Episode 7: Strange! Most Passing Strange!

09/15/20 • 36 min

Your Most Obedient & Humble Servant: A Women's History

Eleanor Parke Custis (Lewis) to Elizabeth Bordley (Gibson), Washington City, Feb. 7th, 1796. What does George Washington's granddaughter have to do with the invention of race in the early U.S. republic? Find out in this week's episode! Many thanks to Allison Robinson, a PhD. candidate at the University of Chicago and predoctoral fellow at the Smithsonian Institution for sharing her knowledge and being a lovely guest! Further Reading: The text of the letter is from "George Washington's beautiful Nelly : the letters of Eleanor Parke Custis Lewis to Elizabeth Bordley Gibson, 1794-1851," edited by Patricia Brady, University of South Carolina Press, 1991, pg. 23-25 This episode would not be possible without the INCREDIBLE RESEARCH of Rosemarie Zagarri of George Mason University. Her chapter "The Empire Comes Home: Thomas Law's Mixed Race Family in the Early Republic," pp. 75-108 in the book "India in the American Imaginary, 1780s-1880s", edited by A. Arora and R. Kaur, 2017, is where we got all of our information on Thomas Law. Eleanor Parke Custis: https://www.mountvernon.org/library/digitalhistory/digital-encyclopedia/article/eleanor-nelly-parke-custis/ Elizabeth Parke Custis: https://www.mountvernon.org/library/digitalhistory/digital-encyclopedia/article/elizabeth-parke-custis-law/ Japanning: https://www.britannica.com/art/japanning NARRATIVES/COUNTERNARRATIVES: TWO CENTURIES OF RACE, GENDER, AND CLASS IN AMERICAN MATERIAL CULTURE: https://voices.uchicago.edu/reproducingraceandgender/ John and Abigail Adams Letters: https://www.masshist.org/digitaladams/archive/doc?id=L17960223ja&hi=1&query=nabob&tag=text&archive=all&rec=1&start=0&numRecs=3 https://www.masshist.org/digitaladams/archive/doc?id=L17960305aa&rec=sheet&archive=all&hi=1&numRecs=3&query=nabob&queryid=&start=0&tag=text&num...

Previous Episode

Episode 6: Teeth

Ellen Wayles Randolph (Coolidge) to Martha Jefferson Randolph, Richmond, April 25th 1819. In which a squad of Thomas Jefferson's granddaughters have a fashion emergency, gold teeth glitter attractively in the firelight, and a hot dentist does not quite make up for the horrors of early 19th century dentistry. Content warning: The second half of this episode contains a vivid description of having a tooth pulled without painkillers. HUGE thanks to my guest this week, public historian Brontë De Cárdenas. Learn more: The letter: http://tjrs.monticello.org/letter/1503 The letter describing a dentist as an "Apollo": http://tjrs.monticello.org/letter/2401 Nisbet, William. The clinical guide, or, a concise view of the leading facts, on the history, nature, and treatment, of such local diseases as form the object of surgery. To which is subjoined, a surgical pharmacopoia, divided into three parts: viz. Materia Medica, classification, and extemporaneous prescription: Intended As a memorandum-book for practitioners. The second edition. By William Nisbet, M. D. Fellow of the Royal College of Surgeons, Edinone of the Surgeons of the Royal Infirmart, &c. Edinburgh: printed for James Watson No 40. South Bridge. Sold also by J. Johnson, No 73. St Paul's Church-Yard London, 1800. Eighteenth Century Collections Online (accessed March 11, 2020). http://find.gale.com/ecco/infomark.do?&source=gale&docLevel=FASCIMILE&prodId=ECCO&userGroupName=viva_uva&tabID=T001&docId=CW3307238147&type=multipage&contentSet=ECCOArticles&version=1.0 Ellen Wayles Randolph Coolidge https://www.monticello.org/site/research-and-collections/ellen-wayles-randolph-coolidge Martha Jefferson Randolph https://www.monticello.org/site/research-and-collections/martha-jefferson-randolph

Next Episode

Episode 8: An Indifferent Game Of Chess

Ellen Wayles Randolph (Coolidge) to Martha Jefferson Randolph, Washington, 14 Dec. 1821 In which Thomas Jefferson's granddaughter Ellen (the one with brittle teeth) absolutely eviscerates an unfortunate suitor in a letter to her mom. Also, "Mountains will be in labor, and an absurd mouse will be born." -Horace, Ars Poetica. Many thanks to this week's guest, Kate Johnson! Kate is an archival assistant at the University of Northern Colorado and public historian extraordinaire. Further Reading: The text of this week's letter can be found here: http://tjrs.monticello.org/letter/906 Ellen's sister Virginia writing to her fiance: http://tjrs.monticello.org/letter/904 Ellen's letter to Thomas Jefferson: https://founders.archives.gov/documents/Jefferson/98-01-02-2500 Madame De Neuville: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anne_Marguerite_Hyde_de_Neuville as an artist: https://emuseum.nyhistory.org/objects/42102/selfportrait-17711849?ctx=1c92a5ceecfb354ff0776a8f6362e24936a66af7&idx=22