The significant dates explained: 9th February is the anniversary of Ellen’s death in 1815, aged just 29. The date is now perfectly placed between St Brigid’s Day National Holiday, on Monday 5th February this year, and the International Day of Women and Girls in Science on 11th February. And the two events: Both of these…
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Ellen’s letter to Dawson Turner written on this day, 18th January, 210 years ago, in 1814 is HERE. Ellen thanked her ‘dear good friend for his two long kind letters’ and wrote about her ill health and her mother. She mentioned the weather and then she responded to Dawson Turner’s recent letter to her. Ellen’s…
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210 years ago today, Dawson Turner wrote to Ellen Hutchins with New Year greetings and a sincere desire to know about her health. Read the full letter HERE. He told her that Dr (Thomas) Taylor, her cousin, had been staying with William Jackson Hooker at his home, Halesworth, in Suffolk, for the past month and they…
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Here is access to the correspondence between Ellen Hutchins and Dawson Turner in 1813. The previous post ‘On This Day 13th November’ gives a brief overview and bits of context for the letters in 1813 up to that date. The correspondence from three full years is now available, 1811 to 1813. The 1811 letters are…
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Ellen Hutchins wrote to Dawson Turner on 13th November 1813 – On This Day, 210 years ago. The full text of the short letter is HERE. The notes below fill in a bit of what had been happening in Ellen’s life since February that year, which was the last On This Day blog. On 6th…
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Seaweed & Sealing Wax 2: letters from 1812 with botanical art and poetry This is a new development for the Festival. A podcast, available in the comfort of your own home, at a time to suit you, today on International Women’s Day 2023 or some time in the future. You can listen to a performance…
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On This Day 210 years ago, 6th February 1813, Ellen Hutchins wrote a short letter to Dawson Turner. Her first to him since 16th December, even though in that one she had said that she would write in a few days. And this letter is much shorter than usual. Ellen had been ill and hopes…
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Here you can access the text of the twelve letters that survive from the correspondence between Ellen Hutchins and Dawson Turner in 1812. As with 1811 (letters available in three PDFs Here) the correspondence covers more than the plants, seaweeds, freshwater algae and lichens that they were studying. We hear about their health, their families, Ellen’s…
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210 years ago, On This Day – 16th December 1812, Ellen wrote to Dawson Turner again, just nine days after her last letter and in today’s letter she said that she would write again in a few days. The letter she was responding to has not survived. The spur to write, even though she was…
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On this day 210 years ago, 7th December 1812, Ellen Hutchins wrote to Dawson Turner, beginning “How sweet a preparation of the medium of life is a kind friend’s letter!” By 1812, they had been corresponding for five years and a strong and deep friendship had developed between them. The letter covers many topics —…
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