Category Archives: People

A Street named….

Posted on January 16, 2018 by allennz

The names of the streets that surround where I live in Devonport, in Auckland, reflect the area’s Victorian heritage. Running through the centre is Victoria Road which turns predictably into Albert Road. A popular place to live, and an equally … Continue reading →

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Darwin was wrong

Posted on October 20, 2017 by allennz

It sometimes seems that whether a person who was well known in their lifetime remains famous or becomes a footnote of history is a matter of luck. Victorians might be surprised by many of those who have survived history (and … Continue reading →

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Charles Augustus Howell

Posted on July 23, 2017 by allennz

  A portrait by Frederic Sandys (1882) One of my favourite Victorian scoundrels and an inveterate footnote of the period is Charles Augustus Howell. He is actually quite well-known – notorious – but mostly because he regularly features in the … Continue reading →

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Guest Post

Posted on June 29, 2017 by allennz

This is a contribution from Dave George, an Australian historian who wrote a PhD thesis on a now forgotten English radical John Baxter Langley. In this post he introduces one of my favourite types of characters, the Victorian Scoundrel Count … Continue reading →

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“Mr Wilde’s Thrilling Legs”

Posted on December 31, 2012 by allennz

Oscar Wilde’s lecture tour around the US in 1882 is well known and oft-mentioned and hardly a footnote. It was a considerable commercial success and the stories of him endearing himself to a wide range of audiences including Colorado miners … Continue reading →

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Hatch, Victorian Villain or Forgotten Hero

Posted on May 18, 2011 by allennz

Just after the first posting on this blog, I received an invitation to attend a play at our local Victoria Picture Palace Theatre in Devonport, Auckland. This is itself a footnote, being the earliest custom-built cinema in the Southern hemisphere … Continue reading →

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Foundation Footnote: John De Morgan

Posted on May 8, 2011 by allennz

John De Morgan   UPDATE: Since originally posting this six years ago, I have continued to discover much more about De Morgan, most notably through the continuing digitization of sources, particularly newspapers; the discovery in California of an extensive collection … Continue reading →

Posted in Events, People, Places | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 13 Comments