Sarah Lawrence is seeking admission to the Colston Alms Houses in Bristol 1839

 

Dictated letter from a woman in Bristol who has probably been a servant in the household of a Mrs Rice who appears now to be making her occasional gifts of money. The writer is seeking admission to the Colston Alms Houses in Bristol built in 1691.They are named after the Bristol-born slave trader, merchant, philanthropist and Member of Parliament, Edward Colston. The Alms House originally designed for 12 residents still exists with an unchanged purpose, though internally modified to provide tweve one bedroom flats. The deferential tone of the letter may be due in part to the intervention of the friend who wrote the letter. The mention of riots in Bristol probably refer back to those which occurred in 1831 following the rejection in the House of Lords of the Great Reform Bill; the palace of the Lord Bishop of Bristol was burnt down. 

Transcription

Addressed to: Mrs Rice. Original address heavily crossed out and replaced by 9 rue de Pierres à Bruges Belgium

Postmarked: BRISTOL JU 24 1839, LONDON 25 JUN 1839, OSTENDE transit mark 26 JUN

Datelined: June 23^rd 1839

Docketing notes indicating Five Pounds sent on June 12 1839 and a further payment on Dec 14 1839

 

Most honor’d Madam

This comes with my most humble duty & beg pardon for not writing before, I hope you will forgive me. I hope my dear Master & you my Dear Lady, with the dear Young Lady & Gentleman are in good health as I bless God I am at present. I beg to return you my most thanks for your kind present & may the Lord bless you my dear Lady & each of the dear family with health happiness & prosperity.

I havea petition for Coulstons [ = Colston’s] Alms-houses but must wait for a vacancy I hope in the Lord I shall succeed. I feel distress’d in not having answer’d  your kind letter before & Lady’s call’d on me twice & ask’d me if I had receive’d it & said they should write or I should have written before. I do hope I shall get in the Alms house to have a Home if it is ever so small for every year I feel the want of one more as I almost feel at times I am as an intruder. I pray God to protect my dear Mr George. We have now built where Reeve’s Hotel was where yo once staid a most splendid Hotel call’d the Great Western Hotel is was expected there would be a riot here again but now we have Barracks filled up at the Armoury Stapleton Road  the 29 Regiment of foot soldiers and the Band plays every evening  at the Great Western Hotel it is the officer’s head Quarters and at Clifton, a detachment of Horse Soldiers the 10^th Hussras which makes  Bristol very gay.

I have made Dear Madam several attempts to try & write myself but every day I feel I get still more nervous. I have dictated this & got a kind friend to write it for me.

I remain Dear Madam

Your obedient Humble Servant

Sarah Lawrence

Reference

Wikipedia: Colstons Almshouses