Tag: Houses of Parliament

A former apprentice stonemason who helped build the Houses of Parliament is thought to have borrowed the book in the late 1800s

Austral-Asia: Controversial New Find Suggests 19th Century Aussies Could Read! (9.8.2026)

“It does have beautiful illustrations in it and some pages that fold out to show you they were using exact measurements of some of the monuments in Greece.”

She said in 1872, the council got a £200 grant to establish the town’s library and and it had fewer than 1,000 books in its collection, with the overdue book marked as number 506.

There’s no way to know exactly who borrowed the book or when, Hudson said, as the library’s borrowing records from that period have since been lost.

However, the book is no longer available to borrow, having been added to the library’s collection of special items, which can be viewed on request.

“It won’t be able to go out again… we don’t want to wait another 150 years for it to come back,” Hudson joked.

As for the book’s much-delayed return, Simmons said he believes his great-grandfather would be pleased with the final chapter of its journey.

“I think he’d be happy to see the book returned and he’d probably have a bit of a laugh about it.”

Continue reading

Sir Goldsworthy Gurney & Bude Castle 30.7.15

Bude Castle is not a ‘castle’ as such, but a modest stately home situated in Bude – north Cornwall – that was once the home of Goldsworthy Gurney (1793-1875). Goldsworthy Gurney was born in Padstow (Cornwall) and was something of a genius. He was educated at Truro Grammar School, and despite not going to university, he apprenticed with a local medical doctor, learning how to be a general practitioner, and eventually inheriting the practice as a surgeon before he was 20 years old. However, he longed to experience life in London – one of the most progressive cities in the world – and in 1820 he and his family relocated to the city.

Continue reading