These letters graciously have been shared with the Victorian Web by Eunice and Ron Shanahan; they have been taken from their website. The letters give an insight into the daily lives and concerns of 'ordinary' people without whom history would not exist. The letters are a wonderful example of how much history may be gleaned from such sources.
This is an example of a "crossed letter". The writer has used every scrap of available space, finally writing across the lines to get the full value for her postage. If she had written on an additional sheet of paper and enclosed it in this page, it would have cost two shillings and fourpence halfpenny to send it, double the rate. At first glance a ‘crossed’ letter like this is difficult to read, but once you get used to the idea of blocking out unwanted letters, it is legible.
Last modified 11 December 2002