Friday Morning Storm

Dear Readers,

As I mentioned previously, I was supposed to go to the Utah Conference for Undergraduate Research this Friday, February 22, 2013. That morning my husband and I woke up at 4:50 A.M., rubbed our eyes and jumped in the car to drive up to Logan. I remember mentioning to him that it had started snowing, but the weather report told us that it would be clear on the highway, so we took no notice of it. We drove all the way out to Salt Lake City when the storm hit. We were shocked; we left early for Logan, and we had no idea that it was supposed to storm that morning. Within five minutes, I-15 stopped and everyone was slipping around with low traction at those slow speeds. My husband and I panicked and got of the freeway and stopped at a McDonald's to change our game plan. After praying and talking, we decided that our lives were worth more than an opportunity to present research.

Luckily, we had family living close by where we stopped, and we were able to ride out the storm while watching movies with my sister-in-law, who is almost about to have a baby. I was disappointed and a little embarrassed that I couldn't present my research, but I know it was the right decision.

If you want to see what the roads were like, please check out this blog post from KUTV:
White Knuckle Morning Commute | KUTV.com

Happy to be Alive,
Abbie Black

Podcasts and Conferences

            This week I had the opportunity to do a quick podcast about a wet nurse from Dorset named Marina Smart. If you want to know more about her, check the Podcast in the sidebar!

            This week I have been preparing to present a project I completed about wet-nursing at the Utah Conference of Undergraduate Research. The conference is next week; if anyone is in Logan, come and see me!

           

            Here is a sneak peek at my presentation:

This map was created courtesy of Maps.familysearch.org. Can you guess what this map is for? 

News and Nonconformity

            Hey my genealogists and historians, I have good news! I recently was awarded an ORCA Grant from Brigham Young University, which will allow me to continue my research on these women.

            In other news, I had a research breakthrough this week concerning Ann Griffiths. Previously, I had found a woman named ‘Anne Griffith’ on the 1851 census, living with the Herrmann family in Liverpool.[1] Anne Griffith was listed born in Oswestry, Shropshire, which is a parish right on the border between England and Wales.

            After searching FamilySearch, a nonconformist record for an ‘Ann Griffiths’ was seen born in Oswestry, Shropshire, and was baptized at the Old Bell Chapel, Independent, with the same birth information seen on the 1851 census.[2] I have transcribed the information found on the nonconformist record:

Ann Griffiths

Date of Baptism: 30 Aug 1827

Birthplace: Oswestry, Shropshire

Father: John Griffiths, Game Keeper

Mother: Elizabeth Parry

            With this information, I will be able to confirm Ann’s parents on the 1841 census, as well as the marriage of the parents.

Happy Researching!

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[1] James Zengheer Herrmann Household, Mount Pleasant, Liverpool, Lancashire, 1851 England Census, 36 Bedford Street South, Class HO107, Piece 2183, Folio 546, ED 1hh, Page 33, Household 109, www.ancestry.co.uk, accessed 8 Feb 2013.

[2] Ann Griffiths Baptism (30 Aug 1827), Arthur Street Old Chapel, Independent, Oswestry, Shropshire, digital images, original from RG4_2870, Folio 7, BMDRegisters.co.uk, accessed 7 Feb 2013.

Want to Know More?

Dear Readers,

If any of you are interested in looking into wet-nursing past what I talk about on this blog, here are a few sources that you can pick up:

Beeton, Isabella, The Book of Household Management, London: Ward, Lock, Bosden & Co, 1961.

Campbell, Linda, “Wet Nurses in Early Modern England: Some Evidence From the Townshend Archive.” Medical History 33 (1989): 360-370.

Fildes, Valerie. Breasts, Bottles, and Babies: A History of Infant Feeding. Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press, 1986.

___. “Breast Feeding Practices During Industrialisation 1800-1919.” In Infant and Child Nutrition Worldwide: Issues and Perspectives, edited by Frank Falkner, 1-20. Florida: CRC Press, 1991.

___. “The English Wet Nurse and Her Role In Infant Care 1538-1800.” In Medical History 32 (1988): 142-173.

___. Wet Nursing: A History from Antiquity to the Present. Oxford: Basil Blackwell Inc, 1988.

Gathorne-Hardy, Jonathan, The Rise and Fall of the British Nanny, London: Hodder and Stoughton, 1972.

Valerie Fildes is a prolific writer on the history of wet-nursing in England. She has written many books and articles, all of which I find very interesting!