We’ve driven through Llangollen a hundred times, but for some reason, unlike Shelley, Byron, Wordsworth and the Duke of Wellington, have never thought to make the short detour to see Plas Newydd, the house which Eleanor Butler and Sarah Ponsonby first rented in 1778 and where they lived till their deaths in 1829 and 1831 respectively – they were sixteen years apart in age.
It’s unexpectedly and vividly atmospheric and very well cared for by Denbighshire County Council. The first view from the car park:-
Closer up:-
They were mad about Jacobean wood carving and seem to have festooned the house with wood carving, some of which was original, some commissioned by them, and some donated, but curiously apparently not very well documented (although I confess never to have read their biography by Elizabeth Mavor, still in print):-
Here they are:-
And here are their top hats:-
| Charles | Saumarez | Smith | 
Dear Charles,
If you want to pursue the ladies of Llangollen, you may be interested in the short section by my friend and collaborator, Laurel Thatcher Ulrich, in our book, Tangible Things: Making History through Objects (OUP, 2015), pp. 80-85. It concerns a 1788 gift from them to their patron, Frances, Lady Douglas, of a tiny netted purse of silver thread, a vellum booklet bound in quilted satin containing watercolor drawings by Sarah Ponsonby, and the embroidered silk portfolio that held both. This exquisite small composite item is in Houghton Library at Harvard, and we included it in our 2011 Harvard exhibition, Tangible Things.
Warm wishes,
Ivan
Dear Ivan, Thank you. Will look it up. Am intrigued. Charles