Philip Thicknesse letters, approximately 1770-approximately 1785

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Summary

Creators:
Thicknesse, Philip, 1719-1792
Abstract:
Letters belonging to 18th century British soldier and author Philip Thicknesse.
Extent:
6 Linear Feet (4 boxes)
Language:
Materials are in English.
Preferred citation:

[Identification of item]. Philip Thicknesse letters, The Huntington Library, San Marino, California.

Background

Scope and content:

The collection consists almost entirely of letters from Philip Thicknesse to his friend John Cooke of Monmouthshire. Subject matter includes Thicknesse's family life and relations with his wives and children; business and estate affairs, including his lawsuits, management of his Monmouthshire farm at Quoitca, and his houses at Bath; life and society in Bath; travel on the Continent, particularly in France and Spain from 1775 to 1777, and in Belgium in 1782. There are a few references to his own writings and to Thomas Gainsborough.

Biographical / historical:

Philip Thicknesse (1719-1792) was a British soldier and author. He traveled to America with James Oglethorpe in 1733, served in Jamaica and the Mediterranean, and purchased the lieutenant-governship of Landguard, Fort Suffolk, in 1753. Thicknesse was a patron of Thomas Gainsborough (1727-1788) and the author of numerous pamphlets, guides, letters, and other tracts. He spent much time traveling and lived in Monmouthshire and Bath. He married three times: Maria Lanove (whose large family fortune he unsuccessfully claimed in a notorious lawsuit after her death in 1749); Elizabeth Touchet, eldest daughter of the Earl of Castlehaven; and Ann Ford, the author and musician.

Acquisition information:
Purchased from Ifan Kyrle Fletcher, 1949.
Processing information:

Processed by Huntington Library staff. In 2022, Brooke M. Black created a finding aid.

Arrangement:

Arranged chronologically.

Rules or conventions:
Describing Archives: A Content Standard

Access and use

Restrictions:

Open for use by qualified researchers and by appointment. Please contact Reader Services at the Huntington Library for more information.

Terms of access:

The Huntington Library does not require that researchers request permission to quote from or publish images of this material, nor does it charge fees for such activities. The responsibility for identifying the copyright holder, if there is one, and obtaining necessary permissions rests with the researcher.

Preferred citation:

[Identification of item]. Philip Thicknesse letters, The Huntington Library, San Marino, California.

Location of this collection:
1151 Oxford Road
San Marino, CA 91108, US
Contact:
(626) 405-2191
reference@huntington.org
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