my distinguished great-great-aunts
On Oct 14th, the Royal Mail released a new series of stamps, entitled Women Of Distinction, featuring two of my great-great-aunts! Millicent Garrett Fawcett and Elizabeth Garrett Anderson were both sisters of my mother’s mother’s father. Millicent was a famous suffragist, feminist, and founder of Newnham College, Cambridge; Elizabeth was the first female doctor in England, and in 1908 became the UK’s first lady mayor, of Aldeburgh, Suffolk.
Their father Newson Garrett built the Snape Maltings, now home to the Aldeburgh Festival. And on Park Road, he built a row of houses, one for each of his ten children. It’s a private road with multiple speedbumps, but (feeling no guilt due to a probably misplaced sense of entitlement!) I use it a shortcut most weekends on my way to the River Alde where I like to race a wooden sailboat called a Loch Long One Design. And, to complete the circle, one of the preeminent LLOD sailors is the current mayor of Aldeburgh Jimmy Robinson, whom I’ve roped into performing the opening ceremony when I ‘launch’ my lifeboat. A large man, Jimmy complains that his mayorial robe has been handed down by successive mayors. Elizabeth was a small woman, which may explain why the hem of the robe just about reaches Jimmy’s waist.
How fascinating to have that kind of proud history across the branches of your own family tree. With a country as relatively small as Great Britain (in size, not stature), I suppose everyone has some interesting story about their family line… their’s A LOT of history there! But to have your family’s likenesses licked and sent around in the post… that’s a particularly unique experience, I suspect.
Beech
Hm. Being licked and sent around in the post could be fun.
Sorry, Beech, it had to be said.
You want to be a mail order bride? LOL. Beech, there is an interesting programme on the BBC called ‘Who Do You Think You Are’. Its a celebrity family history show. It managed to prove that even Jerry Springer has a soul!
You have a rather remarkable pedigree, Thomas. It’s really cool to see that you come from a line of both scholarly men and women – and amazing pioneering women, at that! Neat to see the great minds and strength that came before you.
OK. Just who are you and how many of you are there? I mean, is it physically possible for one entity ( not to mention one who has just entered his 50th Earth year ) to do all this stuff?
‘Converting an old lifeboat to a Recording Studio.
Recording a new Album.
Musical director of T.E.D.
Overseeing re-issues of my earlier work.
Pals with Stevie Wonder.
Still got time to enter Radiohead Competition,nip down the Pub to converse in local history and be back home in time to catch Spinal Tap!’
Jeesus man! you’re supposed to be a Lazy Libra!
What are you doing to us?
My wife reads this Blog you know!
Bri.
P.S. ‘Did I mention that my relatives were Instrumental in the Suffragette movement?’