The Thrales of Streatham Park, II. The "Family book": (i) 1764-1772 The Harvard community has made this article openly available. Please share how this access benefits you. Your story matters Citation Hyde, Mary. 1976. The Thrales of Streatham Park, II. The "Family book": (i) 1764-1772. Harvard Library Bulletin XXIV (2), April 1976: 145-179. Citable link https://nrs.harvard.edu/URN-3:HUL.INSTREPOS:37364380 Terms of Use This article was downloaded from Harvard University’s DASH repository, and is made available under the terms and conditions applicable to Other Posted Material, as set forth at http:// nrs.harvard.edu/urn-3:HUL.InstRepos:dash.current.terms-of- use#LAA IL TI-IE~ FA.-l-1/LY UO(Jl( 1 (i) r764~1772 }lester .lfaria 1'hrale born on the 17: Sepf- 1764 at her F ather~sHouse, S out hu 1ark . 1"'bisis- to ser·i)e /JS a .1.lfe~norandum of ber ( 1 orpore.1l& J.fentnl Po""J)ers at t/Je Age of t~~o Years~ to ,w!: 1 She i.~.1rri·v\l tbis 17: Sept: 1766. Sb(;' ran •~:alk & run alone up & dorr;.Nlall s1nootb Places tbo' pretty stt::i!p,e,"" tbr/ the Hact.1strh1/4· is still l 1ept on it is -no lon.~er of [Jse. She is per f ectl.Y healt/Jy, of a lax Con stitu.tion & is .rfr(Jng enou_~·hto carry a _/H rJlrnd,/puppy two Al nntl.1s old quite aero.~·-~the l ...a... ti_:n at StreatbiVn~ ah'o to carry a Hori,.;.~J sucb as are used on bou,Jing Greens up tlJe .-llount to the Tubs. She is neither -rernarkablv• big<. nor tall, being _just34 Inches b1gh, but eminently pretty. She can spei1k n;ost Tl)'ords & speak them pl(1in enougb too, but is no great Talker: She repeats tbe Pater "]\Taster, tbe three Cl.?ristia-nVirtues & the Signs of the Zodiac in i-r--att/s Verses; She like,-u,,isekno"i.rs t/Jeu1 O'Jlthe Globe perfectly ·well. S'be can tell all her J... etters weat & :rma/l & spell lit- tle J,T,Tords as n,o~ff, Dog, c./l/, ('at &c. She kno•U.\~ber 'r}l-U(;'FiJJ;Ures & the fi1nplest Con1hi11atio'JJJof .,e-"ma.~]<: 4")34; 6~ S, 6R; hut none be- yond a hundred: She kno,u)S all the heathen l)eities b"'/tbeir Attributes • & co1n1ts.10 ru:ithout missing one. Signed -11: l.: Thrale. Sponsors to H:· Ai: T. ,-1,ft,L'-"J'al-ushury, )t.-{!"' 1"\1 esbitt & Sir Jobn l_...tid e. A.ll three of Hester i\-laria's godparents \Vere closely related to her: her grandn1othcr, .iVlrs.Sainsbury, after \vhon1 she \i~as n~uned; her aunt,, J\.Jrs..... i\rnold Nesbitt (Susanna Thralc) the youngest of her father's three sisters; and her first cousini five-year-old Sir John Lade~ 1 1'hc text uf the FcnniI~yBook i~ p•·jntt:d here 1n full, in iriilir type c:?oi;,:;,:..:ptfo:r p:assages: under5cored in the originnl 1 ,vhic.-h .t.re set i1~rom::ul. \Vot'ds 1rts.i:::rtt::dab-r.n•c or belov.' the line a re end o5e d in sb shes: /th us/. \Vor ds cros.sed out arc end o se d in poinr,e<l lu'.:1.ckcts.. Fc.:t:"Clltri-i:..:spellings ( e.g.~ jJCtsed for Jrnt$t!d) ind punctuation ha\.Te been reproduced. ~fhe cover rends: '[he Cbitdrer/s Book o·r rather F.vn.it.v Rook beJ.,,un17: Sept'" 1766, and The Chiidrcn~s Book is repeated at the top nf the inside front cover. A string at tl112 back of a child\; pinafore. 145 Harvard University - Houghton Library / Harvard University. Harvard Library bulletin. Cambridge, Mass., Harvard University Library. Volume XXIV, Number 2 (April 1976) H ariwrd Library Rulletin son of her fa th er· s favori tc sister., ~.l\nn,\v ho had been a w icl o \V since 17 59. .!..:\.fter four vears of marriage- her hu~hand had died from the results of a hunting accident~ a fc\V n1onrhs before h1~heir, Sir John~ had been born. I-lester i\-1aria ~rhralc's christening took place on !4 Scptcn1ber 1 764 at the Church of St. Saviour\; in South\vark (no,v Southw=-ark (~athedral) James .Evans. the rector, offic:iatcd~ Frances Thrale u,as born on the of Sepi! 1765. at Southwark, appeared strong at first~ b·ut died on the tenth Day of the watery Gripes - l had 'fl(N{.,'erhad a Day's H ea.Ithduring the u-hole Gesta- tion - t /Je I .,abOlJf uw s h ov) ei-·crparticular I y short and easy. - Sp on- sors ..-\4:~~Salusbu-ry ./\,1= 1 Plu1nbe & JJ.!'?-vT eshitt. Frances Thrale \Vas baptized by Jan1cs Eviuts at St. Saviour's on 3 October 1 i65 The pattern of closely related sponsors continued: her first godmother ...vas again her grandn1other, i\-lrs. Salusbury,, and her scc..:ondgodn1othcr, her aunt, after \vh~>n1:she was nan1ed, li"'ranccs 1"'hralc Phunbc, the \vife of Sa1nucl Plun1be, a sugar refiner and a C:ity .L.\.ld crtn 2 n. Frances' godfather was Arnold ;\fcsbitt, the other living brother- .in.. law of ~fhr~le. :\e~h1rt came fron1 a good Irish fa111ily,and ,vas no\v a prorninenr merchant in London. He ,vas I\-le1nher of Parlia- 1nen t for Crick la<lt, a genial t sh o\VY n1a n and a spe cola tor on a ]arge scale~ He \Vas involved with Sir George Colebrook in land purchase in Janlaica ·I and Grenada, and \Vith Thrale in other ventures~ Seven months after the death of Ralph Thra.le, his son Henry had forv{ardcd the 111arriagcof his youngest sisterJ Susanna, to hi~ clo::;cfriend ~csbitt. The terseness of the entrv for Frances' birth and death sho,vs that ,i 1\ilrs. Thrale was under great stre~s~ 1"he autumn had not been at all as plnnncd. The Thrales had gone ro Brighton ( or Brightheln1stone, th-e earlier fonn of the natne) during the sun1mer, presumably stay- ing at the "cottage'' Ralph Thrale had purchased on the cast side of 3 Infantile diarrhea prcsurnahly c::n1sed IJy an jnfection. i N c.... bi tt ...v as a h:o a pa rt O\.vner of ships that plied to th~ \.Vest Indies. In 1 774 vVillfom Hickey, the diarist, was to vjsit hi~ offi<;e in Bishopsgate Street to arrange passage to Janrnic a on his J.\7 e-w S ho 1 e hani; see Jf e1no1rs of iv illiam Hickey~ ed. by A1fred Spenser, 4 vols. (London: Hurst and Blackett, 1913-[ 1915J ), I, 332. Harvard University - Houghton Library / Harvard University. Harvard Library bulletin. Cambridge, Mass., Harvard University Library. Volume XXIV, Number 2 (April 1976) The Thrales of 5treatham Park 147 l\T est Street.~ IVIrsrThr ale \.Vas qui ctl y ,\1 aiting for her second child t(l be l1(Jrn, ::3.ndJ (lhnson had been asked t() visit. f le \Vas suuggling to finish his edition of Shakespeare, but said he hoped to come by the end of .A.ugust~ Ile did come to Brighton - and \\--asenraged to find that: his hosts had departed ¥-=-ithourlcrting hin1 kno,v. They had 1cft suddenly hccausc \vord reached them rh:1t Alexander Hun1e, one of the n1en1bcrs of Parliarne:nt for South\vark1 h:u1<lit'tL This ,vas an opportunity Thralc had hccn '-'"'";11ringfor - to seek elec- tion to ParlLunent. The Thralcs hurried to l ~ondon, and there ~rhrale sa\V the Borough electors; he 1nct their rcqu1rcn1cnrs, and in shorr order received their approvaL On 2 3 Scptc111bcr~four days bcf ore Frances, birth, his candidacy 1vas announced. 1"hralc had Jong had an interest in po1itics~ At nventy-six he had stood f(lr A1}ingd()n, an<l heen soundly rejected ( 17 54: .lliscella-nies,I, 292 · -293~ n. 6), bur the desire for public life retnained, and he particular! y \:,/anted to repre- s~nt the Horough of South\vark hccatt~e his father had before him~ Thralc launched a vigorous ca1npaignr He ,vas joined by his \Vife as soon as her health pern1ittedi ~1nd though the rough and tutnble \Vorld of politics \Vas n nc\v experience~ she V..-'ascficctive and she enjoyed it. Dr. Johruon also j oincd the c:1111- paign (after they had n1adc up ahout Brighton) and he too greatly enjoyed the hectic activity. He sponsored '"fhrale's candidacy \virh gusto, and \V~lsrcadv at all times to furnish advice and to draft corn- 111uni ca ti onsT Thrale., I\-1rs. Thral e and he \v ere a very effective tri- umv 1rate. ()n 2 3 December , 765 Henry Thra!c "\-Vasreturned as a i\-1e1nbcr On i 8 Au gus-t c7 5 5 Ralph Thra le purchased thjs ~'cnpyhold' i property in the old pr1.rt of B.righton from one John Ho,vdl. ...i\.U copyho]d property ,;.:i;.'"asgoverned b~.r- th~ a.ndcnt •ru~tO[l1arv ]a\vs of the ;'\-Ia nor'~ in which it vt"as situated -- in thjs case the J\·1i:l.tl( }r n f Br igh thel [1l~tc1n t:: - ~nd ::i.dn:frn ist-c::red 1>)-' th~ l i lca l .\·1;.1 n ori a1 Court. If a '.:'opyholdcr whhcd to devise his copyho]d property by \\;--ill, he was ooligcd to appear jn the A1~n< J rial Cu urt ~nd, in eff ~ct, n1a kc: a f or111::1:I d~c: hr a.tion of l i is in tt:-n- ti0n.