINTOSH’S Highlands and Highland BOURNEMOUTH LIFE AND BOOK families, encompassing local COLLECTION Highland history, including many Jacobite- related publications, a large collection of Gaelic Charles Fraser-Mackintosh (1828-1901), born texts, and locally published books. It contains near Inverness in the Highlands of Scotland, many legal papers and pamphlets bound into was a lawyer, property developer, books and parliamentary papers, a reminder parliamentarian and antiquarian writer. His of Fraser-Mackintosh’s varied career. collection of 5000 books was donated to the town of Inverness Scottish literature is also in 1920 by his widow, Eveline May, represented, by for example a and is now housed in Inverness number of James Hogg first Library. Eveline May donated her editions and Ossianic material. husband’s collection of papers, There are many notable books, primarily on Highland families, to including two incunabula. The the National Records of Scotland ninety volumes of newspaper in 1914. cuttings show Fraser-Mackintosh’s antiquarian interest and are Fraser-Mackintosh began his legal strongly biographical, a theme practice in Inverness in 1853 after continued in surviving personal an apprenticeship in Inverness books such as family bibles and and studies in Edinburgh. In 1864 childhood prizes. His printed he constructed Union Street, still catalogue is a snapshot of his an important thoroughfare in London and Inverness libraries in central Inverness today (fig. 2). 1885 and in the absence of Between 1863 and 1866 he Fig. 1: Charles Fraser-Mackintosh's notebooks or other details about bought two estates in Inverness bookplate. Image credit: Melanie book purchasing is a useful and rented out land, which Manwaring-McKay with permission resource in understanding Fraser- from Inverness Library enabled him to retire from the Mackintosh’s interests in book legal profession. He built collecting. Lochardil House (now a hotel) as his residence on one of these estates. After his defeat in the 1892 election, he spent increasing amounts of time in Bournemouth In 1874 he was elected Inverness Burghs continuing his studies and writing, which Member of Parliament and in 1876 married suggests there was a third library. The survival the 23-year-old Eveline May Holland in of books from his collection outside Inverness London. Around the time of his marriage, he Library supports this idea. Staff recently campaigned for the teaching of Gaelic in received a phone call from an auction house in Highland Schools. The highlight of Fraser- relation to a book with the Fraser-Mackintosh Mackintosh’s parliamentary career was his library plate, which – in the absence of the involvement in the Napier Commission, which Inverness Library stamp – was not part of the he called for to investigate the living conditions original accession. of the crofter and rural population in the I applied to the James Ollé Award in 2017 to Highlands and Islands. Fraser-Mackintosh was fund a research trip to discover what could himself appointed onto the Commission in have happened to the Fraser-Mackintosh’s 1883. He subsequently became the Crofters’ Bournemouth library and also to gain a deeper Party MP for Inverness County until 1892 when understanding of his life in London and 2 LIHG Newsletter Series 4 no. 44 Spring 2019 particularly Bournemouth. I used the a significant impact on my research. It enabled remainder of the award to visit Register House me to compare the lives of Fraser-Mackintosh in Edinburgh to examine the Fraser- and his wife in Bournemouth and in Inverness. Mackintosh papers deposited there for clues about the fate of his Bournemouth library and Experiencing Bournemouth and researching his plans for the future of his collection. I the residences where the couple had lived (old found no information about Fraser- maps were interesting for this) shed some Mackintosh’s libraries at Register House, but light on their lifestyle. The houses are no the visit did give me an insight into his overall longer there; the first, ‘Sans Souci’ near the collecting habits. town centre, appears to have been replaced by charming early 20th-century flats, while the I spent three days in Bournemouth. As well as second, ‘Brackloonagh’ in Branksome Park, looking for the two addresses in Bournemouth replaced by a larger block of flats next to a where Fraser-Mackintosh and his wife had supermarket. However, the original large lived, I searched newspaper and archival footprints of these sites was still apparent. material in Bournemouth and Poole for Some nearby examples of Victorian villas have specific information about the couple and survived and combined with the wide leafy their life there. Travelling home to Inverness boulevards allow one to imagine how the area via an overnight stay in London, I spent a day would have looked in the couple’s day. visiting their three London addresses and Kensal Green Cemetery, where Fraser- Mackintosh and his wife are buried. The visit to the cemetery solved the puzzle of why they were buried at Kensal Green, as their grave is adjacent to a plot belonging to Eveline May’s family (fig. 3). In Fraser-Mackintosh’s testament dative, under the heading ‘England’, there is a list of stocks, shares and dividends – but no books. Eveline May’s will is detailed, as are the subsequent codicils, but they do not mention books either. Fig. 2: Union Street, from Invernessiana by Charles Fraser- It would appear that Fraser-Mackintosh left Mackintosh (1875) FM3289. Image credit: Melanie neither written nor verbal instruction Manwaring-McKay with permission from Inverness Library concerning the transfer of his book collection from any of his libraries. Local enquiries in Fraser-Mackintosh features frequently in Bournemouth, prior to my visit, turned up no Inverness newspapers, in some issues even leads. Finally, after much searching, I found appearing more than once in relation to information about the disposal of the different stories, for example about his Bournemouth house and contents after business affairs; his work as an MP; his Eveline May’s death in December 1923 in the antiquarian writing; or in relation to the many form of newspaper adverts. Her Bournemouth clubs and societies (such as the Clachnacuddin residence, in which she had lived as a widow Rifle Club, the local cricket club or the Gaelic for 23 years, went to auction on 23 April, four Society) of which he was a member, patron or months after her death. It had eleven office-bearer. He donated money to various bedrooms, excellent domestic offices, garage, good causes and these gifts are frequently stabling and rooms for a gardener or mentioned in the press. The quantity of chauffeur. It also had electric light, heat, and a material shows Fraser-Mackintosh as a leading telephone. Five days later, the furniture was public figure in Inverness and the Highlands also sold by auction. There was no mention of for a sustained period. a library or of books in the adverts. By contrast, there is no mention of him in the However, the research trip funded by the Bournemouth newspapers.