1888_8-3-Aug 2001-effie copy.jpg

Alice Austen Correspondence with Effie

PI

Version: 4 (current) | Updated: 12/9/2025, 9:35:14 PM | Created: 12/9/2025, 7:22:21 PM

Added description

Description

Alice Austen Correspondence with Effie (August 3 1888)

Overview

This collection comprises four handwritten letters exchanged on August 3, 1888, between Elizabeth Alice Austen, a pioneering Staten Island photographer, and her friend Effie. The items are digitized as high‑resolution JPEG scans of the original pages, accompanied by typed transcriptions in plain‑text format. The collection is housed in the Alice Austen House Museum’s archival holdings.

Background

Alice Austen (1866‑1952) was a prominent American photographer whose work documented the social and cultural life of late‑Victorian New York. Effie, a close acquaintance from the Staten Island social circle, corresponded with Austen during the late 1880s, a period when Austen was actively engaged in both her photographic practice and her community’s social affairs. The letters reflect the informal, personal nature of their friendship and provide insight into the everyday leisure activities of the island’s upper‑middle‑class residents.

Contents

  • Letter 1 (Aug 3 1888) – Mentions Howard Corning, Morrill, and the “N.M. act,” and references social acquaintances on the island.
  • Letter 2 (Aug 3 1888) – Describes a hotel dance with Morill, noting the “old Nick” humor and the limited number of fellow participants.
  • Letter 3 (Aug 3 1888) – Expresses longing for Austen, recounts a rowing outing, and notes a headache.
  • Letter 4 (Aug 3 1888) – Discusses a note from Daisy Brown inviting Effie and May to a pool trip, which they decline, and alludes to Freddie’s “glorious time.”

Each letter is accompanied by a transcription that preserves the original spelling and punctuation. The collection also includes metadata detailing the provenance, language, and subject tags such as “Victorian social life,” “Friendship,” “Dancing,” “Rowing,” and “Social events.”

Scope

The collection covers a single date—August 3, 1888—and focuses on personal correspondence between Austen and Effie. It documents social activities typical of Staten Island’s late‑19th‑century upper‑middle‑class milieu, including dancing, rowing, and pool outings. The material is limited to the four letters in this exchange; it does not include other correspondence from Austen or Effie outside this date or other archival items such as photographs or calling cards. The geographic focus is Staten Island, New York, and the content reflects the broader cultural context of the American Gilded Age.

Raw Cheimarros Data

@alice_austen:person {full_name: "Elizabeth Alice Austen", birth_year: @date_1866, death_year: @date_1952, occupation: "photographer", residence: @staten_island}

@effie:person {role: "correspondent"}

@howard_corning:person {first_name: "Howard", last_name: "Corning"}

@morrill:person {full_name: "Morrill"}

@howard_loring:person {first_name: "Howard", last_name: "Loring"}

@may:person {first_name: "May"}

@daisy_brown:person {full_name: "Daisy Brown"}

@freddie:person {first_name: "Freddie"}

@staten_island:place {state: @new_york, country: @united_states}

@the_island:place {alias_of: @staten_island}

@alice_austen_correspondence_with_effie:document {title: "Alice Austen Correspondence with Effie", creator: @effie, institution: "Alice Austen House", created: @date_1888_08_03, language: "en", subjects: ["Victorian social life","Friendship","Dancing","Rowing","Social events"], description: "Correspondence between Alice Austen and her friend Effie discussing social activities and personal reflections.", place: [@staten_island]}

@file_pinax:file {title: "pinax.json", type: "Metadata"}

@letter_1888_08_03_1:document {date: @date_1888_08_03, source_file: @file_1888_8_3_aug_2001_effie_copy_jpg, content_summary: "Mentions Howard Corning, Morrill, and the N.M. act"}

@letter_1888_08_03_2:document {date: @date_1888_08_03, source_file: @file_1888_8_3_aug_2002_effie_copy_jpg, content_summary: "Describes dancing with Morill and a humorous comment about 'old Nick'"}

@letter_1888_08_03_3:document {date: @date_1888_08_03, source_file: @file_1888_8_3_aug_2003_effie_copy_jpg, content_summary: "Expresses longing, mentions a headache, and a rowing outing"}

@letter_1888_08_03_4:document {date: @date_1888_08_03, source_file: @file_1888_8_3_aug_2004_effie_copy_jpg, content_summary: "Discusses a note from Daisy Brown about a pool trip and a reference to Freddie"}

@effie -> wrote -> @letter_1888_08_03_1:document

@effie -> wrote -> @letter_1888_08_03_2:document

@effie -> wrote -> @letter_1888_08_03_3:document

@effie -> wrote -> @letter_1888_08_03_4:document

@alice_austen -> corresponded with -> @effie {when: @date_1888_08_03}

@effie -> mentioned -> @howard_corning

@effie -> mentioned -> @morrill

@effie -> mentioned -> @howard_loring

@effie -> mentioned -> @may

@effie -> mentioned -> @daisy_brown

@effie -> mentioned -> @freddie

@dancing_event:event {description: "dancing at a hotel", when: @date_1888_08_03, participants: [@effie, @morrill]}

@effie -> attended -> @dancing_event

@rowing_event:event {description: "rowing outing", when: @date_1888_08_03, participants: [@effie]}

@effie -> attended -> @rowing_event

@pool_trip:event {description: "trip to the Pool with Daisy Brown", when: @date_1888_08_03, participants: [@effie, @daisy_brown]}

@effie -> declined -> @pool_trip {reason: "did not want to go"}

@effie -> referenced -> @freddie {context: "glorious time"}

Metadata

Files (4)

1888_8-3-Aug 2001-effie copy.jpgJPEG
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OCR Text

of the fellows here, May does not know very many on the Island; in fact, I have been introduced to two of her, one is very short, the other is devoted to her, so Morrill and I amuse ourselves by making them all up. The one that is so devoted to her is by name Howard Corning and Morrill and I allude to the N.M. act; which is that

1888_8-3-Aug 2002-effie copy.jpgJPEG
720.46 KB
OCR Text

they gaze very tenderly at each other. Howard Loring does not know what it means but May does, & it is more fun than a little to see her blush. Last night we went up to the hotel and danced. I had quite fun dancing with Morill he is lots of fun full of the "old Nick," but knowing so few fellows I did not dance very much and even I had probably

1888_8-3-Aug 2003-effie copy.jpgJPEG
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OCR Text

would not have been asked. Look here child! You need not say anything about June coming to see me off; please don't. I have just the beastliest headache today. Oh dear! I should like to see you so much, you dear old thing. You have no idea how much I miss you. Yesterday morning we went out for a row, it isn't half so much fun rowing

1888_8-3-Aug 2004-effie copy.jpgJPEG
666.39 KB
OCR Text

with two short cars, as with one long one, do you not think so? I received a note from Daisy Brown asking May and me to go to the Pool on Monday and spend a few days with her. We don't go; I don't want to and neither does May. I suppose you are having a glorious time with Freddie but be sure and don't forget me if you do my

Version History (4 versions)

  • ✓ v4 (current) · 12/9/2025, 9:35:14 PM
    "Added description"
  • v3 · 12/9/2025, 8:16:30 PM · View this version
    "Added knowledge graph extraction"
  • v2 · 12/9/2025, 7:44:24 PM · View this version
    "Added PINAX metadata"
  • v1 · 12/9/2025, 7:22:21 PM · View this version
    "Reorganization group: Correspondence_Effie"

Parent

01KC28TTNA95H5GBNB0G7GZH3A

No children (leaf entity)