The Age of Steam.

[Jeanie with one n.]

Yesterday I went to the Walker Art Gallery in Liverpool to see a special exhibition they are running called The Age of Steam. This surpassed all expectations.
Not only were there paintings but there were also photographs.
One of the paintings that made me cry was one of a widow, sitting in a railway carriage, holding the hand of her son, about 12, who was off to Australia to "make his fortune". His elder sister was sitting next to him with the most distraught expression on her face.
There were photos of when the railway met at Utah. This changed the journey across the USA from months to a couple of days. There were many others from around the world.
On my one named study I have come across people who both went to OZ and to Utah and it really brought home to me what they went through.
The reason that I am posting this is that if you google railway paintings or photos it will be a great way to see how your relatives were living at that time.
Hope anyone that lives close enough will go to Liverpool.
It was great.

[Jeanie with one n.]

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[keldon]

I have always though that Ford Maddox Brown's 'The last of England' is very sad and poignant. On board the emigrant ship, a young couple with their young baby sheltering under her cloak keep their eyes looking firmly forward as the English coast disappears behind them. One can only guess at what their life must have been like, and as to why they are emigrating. Perhaps they know that they will never see England again, nor the rest of their families.

http://members.optushome.com.au/virgospace/familyhistory/brown_last_of_englandA.jpg

[Little Nell]

Keldon - how wierd. As I saw the railway picture posted above it reminded me of "The Last of England" and then I scrolled down and read your post. I think the poignant bit is the baby's hand clasped in its mother's, you cannot see the child's face.

[Jeanie with one n.]

Hi Phil,
Many thanks for your contribution.
The Victorian artists certainly knew how to tug at the heart strings.
Some are a little too sugary but others capture the moment perfectly.
The other reason I love these paintings are the clothes the people wore.
I remember seeing one of many men near a bridge in London. It was painted in 1860 and I thought that's exactly how my Gt grandfather was dressed at that time.
It brought him to life.