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Story
July 15, 1855
The Daily Union
Washington, District Of Columbia
What is this article about?
News item on the decline of aristocratic families: a Plantagenet family lives humbly in Kettering, and the Norwich baronet's widow works as a washerwoman, detailing generational poverty and emigration to America.
Clipping
OCR Quality
95%
Excellent
Full Text
GENERAL NEWS.
The Freaks of Fortune.—Reduced Aristocracy.—We copy the following from a late English paper:
“There is a family in humble circumstances at Kettering, bearing the ancient royal name of Plantagenet, though now it is commonly corrupted into Plant, we suppose for the sake of brevity. There is also living in the town the widow of a baronet, who earns a precarious livelihood at washing and charing. She is sometimes facetiously called 'My lady.' Her late husband's grandfather, Sir John Norwich, lost a large estate through gambling, and was afterwards pensioned by the Duke of Montague, and his son, the last Sir John, was so poor that he died in the parish workhouse, leaving nothing but a barren title to the late William Norwich, who followed the humble occupation of a sawyer. His son, the present Sir William, emigrated some years since to America, where it is said he is doing well.”
The Freaks of Fortune.—Reduced Aristocracy.—We copy the following from a late English paper:
“There is a family in humble circumstances at Kettering, bearing the ancient royal name of Plantagenet, though now it is commonly corrupted into Plant, we suppose for the sake of brevity. There is also living in the town the widow of a baronet, who earns a precarious livelihood at washing and charing. She is sometimes facetiously called 'My lady.' Her late husband's grandfather, Sir John Norwich, lost a large estate through gambling, and was afterwards pensioned by the Duke of Montague, and his son, the last Sir John, was so poor that he died in the parish workhouse, leaving nothing but a barren title to the late William Norwich, who followed the humble occupation of a sawyer. His son, the present Sir William, emigrated some years since to America, where it is said he is doing well.”
What sub-type of article is it?
Biography
Curiosity
What themes does it cover?
Fortune Reversal
Misfortune
Social Manners
What keywords are associated?
Aristocracy Decline
Fortune Reversal
Plantagenet Family
Norwich Baronet
Reduced Nobility
What entities or persons were involved?
Plantagenet Family
Sir John Norwich
William Norwich
Sir William Norwich
Where did it happen?
Kettering
Story Details
Key Persons
Plantagenet Family
Sir John Norwich
William Norwich
Sir William Norwich
Location
Kettering
Story Details
A humble family in Kettering bears the ancient royal name Plantagenet, now shortened to Plant. The widow of a baronet earns a living by washing and charing, called 'My lady' facetiously. Her husband's grandfather, Sir John Norwich, lost his estate gambling and was pensioned; his son died poor in the workhouse. The last Sir William Norwich was a sawyer who emigrated to America and is doing well.