Bryn Mawr College Library Special Collections

Books on London

Cultural Life

 

As one of the larger categories, covering a broad range of topics, Cultural Life has been further divided into subcategories, with books organized under the following headings: Literary Landmarks; Theater Life & History; Lives of Artists, Writers & Intellectuals; Exhibitions & Performances; Libraries & Collections; and General Cultural Life.

On the subject of London's literary landmarks, the collection's strength is works of the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Among the former are Charles Dickens's Dictionary of London (1879), Laurence Hutton's Literary Landmarks of London (1892), and William Patrick Ryan's Literary London: Its Lights and Comedies (1898). Of the latter, which tend to be more specifically focused, the collection includes Austin Brereton's Literary History of the Adelphi and Its Neighbourhood and Henry C. Shelley's Inns and Taverns of Old London, both from 1909, as well as Peace in Picadilly: The Story of Albany (1958) by Sheila Berry Smith, Countess of Birkenhead. A key figure in the Royal Society of Literature and the Keats-Shelley Association, the Countess also became known as a biographer of nineteenth-century literary and artistic life.

London's general theater history is detailed in two eighteenth-century works owned by the College: The History of the Theatres of London and Dublin, from the Year 1730 to the Present Time (1761-71) by Benjamin Victor and The History of the Theatres of London (1796) by Walley Chamberlain Oulton, both containing an annual register of all the plays performed at the theatres-royal in London, the first beginning from the year 1712 and the second from 1771 to 1795. The histories of particular theaters are addressed in books by Michael Kelly and Henry Saxe Wyndham; these are, respectively, Reminiscences of Michael Kelly, of the King's Theatre, and Theatre Royal Drury Lane (1826) and The Annals of Covent Garden Theatre from 1732 to 1897 (1906).

Two eighteenth-century biographies are the highlights of the Lives of Artists, Writers & Intellectuals subcategory. They are The Life of Doctor John Colet (1724) by Samuel Knight and John Toland's Life of John Milton (1761). These two illustrious Londoners share a connection: Colet, a theologian and humanist whose father had been Lord Mayor of the city, founded the prestigious St. Paul's School in London in 1509, where just over a century later the renowned poet would begin his education. Nineteenth-century works dealing with important figures in London's cultural scene include Leigh Hunt's Lord Byron and Some of His Contemporaries (1828), Life, Letters, and Literary Remains of John Keats, edited by Richard Monckton Milnes (1848), Alexander Gilchrist's Life of William Blake (1863) and Frank Carr's Characteristics of Leigh Hunt, as Exhibited in that Typical Literary Periodical, Leigh Hunt's London Journal (1878). Byron, a most popular figure of Regency London, joined with the controversial Leigh Hunt in 1822 to start a short-lived newspaper, The Liberal. Hunt was a poet and editor also connected with Keats, publishing his first poem in 1816. In fact Keats's initial lack of success is sometimes attributed to his friendship with Hunt. From the early twentieth century, Bryn Mawr owns Holbrook Jackson's William Morris: Craftsman, Socialist (1908), a biography of the artist, designer, writer, and socialist, who played a leading role in England's Arts and Crafts movement.

The Great Exhibition of 1851 held in London's Crystal Palace is well represented in the collection, making up the majority of the works under the subheading of Exhibitions & Performances. Published during the year of the exhibition are Harvey Tuckett's Where to Go, and What to Pay: A Hand-Book to All the World's Fair, Henry Steven's Account of the Proceedings at the Dinner Given by Mr. George Peabody to the Americans Connected with the Great Exhibition--about the American investment banker and philanthropist who lived in London and underwrote the American installation at the exhibition--and The Lily and the Bee: An Apologue of the Crystal Palace by Samuel Warren. Although Warren was a successful London barrister and popular novelist, this brief, humorous piece on the exhibition was a signal failure. Other works in the collection dealing with the Great Exhibition and its celebrated structure include William Allen Drew's Glimpses and Gatherings during a Voyage and Visit to London and the Great Exhibition in the Summer of 1851 (1852), Tallis's History and Description of the Crystal Palace, and the Exhibition of the World's Industry in 1851 (1852), and Mrs. Anna Jameson's Hand-Book to the Courts of Modern Sculpture at the Crystal Palace (1854). Jameson, considered a nineteenth-century pioneer of art history, discusses sculpture housed in the newly re-erected Crystal Palace, moved to Sydenham once the exhibition was over.

Finally, a few collection highlights in the subcategories of Libraries & Collections and General Cultural Life are a 1696 edition of Sir Robert Cotton's Catalogus Librorum Manuscriptorum Bibliothecae Cottonianae, a catalogue, history and synopsis of the English antiquarian's famous private library, which eventually formed the basis of the manuscript collection of the British Museum in London; Charles Welch's Guildhall Library and Its Work (1893), on the London library and archive established in the fifteenth century; and Abstract of the Constitution and Laws of the Royal Academy of Arts in London (1815).


Bibliography:

Literary Landmarks

Birkenhead, Sheila Berry Smith, Countess, 1913-
Peace in Piccadilly; the story of Albany
New York, Reynal [1958]
DA689 .A6 B5 1958

Brereton, Austin, 1862-1922
The literary history of the Adelphi and its neighbourhood, by Austin Brereton; with a new introduction
New York, Duffield, 1909
PR110 .L6 B83 1909

Dickens, Charles, 1837-1896
Dickens's dictionary of London, 1879
London : The Author, 1879
Uncat 10,462

Hutton, Laurence, 1843-1904
Literary landmarks of London, by Laurence Hutton .
New York, Harper & brothers, 1892
PR110.L6 H8 1892

Ryan, W. P. (William Patrick) 1867-1942
Literary London : its lights and comedies / by W. P. Ryan
London : L. Smithers, 1898
I36062121

Shelley, Henry C. (Henry Charles)
Inns and taverns of old London : setting forth the historical and literary associations of those ancient hostelries, together with an account of the most notable coffee-houses, clubs, and pleasure gardens of the British metropolis / by Henry C. Shelley
Boston : L. C. Page, 1909
Uncat 11,633

Landscape and letters, a series of twenty pictures from the Times
[London, The Times Publishing Co., 1935?]
fPR109 .L35 1935

 

Theater Life & History

Boswell, James, 1740-1795
On the profession of a player : three essays / by James Boswell, now first reprinted from the London magazine for August, September, and October, 1770
[London] : E. Mathews & Marrot, ltd., 1929
792 B657o

Fleay, Frederick Gard, 1831-1909
Chronicle history of the London stage, 1559-1642
London, 1890
822.09 F62

Fuller, Pierpont, 1906-
Sixty years of twelfth night : as unearthed at the University Club / By ye olde club historian, P. Fuller, Jr
Denver : Bradford-Robinson, 1957
HS2725.D4 U53 1957

Kelly, Michael, 1762-1826
Reminiscences of Michael Kelly, of the King's theatre, and Theatre royal Drury lane : including a period of nearly half a century; with original anecdotes of many distinguished persons, political, literary, and musical
London : H. Colburn, 1826
ML420 .K29

Newspaper Proprietors Association, London
Late night theatre : with plays and players representative of the British Theatre / presented by the Newspaper Proprietors Association by kind permission of the directors of Theatre Royal, Drury Lane, on Monday, 9th July, 1951 at 11 p.m. ; organized by Prince Littler & John Varley
Plaistow : Printed at the Curwen Press, 1951
DA687.D75 N4 1951

Oulton, Walley Chamberlain, 1770?-1820?
The history of the theatres of London: containing an annual register of all the new and revived tragedies, comedies, operas, farces, pantomimes, &c., that have been performed at the theatres-royal, in London, from the year 1771 to 1795
London, Martin and Bain, 1796
PN2596.L6 O8 1796

Playfair, Nigel Ross, 1874-1934
The story of the Lyric Theatre, Hammersmith / by Nigel Playfair; with an introduction by Arnold Bennett, an epilogue by A. A. Milne, contributions and letters from St. John Ervine, Frederic Austin, etc.: and illustrations after Lovat Fraser, Sheringham, Zinkeisen, Kapp
London, Chatto & Windus, 1925
PN2596.L7 L74 1925

Stetz, Margaret D. (Margaret Diane), 1953-
Gender and the London theatre, 1880-1920 / Margaret D. Stetz
High Wycombe : Rivendale Press ; Bryn Mawr : in association with Bryn Mawr College Library, 2004
PN2582.W65 S74 2004

Victor, Benjamin, d. 1778
The history of the theatres of London and Dublin, from the year 1730 to the present time : To which is added, an annual register of all the plays, &c., performed at the theatres-royal in London, from the year 1712 / With occasional notes and anecdotes, by Mr. Victor ..
London : Printed for T. Davies [etc.], 1761-71
792.42 V66

Wyndham, Henry Saxe, 1867-
The annals of Covent Garden theatre from 1732 to 1897 / by Henry Saxe Wyndham ... With 45 illustrations. In two volumes
London : Chatto & Windus, 1906
PN2596.L7 C8 1906

 

Lives of Artists, Writers & Intellectuals

Boswell, James, 1740-1795
The life of Samuel Johnson
Garden City, N.Y. : Printed for Gabriel Wells by Doubleday, Page and Co., 1922
Uncat 8218

Boswell, James, 1740-1795
The life of Samuel Johnson / by James Boswell
Boston : Charles E. Lauriat Co., 1925
PR3533 .B6 1925

Carr, Frank, 1834-1894
Characteristics of Leigh Hunt, as exhibited in that typical literary periodical, Leigh Hunt's London journal (1834-35). With illustrative notes. By Launcelot Cross [pseud.]
London, Simpkin, Marshall, and co., 1878
PR4814 .C3 1878

Colebrook, Frank
William Morris, master printer : a lecture given on the evening of November 27, 1896 to students of the printing school, St. Bride Foundation Institute in London / by Frank Colebrook ; with a new introduction by William S. Peterson ; wood engravings by John DePol
Council Bluffs, Iowa : Yellow Barn Press, 1989
Z232.M87 C6 1989

Gilchrist, Alexander, 1828-1861
Life of William Blake : pictor ignotus : with selections from his poems and other writings / by the late Alexander Gilchrist ; illustrated from Blake's own works, in facsimile by W. J. Linton, and in photolithography, with a few of Blake's original plates
London : Macmillan, 1863
NE642.B5 Z6275 1863

Gillies, R. P. (Robert Pearse), 1788-1858
Memoirs of a literary veteran, including sketches and anecdotes of the most distinguished literary characters from 1794 to 1849. By R.P. Gillies
London, R. Bentley, 1851
PR4715.G57 Z5 1851

Gosse, Edmund, 1849-1928
The life of Algernon Charles Swinburne, by Edmund Gosse, C. B
London, Macmillan and co. limited, 1917
PR4809.H15 Z996338 1917

Grant, Joy
Harold Monro and the Poetry Bookshop
London, Routledge & K. Paul, 1967
PR6025.O35 Z67 1967

Hunt, Leigh, 1784-1859
Lord Byron and some of his contemporaries; with Recollections of the author's life, and of his visit to Italy. By Leigh Hunt
London, H. Colburn, 1828
PR4381 .H9 1828

Jackson, Holbrook, 1874-1948
William Morris, craftsman-socialist / by Holbrook Jackson
London : A.C. Fifield, 1908
PR5083 .J33 1908

Keats, John, 1795-1821
Life, letters, and literary remains, of John Keats. Ed. by Richard Monckton Milnes
London, E. Moxon, 1848
PR4836 .M5 1848

Knight, Samuel, 1675-1746
The life of Dr. John Colet, Dean of S. Paul's in the reigns of K. Henry VII and Henry VIII and founder of S. Paul's School; with an appendix containing some account of the masters and more eminent scholars of that foundation, and several original papers relating to the said life, by Samuel Knight
London, Printed by J. Downing, 1724
BR754.C6 K5 1724

Montagu, Elizabeth Robinson, 1720-1800
Mrs. Montagu, Queen of the blues , her letters and friendships from 1762 to 1800; edited by Reginald Blunt from material left to him by her great-great-niece Emily J. Climenson
Boston, Houghton Mifflin, [1923]
DA483.M7 A4 1923

Naiditch, P. G
A.E. Housman at University College, London : the election of 1892 / by P.G. Naiditch
Leiden ; New York : E.J. Brill, 1988
PR4809.H15 N35 1988

Pearson, Karl, 1857-1936
Charles Darwin, 1809-1882 / by Karl Pearson ; being a lecture delivered to the teachers of the London County Council, March 21, 1923
London : Cambridge University Press, 1923
QH31.D2 P4 1923

Pennell, Elizabeth Robins, 1855-1936
Nights: Rome, Venice in the aesthetic eighties; London, Paris in the fighting nineties, by Elizabeth Robins Pennell; with sixteen illustrations
Philadelphia : J.B. Lippincott, 1916
PS2539.P85 N5 1916

Toland, John, 1670-1722
The life of John Milton : containing, besides the history of his works, several extraordinary characters of men, and books, sects, parties, and opinions: with Amyntor; or a defense of Milton's life ... and various notes now added / [Edited by Thomas Hollis] London, Printed for John Darby, 1699
Reprinted for A. Millar, 1761
821.2 M64Xto

 

Exhibitions & Performances

British Museum
Poetry in the making: catalogue of an exhibition of poetry manuscripts in the British Museum, April-June 1967, by Jenny Lewis; with contributions by C. Day Lewis, T. C. Skeat, Philip Larkin
London, Turret Books for the Arts Council of Great Britain and the British Museum [1967]
Z2014 .P7 B75 1967

British Transport Commission
London on wheels : an exhibition of London travel ..
London : British Transport Commission, 1953
Uncat 10,471

Drew, William Allen, 1798-1879
Glimpses and gatherings during a voyage and visit to London and the great exhibition in the summer of 1851 / by William A. Drew
Augusta : Homan & Manley ; Boston : Abel Tompkins, 1852
DA683 .D7 1852

Feaver, William
George Cruikshank : [exhibition held in] London, Victoria and Albert Museum, 28 February-28 April 1974 ... / [catalogue by William Feaver]
London : Arts Council of Great Britain, 1974
NC1479.C9 F42 1974

Haymarket Theatre, London
A souvenir of the Little minister now being played at the Haymarket Theatre : containing fifteen drawings / by Phil May '98 ; together with portraits of Miss Winifred Emery, Mr. Frederick Harrison, Mr. Cyril Maude and Mr. J.M. Barrie
London : The Nassau Press, 1898
fN8252 .H3 1898

Jameson, Mrs. (Anna), 1794-1860
A hand-book to the courts of modern sculpture [at the Crystal palace]
London, Crystal Palace Library and Bradbury & Evans, 1854
NA6750.L6 C88 1854

Josiah Wedgwood & Sons
Early Wedgwood pottery, exhibited at 34 Wigmore Street, London, W. 1, 1951
Barlaston, Eng., New York [1951]
NK4335 .W42 1951

London. Lewis Carroll Centenary Exhibition (1932)
The Lewis Carroll centenary in London, 1932 : including a catalogue of the exhibition, with notes; an essay on Dodgson's illustrators by Harold Hartley; and additional literary pieces (chiefly unpublished) / With six illustrations, edited by Falconer Madan
London : The Old court house, J. & E. Bumpus, ltd., 1932
Z8234.8 .H4 1932

National Book League (Great Britain)
Children's books of yesterday; a catalogue of an exhibition held at 7 Albemarle street, London, during May 1946, compiled by Percy H. Muir, with a foreword by John Masefield
[London] Pub. for the National book league by Cambridge university press [1946]
Z1037 .N264 1946

Purcell Operatic Society
Dido & AEneas, an opera by Henry Purcell, performed by members of the Purcell Operatic Society. May 1900 and March 1901, London. This programme designed and engraved by Edward Gordon Craig
Clerkenwell, London, Printed at the Priory Press [1901]
fML27.G7 P8 1901

Stevens, Henry, 1819-1886
An account of the proceedings at the dinner given by Mr. George Peabody to the Americans connected with the Great exhibition, at the London coffee house, Ludgate Hill, on the 27th October 1851
London, W. Pickering, 1851
T690.L1 S88 1851

Tallis, John, 1815 or 6-1876
Tallis's history and description of the Crystal Palace, and the exhibition of the world's industry in 1851
London : J. Tallis, etc., 1852
I3443974

Tuckett, Harvey G. (Harvey Garnett), d. 1854
Where to go, and what to pay: a hand-book to all the world's fair, to be held in the palace of glass, May, 1851. A correct guide for the stranger, showing the actual ... expense for persons in every rank of life during their visit to London; also, an accurate description of all the curiosities and striking objects to be visited during a month's residence. By Harvey G. Tuckett .
Philadelphia, The author, 1851
T7 .T25 1851

University College, London
A. E. Housman; catalogue of an exhibition on the centenary of his birth. Assembled by John Carter [and] Joseph W. Scott
London, University College, London, 1959
PR4809.H15 U65 1959

Warren, Samuel, 1807-1877
The lily and the bee; an apologue of the Crystal palace. By Samuel Warren
Edinburgh, London, William Blackwood and sons, 1851
Uncat 13,056

 

Libraries & Collections

Cotton, Robert, Sir, 1571-1631
Catalogus librorum manuscriptorum Bibliothecae Cottonianae : Cui praemittuntur ... Roberti Cottoni ... vita: et Bibliothecae Cottonianae historia & synopsis / Scriptore Thoma Smitho ..
Oxford : E theatro Sheldoniano, 1696
Uncat f585

Cotton, Robert, Sir, 1571-1631
Cottoni posthuma : divers choice pieces of that renowned antiquary, Sir Robert Cotton, knight and baronet. Preserved from the injury of time, and exposed to publick light, for the benefit of posterity / By J. H. esq. London, Printed by M. C. for C. Harper ... 1679
[Edinburgh : Priv. print., 188-?]
JN203 .1679 C7

Globe, Alexander Victor, 1943-
Peter Stent, London printseller circa 1642-1665 : being a catalogue raisonne of his engraved prints and books with an historical and bibliographical introduction / by Alexander Globe
Vancouver : University of British Columbia Press, 1985
Z232.S84 G56 1985

Hibbert, George, 1757-1837
A catalogue of the library of George Hibbert, esq., of Portland Place : which will be sold by auction ... March 16, and seventeen following days ... May 4, and eleven following days; and ... May 25, and eleven following days, (Sundays excepted,) by Mr. Evans
London : Printed by W. Nicol, 1829
I32766051

Kalman, A
English naive paintings from the collection of Mr. & Mrs. A. Kalman, London
[London : Crane Kalman Gallery, 197-]
ND467.5.P74 K34 1970

Millard, Christopher, 1872-1927
The printed work of Claud Lovat Fraser
London : H. Danielson, 1923
Z8314 .M64 1923

Roberts, W. (William), 1862-1940
The book-hunter in London : historical and other studies of collectors and collecting : with numerous portraits and illustrations / by W. Roberts
London : E. Stock, 1895
Z992 .R69 1895

Van Dyke, John Charles, 1856-1932
London; critical notes on the National Gallery and the Wallace Collection, with a general introduction and bibliography for the series, by John C. Van Dyke
New York, C. Scribner's Sons, 1914
N1030 .V35 1914

Welch, Charles, 1848-1924
The Guildhall Library and its work / by Charles Welch ... ; with additions and an appendix
London : Printed under the direction of the Library Committee, 1893
DA687.G8 W4 1893

Dickens memento : catalogue with purchaser's names & prices realised of the pictures, drawings and objects of art of the late Charles Dickens / sold by auction in London by Messrs. Christie, Manson & Woods on July 9th, 1870 ; with introduction by Francis Phillimore and Hints to Dickens collectors by John F. Dexter
London : Field & Tuer ; New York : Scribner & Welford, 1870
fZ8230 .D53 1870

 

General Cultural Life

Royal Academy of Arts (Great Britain)
Abstract of the constitution and laws of the Royal Academy of Arts in London : established December 10, 1768
London : Printed by B. McMillan ... printer to the Royal Academy, 1815
N1100 .A16 1815

Swinnerton, Frank, 1884-
A London bookman, by Frank Swinnerton
London, M. Secker, 1930
PR473 .S8 1930

Swinnerton, Frank, 1884-
Londoner's post : letters to Gog and Magog / by Frank Swinnerton
London : Hutchinson, 1952
PR6037.W85 L6 1952

A Brief sketch of the Morris movement : and of the firm founded by William Morris to carry out his designs and the industries revived or started by him : written to commemorate the firm's fiftieth anniversary in June 1911
London : Privately printed for Morris & Co., 1911 (London : Chiswick Press)
PR5083 .B7 1911



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