Mary M. Brown Correspondence to Alice Austen, June 1892
PI
Version: 4 (current) | Updated: 12/9/2025, 9:43:45 PM | Created: 12/9/2025, 7:29:25 PM
Added description
Description
Mary M. Brown Correspondence to Alice Austen, June 1892 Collection
Overview
This collection comprises two handwritten letters from Mary M. Brown to Alice Austen, dated June 1892, preserved as high‑resolution JPEG scans and accompanying typed transcriptions. The letters are part of the digitized holdings of the Alice Austen House Museum in Staten Island, NY. They illustrate a brief, personal exchange concerning travel arrangements, accommodation, and social invitations during the late Victorian period.Background
Mary M. Brown, a contemporary and friend of photographer Alice Austen, used the correspondence to invite Austen to Boston and to coordinate travel logistics. The letters reflect the social networks of upper‑middle‑class New England families in the 1890s, when steamship travel and rail connections were the primary modes of long‑distance travel. The collection is housed within the broader Alice Austen Papers (MS 1) and provides insight into Austen’s personal life beyond her photographic career.Contents
- Letter 1892‑06‑17/24 (JPG 8002): Brown invites Austen to Boston, notes a “silence that could be felt” since Austen’s departure, and reserves a stateroom on a boat for her.
- Letter 1892‑06‑17/24 (JPG 8003): Brown details travel from New London to New York, mentions Worcester, the Thommyke Hope hotel opposite Providence Depot, and includes a calling card. The letter also references tickets, stateroom reservations, and the European Plan for accommodations.
- Transcriptions: Typed versions of the handwritten letters provide a readable record for researchers.
- Metadata: Subject tags include “Correspondence,” “Travel,” “Boston,” “Worcester,” “Accommodation,” and “Social life.”
Scope
The collection documents a single month (June 1892) of correspondence focused on travel and social engagement between New London, New York, Boston, and Worcester. It does not include other months of Brown’s correspondence or Austen’s broader photographic business records. The material offers a snapshot of Victorian travel logistics, hospitality practices, and personal networks in the northeastern United States.Raw Cheimarros Data
@mary_m_brown:person {full_name: "Mary M. Brown", gender: "female"}
@alice_austen:person {full_name: "Alice Austen", birth_year: @date_1866, death_year: @date_1952, occupation: "photographer"}
@thommyke_hope:place {city: @boston, description: "hotel opposite Providence Depot near the Common, Public Gardens, and Commonwealth Ave"}
@providence_depot:place {city: @boston, type: "railroad depot"}
@stateroom:object {type: "stateroom", location: "boat"}
@boat:object {type: "boat"}
@ticket:object {type: "ticket"}
@card:object {type: "calling card"}
@letter_1892_06_17_or_24_june_8002:document {source: @file_1892_6_17_or_24_june_8002_hkg_copy_jpg, date: @date_1892_06, language: "en"}
@letter_1892_06_17_or_24_june_8003:document {source: @file_1892_6_17_or_24_june_8003_hkg_copy_jpg, date: @date_1892_06, language: "en"}
@mary_m_brown_correspondence_to_alice_austen_1892_06:document {title: "Mary M. Brown Correspondence to Alice Austen, June 1892", creator: @mary_m_brown, created: @date_1892_06, language: "en", subjects: ["Correspondence","Personal letters","Travel","Boston","Worcester","Accommodation","Social life"], description: "A collection of correspondence from Mary M. Brown to Alice Austen in June 1892, discussing travel plans, accommodations, and social engagements.", places: [@boston, @worcester, @new_london, @new_york]}
@file_pinax -> documents -> @mary_m_brown_correspondence_to_alice_austen_1892_06
@mary_m_brown -> wrote -> @letter_1892_06_17_or_24_june_8002
@mary_m_brown -> wrote -> @letter_1892_06_17_or_24_june_8003
@letter_1892_06_17_or_24_june_8002 -> addressed to -> @alice_austen
@letter_1892_06_17_or_24_june_8003 -> addressed to -> @alice_austen
@letter_1892_06_17_or_24_june_8002 -> mentions -> @boston
@mary_m_brown -> invited -> @alice_austen {to: @boston, when: @date_1892_06, via: @letter_1892_06_17_or_24_june_8002}
@mary_m_brown -> reserved -> @stateroom {for: @alice_austen, on: @boat, when: @date_1892_06, via: @letter_1892_06_17_or_24_june_8002}
@letter_1892_06_17_or_24_june_8003 -> mentions -> @new_london
@letter_1892_06_17_or_24_june_8003 -> mentions -> @new_york
@mary_m_brown -> traveling from -> @new_london {to: @new_york, date: @date_1892_05_01, via: @letter_1892_06_17_or_24_june_8003}
@letter_1892_06_17_or_24_june_8003 -> mentions -> @worcester
@letter_1892_06_17_or_24_june_8003 -> mentions -> @thommyke_hope
@letter_1892_06_17_or_24_june_8003 -> mentions -> @providence_depot
@letter_1892_06_17_or_24_june_8003 -> mentions -> @ticket
@letter_1892_06_17_or_24_june_8003 -> mentions -> @cardMetadata
Files (2)
1892_6-17-or-24-June 8002-HKG copy.jpgJPEG
OCR Text
Of your pressing invitation to visit Boston while you are there, but unfortunately may not admit it in writing as yet. As always, Yours, Mary M. Brown Dear Miss Austin, There has been "a silence that could be felt" since you went away—I hope it is because you are having an extremely good time and not because you are ill. I have reserved a stateroom for you on the boat.
1892_6-17-or-24-June 8003-HKG copy.jpgJPEG
OCR Text
from New London for New York you negotiate right. May 1st— If you present this card to the person on the boat it will receive attention. The city of Worcester is the first boat on the line. You need not fear that you will be compelled to use the ticket as they will undoubtedly be able to dispose of it without difficulty. The Thomoyke Hope in Boston where my father & his two have stopped at various times, is opposite the Providence Depot close to the Common & the Public Gardens and Commonwealth Ave etc. They liked it very well. It is on the European Plan with rooms at all prices from a dollar a day up. I hope you are enjoying yourself and wish I could avail myself
Version History (4 versions)
- ✓ v4 (current) · 12/9/2025, 9:43:45 PM
"Added description" - v3 · 12/9/2025, 8:42:38 PM · View this version
"Added knowledge graph extraction" - v2 · 12/9/2025, 7:50:40 PM · View this version
"Added PINAX metadata" - v1 · 12/9/2025, 7:29:25 PM · View this version
"Reorganization group: Mary_Brown_Correspondence_June_1892"
Parent
No children (leaf entity)