1893_1-16-E Lynch Jan 16001 copy.jpg

Elizabeth W. Lynch Correspondence Collection

PI

Version: 4 (current) | Updated: 12/9/2025, 9:45:32 PM | Created: 12/9/2025, 7:33:17 PM

Added description

Description

Elizabeth W. Lynch Correspondence Collection

Overview

The Elizabeth W. Lynch Correspondence Collection is a small, digitized archive of three handwritten letters written in 1893 by Elizabeth W. Lynch to her friend, photographer Elizabeth Alice Austen. The collection consists of high‑resolution JPEG scans of the original pages, accompanied by OCR‑derived transcriptions. The letters are dated January 18, January 26, and September 1, 1893, and are preserved in the holdings of the Alice Austen House museum on Staten Island, New York.

Background

Elizabeth W. Lynch was a resident of Albany who maintained a close friendship with Alice Austen, a prominent Staten Island photographer and socialite. The correspondence reflects the social milieu of late‑Victorian New York, where letters were a primary means of arranging visits, coordinating social events, and maintaining personal ties. The Alice Austen House acquired the material as part of its broader effort to document the personal networks surrounding Austen’s photographic career.

Contents

  • Letter – January 18, 1893: Lynch apologizes for a missed overnight visit and invites Austen to return on January 25 for lunch and a gymnasium class.
  • Letter – January 26, 1893: Lynch expresses delight at Austen’s recent visit and looks forward to future meetings.
  • Letter – September 1, 1893: Written by Charles (a relative or close associate), this letter requests Austen’s presence from September 1 onward for an upcoming weekend stay.

Each letter is presented as a JPEG image with accompanying OCR text that captures the informal, conversational tone of the correspondence.

Scope

The collection covers a narrow temporal window (January–September 1893) and geographic focus on Staten Island and Albany. It documents personal friendship, social invitations, and the use of gymnasium classes as a social activity. The material is limited to three letters, but it offers insight into the everyday social practices of upper‑middle‑class New York society during the Victorian era.

Raw Cheimarros Data

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

@elizabeth_lynch:person {full_name: "Elizabeth W. Lynch", relation: "correspondent", location: @albany}

@charles:person {full_name: "Charles"}

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

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

@alice_austen_house:organization {type: "museum", location: @staten_island}

@collection_lynch_austen:document {title: "Elizabeth W. Lynch Correspondence Collection", creator: @elizabeth_lynch, institution: @alice_austen_house, created: @date_1893, language: "en", subjects: ["Correspondence","Friendship","Social life","Victorian era","Staten Island","Gymnasium","Visits"]}

@file_pinax -> describes -> @collection_lynch_austen

@letter_jan_18_1893:document {date: @date_1893_01_18, from: @elizabeth_lynch, to: @alice_austen, content: "Invitation to visit; mentions missed night and proposes next Wednesday Jan 25"} 

@letter_jan_26_1893:document {date: @date_1893_01_26, from: @elizabeth_lynch, to: @alice_austen, content: "Expression of delight about recent visit and anticipation of future meeting"} 

@letter_sep_1_1893:document {date: @date_1893_09_01, from: @charles, to: @alice_austen, content: "Request for Alice to be present from Wednesday Sept 1st; mentions upcoming weekend stay"} 

@file_1893_1_16_e_lynch_jan_16001_copy_jpg -> contains -> @letter_jan_18_1893

@file_1893_1_16_e_lynch_jan_16002_copy_jpg -> contains -> @letter_jan_18_1893

@file_1893_1_26_e_lynch_jan_26_1893002_copy_jpg -> contains -> @letter_jan_26_1893

@file_1893_1_26_e_lynch_jan_26_1893003_copy_jpg -> contains -> @letter_sep_1_1893

@date_1893_01_18

@date_1893_01_25

@date_1893_01_26

@date_1893_09_01

Metadata

Title
Elizabeth W. Lynch Correspondence Collection
Type
Collection
Creator
Elizabeth W. Lynch
Institution
Alice Austen House
Created
1893
Language
en
Subjects
Correspondence, Friendship, Social life, Victorian era, Staten Island, Gymnasium, Visits
Place
Staten Island, Albany
Source
PINAX

Files (4)

1893_1-16-E Lynch Jan 16001 copy.jpgJPEG
2.29 MB
OCR Text

January 18th My dear Alice, I was so sorry that you could not come up to spend the night with us last month, but I am going to make another effort & want to know if you will but come up next Wednesday week. (Jan 25th) & lunch with us, & in the

1893_1-16-E Lynch Jan 16002 copy.jpgJPEG
2.48 MB
OCR Text

gymnasium class? I know it are not much to look at for we look very badly but I should like to see you, so please come. We have & have hineken early at twelve thirty, so come early in the morning. With so much love & hoping to see you ever lovingly Elizabeth W. Lynch

1893_1-26-E Lynch Jan 26 1893002 copy.jpgJPEG
1.76 MB
OCR Text

Wednesday My dear Alice - I was too delighted that you were unable & came up today for I had been looking forward to you with such much pleasure. I say truerer that you will come up soon again.

1893_1-26-E Lynch Jan 26 1893003 copy.jpgJPEG
1.89 MB
OCR Text

I am going there next weekend for several days, but will need you there from about Wednesday Sept 1st until you. Please do not fail, for I want you so much—Hoping that I shall surely see you. Truly yours, Charles

Version History (4 versions)

  • ✓ v4 (current) · 12/9/2025, 9:45:32 PM
    "Added description"
  • v3 · 12/9/2025, 8:45:55 PM · View this version
    "Added knowledge graph extraction"
  • v2 · 12/9/2025, 7:51:21 PM · View this version
    "Added PINAX metadata"
  • v1 · 12/9/2025, 7:33:17 PM · View this version
    "Reorganization group: Elizabeth_Lynch_Correspondence"

Parent

↑ 01KC29F4SNK2CPB3XEG23V53T7

No children (leaf entity)