Identity area
Reference code
Title
Date(s)
- 1677-1948 (Creation)
Level of description
Fonds
Extent and medium
1,172 items, 6 files
Context area
Name of creator
Biographical history
Born on 5 July 1803 at East Dereham. Died 26 July 1881. Son of Captain Thomas Borrow (1758-1824), adjutant of the West Norfolk militia, and his wife, Ann (1772-1858), daughter of Samuel Parfrement, a farmer. His elder brother was John Thomas Borrow.
The centenary of George Borrow's birth, in 1903, passed with little notice or celebration. As a result, a group of local Borrovians set-up a committee to organize a major celebration in 1913. The committee boasted many prominent members including the Lord Mayor of Norwich, the Dean of Norwich, William Jarrold, Herbert Jenkins and E.M. Beloe. Frank J. Farrell, a Great Yarmouth silk manufacturer, was appointed Honorary Secretary and as such was responsible for most of the planning and arrangements. The celebration took place on 5 July 1913, events including a guided tour of Borrovian Norwich, a reception at St Andrew's Hall, performances by Gypsy bands and dancers, and a dinner at the Maid's Head Hotel. At the reception the Lord Mayor, Arthur Samuel, presented the deeds of Borrow's house in Willow Lane to the City: the house was to become a museum in Borrow's memory, a purpose which it served until 1948.
Name of creator
Biographical history
Repository
Archival history
From a price-list (MS 11322/677) it appears that the collection was purchased by the City Library, together with other Borrow-related manuscripts, in 1939, from Bowes & Bowes, a Cambridge booksellers. It was divided into five boxes, labelled I-V in the early 1950s.
Immediate source of acquisition or transfer
Received by the Norfolk Record Office on an unknown date.
Content and structure area
Scope and content
The bulk of the collection consists of correspondence and other documents relating to the celebration. There are also manuscripts relating to Borrow and his family, and further correspondence of Farrell's mainly of a personal or antiquarian nature. Unless otherwise specified correspondence is addressed to Farrell (in which case only the writer's name is given), and subject matter concerns the celebrations in general.
Appraisal, destruction and scheduling
Accruals
System of arrangement
Each item is one paper, and manuscript, unless otherwise specified. Filed in searchroom under MC 525.
Conditions of access and use area
Conditions governing access
Conditions governing reproduction
Language of material
Script of material
Language and script notes
Physical characteristics and technical requirements
Finding aids
Allied materials area
Existence and location of originals
Existence and location of copies
Related units of description
Notes area
Alternative identifier(s)
Access points
Subject access points
Place access points
Name access points
Genre access points
Description control area
Rules and/or conventions used
Status
Catalogued