Regency Fabrics, Part 30(!)

 

Here’s another post in our ongoing series on Regency fabrics.

As I have in previous posts, I’ll be examining actual fabric samples glued into several earlier editions of Ackermann’s Repository, samples supplied by the manufacturers and published by Ackermann in order to boost the British cloth-making industry at a time when exporting British goods to Europe was almost impossible because of the Napoleonic war. I'll give you a close-up scan of each sample, the published description if available, and my own observations of the color, weight, condition, and similarity to present-day materials, to give you as close a picture as possible of what these fabrics are like.

 

Today’s four samples are from the May 1813 issue of Ackermann’s Repository. The overall condition of my copy is excellent; the page itself is free of foxing and is only slightly toned. Two of the samples (numbers 3 and 4) shows some foxing, but overall they’re in very good condition. It's interesting to note that three of the fabrics shown are intended for morning or "home costumes," rather than for more public attire.

Here we go!

No. 1. A Smolensko striped imperial washing silk, calculated for morning or domestic wear. It is either formed in a high wrap, with full sleeve, and falling collar of lace or needlework; or in the round robe, of a demi height, bordered at the several terminations with jonquil satin. It is sold at about one guinea and a half per dress, by Mr. Millard, Cheapside.

 My comments: A very finely woven fabric with white background very flat, though the yellow chevron chains have a nice sheen. It would definitely require lining because of its sheerness (unless it was for a summer dress, and even then...) Charming!

No. 2. A delicate figured sarsnet, of Persian lilac, or blossom colour, designed for the spring cloak, spencer, or pelisses, but is equally appropriate for the evening bodice or robe. Articles of this material admit only of fancy trimmings of the same nature, or those of plaited net, feather trimming, or thread lace. It is manufactured and furnished by Messrs. Sutton and Meek, 53, Leicester-square.

 My comments: It is difficult to tell if the color has changed or faded, but my sample is of a soft grayish-pink that is quite attractive. It is a little sturdier than the previous sample, but not much, and would definitely require lining if made into a cloak or pelisse, if only to give it some body. The pattern is pretty, with little diamond-shapes standing out from the background, and a lovely silky hand.

No. 3. A grey and black printed striped muslin, admirably calculated for that slight sort of mourning which is usually adopted at the conclusion of a court mourning; formed in morning wraps, or high round robes, trimmed with black love ribbon, with hats of black chip and feathers, or black lace hoods, or mob caps; it composes a very pretty morning dress, or home costume. It is sold by Messrs. T. and J. Smith, Tavistock-street, Covent-Garden.

My comments: Again, I expect this has changed color in the intervening 200+ years because my sample is now a quite lovely sky blue color and not at all appropriate for mourning! Also very light-weight, even with the stripes of slightly heavier thread woven in.

No. 4. A buff-coloured Chinese silk, calculated also for domestic wear, admitting of no trimming so appropriate as those of satin of the same colour, plaitings of net, or borders of lace. This article is furnished us by Messrs. George & Bradley, Holywell-street, Strand.

 My comments: It would not be a stretch to call this "silk muslin"--the weave, texture, and weight are that of a good quality cotton muslin, but the silk gives it a sheen not seen with a cotton fabric. Again, a good summerweight fabric, though it would require lining or an underdress.

What do you think of this month’s fabrics?

The Beauty of Wonderland

“Wonderland.” That is the name given by early tourists to Yellowstone. You can see why. It’s hard to find a location in the US that features so many scenic wonders. Of course, probably the most famous is Old Faithful, the geyser that goes off on a remarkably reliable timetable. My heroine, Kate Tremaine, was more fond of the features in the Lower Geyser Basin, which she had to explain to Will and his men:

 A little farther along, she reined in beside a pool as blue as the sky overhead. His men stopped around her, and O’Reilly craned his neck to peer over his horse’s head into the depths. 

“As you can see by the steam, every pool around here is hot. This one is Celestine Spring, but most of the others are geysers. Unlike Old Faithful, they’re not predictable. If you’re riding, listen for a hiss and watch for an increase in steam. If you’re on foot, you’ll feel the rumble in the ground before they start.” 

So, that was how she’d predicted the eruption yesterday. He caught her eye and nodded. Her smile brightened the day even further. 

She led them past a group of lodgepole pines struggling to stay alive in the minerals and heat and through an area where the ground looked as if it was covered with bubbles that had hardened into rock. She nodded toward a pool as blue as blueberry preserves. 

“That’s Jelly Geyser. It’s a frequent squirter, so watch for it. Farther out, that pale white hole with the crusty sides is Jet Geyser. It will shoot almost as high as my hotel. Over there is Spasm Geyser. It’s more of a bubbler. That one with the yellow center and the green front is Clepsydra. She should go off . . . now.” 

As if the geyser obeyed her least command, water shot up from multiple vents, sending steam into the air. Except for Bess and Mrs. Tremaine’s horse, the other horses shifted, balked, and it took a moment for his men to get them under control. 

“Every three minutes,” she explained. “You’ll get used to it. But the biggest show around here is Fountain Geyser.” She nodded to the large, still, blue pool they were approaching. 

“Doesn’t look so bad,” Waxworth said. 

“You wait,” Kate said. “It will shoot twice the height of my hotel and last for more than a quarter hour. The only one bigger in this area is Morning Geyser beyond it and closest to the hotel. But it’s rarer.” 

“Who named such things?” 

That bewildered tone was Lercher’s. Mrs. Tremaine must have realized it, for she turned her head to give him a look. 

“Some were named by explorers, but many were named by the US Geological Survey. This way, gentlemen, and try to keep up.” 

Will bit back a smile as they rode past the hotel again. His men were looking more concerned by the moment, picking their way along and giving every colored patch of earth wide berth. Danny waved from the porch. Franklin waved back. 

She pointed out Twig Geyser, a creamy pool that could shoot water up a few feet for as long as an hour; the Leather Pool, which was as brown and rough as its name; and a patch of gray ground that hissed like a pot on the boil. 

Suddenly, she reined in. His men followed suit, jerking on their reins and glancing around as if expecting a geyser to go off on either side. Instead, she pointed across the geyser field to the circuit road beyond. On the other side of the dusty road, a small clearing was nestled among the pines, sage dotting the pale soil, its gray-green leaves holding the golden yellow of the fall bloom. Among them, shoulders dark and humps tawny, a dozen elk browsed. Will caught his breath. 

“Oh, for one shot,” Waxworth said with a groan. 

She swiveled in the sidesaddle to glare at him. “For shame, Private. Look at that power, that majesty, and your first thought is to kill it?” 

Waxworth flamed. “No, ma’am, my first thought is how many hungry cavalrymen one of those would feed.” 

“I’ll keep you fed, Private,” she promised. “You just make sure those beauties go on living to inspire others.” 

“Remember the rules, Private,” Will added. “No hunting on park lands.” 

Waxworth deflated with a sigh. 

But his other men were nodding. How extraordinary. They were surrounded by animals and geology meant to inspire, and the greatest source of inspiration, for him and his men, was Kate Tremaine. 

Those links once more, for your convenience: 

Baker Publishing Group 

Amazon  

Apple Books

Barnes and Noble 

Books-A-Million 

Christian Book 

Independent bookstores near you 

Kobo 

The Book Depository, free shipping worldwide 

Launching Something Wondrous

Today’s release day for the second book in my American Wonders Collection, Nothing Short of Wondrous. Yay! The historical romance is set against the backdrop of Yellowstone National Park, American’s first national park, and received a starred review from Booklist.

It is 1886, and the government has given the US Cavalry control of Yellowstone. For widowed hotelier Kate Tremaine, the change is a welcome one. She knows every inch of her wilderness home like the back of her hand and wants to see it protected from poachers and vandals.

Refused a guide by Congress, Lieutenant William Prescott must enlist Kate's aid to help him navigate the sprawling park and track down the troublemakers. But a secret from his past makes him wary of the tender feelings the capable and comely widow raises in him. When her 6-year-old son is kidnapped by a poacher who wants the boy to guide him to the place where the last of the Yellowstone bison congregate, Will and Kate must work together to rescue him, save the bison, and protect the park. In doing so, they may just find that two wounded hearts can share one powerful love when God is in control.

I think the Revell staff did a phenomenal job capturing the feel of the book in this trailer.

You can find Nothing Short of Wondrous at fine online retailers and bookstores near you (the Amazon link is an affiliate link):

Baker Publishing Group
Amazon
Barnes and Noble
Books-A-Million
Christian Book
Independent bookstores near you
Kobo
The Book Depository, free shipping worldwide

No More Than 30

The story of the American bison has been documented many places, from books and articles to movies, and I had thought I knew it. But when I was researching for Nothing Short of Wondrous (out next week!), I learned a few things that surprised me.

You may have read that once vast herds of these majestic creatures roamed the Great Plains. Historians estimate there may have been as many as 60 million, and they lived as far east as the Appalachians. Loss of habit, competition from cattle, and overhunting by nonindigenous hunters decimated their ranks.

So, here’s the first thing that surprised me. I tend to think of late-Victorian era hunters as starting the trend in killing massive numbers of bison. The hunting actually began as early as 1830. According to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the Hudson’s Bay Company on the West Coast traded 75,000 buffalo-hide robes in 1844 alone.

Here’s another thing that surprised me: By the 1870s, bison hides were being tanned for leather and their bones were being used in making fertilizer and bone china (that mountain of bison skulls is horrifying!). Because they were becoming valuable, ranchers began picking up stray calves and starting their own herds. Wealthy hunters also moved in for the kill. At one point, 5,000 bison a day were being killed.

As early as 1886, fewer than 350 bison remained in wild herds. The largest single group may have been the one in Yellowstone National Park.

It numbered no more than 30.

That number stunned me. Small wonder my heroine, Kate Tremaine, will do anything to protect them. Kate loves her wilderness home and the others who live beside her.

She may be fictional, but a number of real-life people felt the same way. The turn of the century saw conservationists around the country coming together to protect the bison. By 1910, numbers had increased to more than 2,000 in the US and Canada. Ten years later, that number was more than 12,000.

Today, the Yellowstone herd alone numbers around 5,000, and estimates of other herds on public and private lands are closer to 500,000 total.

Now, that’s a comeback story!

I hope you’ll come back next week when we celebrate the launch of another story, Nothing Short of Wondrous.

La Belle Assemblee, Up Close and Personal

Some months back I was fortunate enough to find a complete Ackermann’s Repository of the Arts <cue Marissa hyperventilating> and shared it here with you. Now, my heart is again going pitter-pat over another exciting (to me, anyway!) find: a complete, as it was published, copy of La Belle Assemblée!

The cover is a very sturdy paper, and features a logo of the Three Graces (this changed over the years—issues in its early years had an Egyptian-inspired design) and some hints of the treats within: a portrait of Lady Elizabeth Belgrave as well as two full-color prints of “female fashions.” We can see by this year (1825) that founder John Bell was no longer publishing La Belle Assemblée; rather, George Whittaker was at the helm, and had been since 1823. The back cover features advertisements of new-released books, and ads for the New British Library and Reading Rooms in Cheapside and for marble chimney-pieces (but very superior chimney-pieces, as the purveyor held a royal warrant.) The inside covers feature books published and/or printed by Mr. Whittaker.

The interior is of a lighter-weight but still very sturdy paper; most of the pages are still sewn in place, though a few signatures have come loose. The table of contents features stories, essays factual (Contemporary Poets and Writers of Fiction, No.1—a serial, no less) and humorous (Christmas in the Country), pages of original poetry, a section of fashion (and the featured fashion prints, this month an Evening Dress and a Morning Visiting Dress, complete with the protective piece of tissue paper between them, as can be seen above), and a sort of round-up of reviews and commentary on newly-published books, music, drama, and art as well as of “Literary and Scientific Intelligence”, in which we learn that Mr. Matthew Clarke was awarded an exclusive patent by the tsar to erect gas lighting in Russia (wow--that's a big contract!), and that a mummy unwrapping was held at the Bristol Institution. There’s an advertising supplement too, but I think I’ll save that for a future post because there are some wonderful ads in it.

Among my favorite parts of La Belle Assemblée are the Births, Marriages, and Deaths page (this month noting the death “At Worle, aged 103, Mr. Joel Bishop. He was the father, grandfather, and great grandfather of 180 children, of whom 115 are now living.”) and the note to Subscribers and Correspondents, where submissions were (quite publicly!) accepted or rejected, in terms amusing, kindly, or, on occasion, rather barbed. My favorite in this issue reads “From the extreme difficulty we find in decyphering the MS. of a tale which has reached us without either title or signature, we find ourselves under the necessity of retaining it for further consideration.”  Oops! 😊

The Elk’s Temple

Sounds like part of an Indiana Jones movie title, doesn’t it? It’s actually a hotel with a pub and taverns owned by the McMenamin family in one of the oldest parts of Tacoma. I had the pleasure of dining there recently, and I thought I’d share some of the history with you.

The gorgeous Beaux Arts era building was originally finished in 1916 and served as Lodge #164 of the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks. It was one of the largest lodges in the country. The first floor originally held a gymnasium. The second floor featured a gorgeous ballroom and banquet room, while the third held a library, billiard room, card room, and dining room.

But, by 1965, the club was outgrowing its space. Most of the members had migrated to the suburbs, so the Elks followed. A few years later, the new owner opened it to the community to host events. At one time it held a theatre and a dinner theatre. But when he died in 1986, the building sat empty for decades.

Well, not entirely empty. A massive, white stone building at the end of the city center was too good to pass up for any graffiti artist in the area. Many snuck in at night to decorate the inside as well.

The McMenamins invested $34 million to renovate the building, but, as is the family’s style, they worked hard to preserve the history. Various hotel rooms are themed and named for people in Tacoma’s history, from politicians to musicians. The colors are vibrant, the décor as eclectic as it is historic.

If you’re out this way, I recommend dropping in for a tour and a bite at one of the pubs. There’s even a secret pub in the building as well as a “secret” fifth floor (none of the elevators and only one of the six stairwells reach it). On our visit, my husband and I found the fifth floor, but alas, the secret pub still eludes us.

Another reason to visit!

Calling All Regency Writers!

If you are an author or hoping to be an author of stories set during the early nineteenth century, rejoice! October 1 saw the birth of a new writer’s organization. Regency Fiction Writers advances the professional interests of writers of the extended Regency period of England (1780 to 1840) through inclusion, networking, advocacy, and education. The international non-profit welcomes writers of all types of fiction set during the period we all love. Marissa and I are founding members.

Below is information from the press release, used with permission.

“The Regency period is a perennial favorite among readers,” said Vanessa Riley, critically acclaimed author of more than 20 novels set during that time. “It has spawned hundreds of bestselling books and dozens of popular movies.” Riley is President-Elect of the new group and will take the reins in January 2021.

“Our authors write award-winning stories that cross genres,” added Ann Chaney, 2020 President. “History, mystery, romance, and speculative fiction, among others. It’s a rich heritage.”

Between October 1 and December 31, first year dues are $25, rising to $50 plus a processing fee in 2021. For that fee, writers of any race, creed, religion, ethnicity, nationality, age, gender identity and expression, sexual orientation, or ability can network with their peers around the globe through online forums. They can also learn from monthly programs on history, marketing, and industry insights and gain additional visibility for their books through active online properties and marketing initiatives.

Regency Fiction Writers is an outgrowth of the Beau Monde Chapter of Romance Writers of America®. The chapter recently celebrated its 25th anniversary. Chapter members voted to leave Romance Writers of America in part because they hoped to expand beyond the boundaries of the romance genre.

For more information on the new organization and to join, see the website.