Stowe, Harriet Beecher, 1811-1896 to Mrs. S.C. Hall
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Gilder Lehrman Collection #: GLC01586 Author/Creator: Stowe, Harriet Beecher, 1811-1896 Place Written: Andover, Massachusetts Type: Autograph letter signed Date: 29 December 1855 Pagination: 3 p. : envelope ; 18 x 14.5 cm. Order a Copy
Mentions the suffering of many families in England (likely a reference to the Crimean War) and hopes that it has not affected Mrs. Hall and her family. Stowe writes that she will probably be in England some time in the coming year, as there are many people she wants to visit. Reading over old letters has her reminiscing about a previous trip to England. Discusses a Miss Greenfield, a black singer. Envelope is adhered to first page of the letter.
Mrs. S.C. Hall was a popular Irish-born novelist. Elizabeth Taylor Greenfield (ca. 1824-1876), known as "The Black Swan," was a singer noted for her more than three-octave range. Born a slave in Mississippi, Greenfield had been adopted by a Quaker family and given musical training. Stowe was among her patrons, and had helped arrange for additional training in England, where Greenfield gave a command performance for the Queen. Stowe refers to her meetings with both Hall and Greenfield in the book "Sunny Memories of Foreign Lands."
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