Frances reads from the Machell Cox Family Budget - a stream of letters collectively written by ten adult siblings from a middle class Edwardian family. The siblings started writing to each other in 1906 and continued, non-stop, for the rest of their lives. There are eighty years worth of letters, safely preserved in the Bodleian Library in Oxford, which is where Frances discovered them. The letters were written by the family members of Frances, but are available to be read by anyone eligible for admittance to the library.
Today Frances is reading excerpts about votes for women, suffragettes, the emancipation of women and the General Election of December 1918. The whole world is currently following the 2020 election in the USA, and the events of 1918 are interesting, in comparison.
Frances also reads a letter written by Arthur on Armistice Day (also his birthday) - the day peace was declared at 11am on the 11th November 1918. Although the syrens on the many ships in the Hamoaze started galumphing at 9am, and Arthur reckons that the boys of Mount House School offered the first thanksgiving prayers for peace in England on that day.
Intro - 00:00
Suffragettes - 00:58
1906 letters - 3:10
1910 letters - 12:13
1912 letters - 17:44
Bernard's 1913 letter - 32:04
Arthur, 1918 - Armistice day - 34:04
Notes on Arthur's letter - 40:16
1918 Avice gets a vote - 44:08
Notes on Avice's letter - 54:18
You can contact Frances by email - machellcoxletters@gmail.com
or Twitter - @CoxLetters
All content is subject to copyright and belongs to Frances Thompson and the Bodleian Library.