Martineau, Harriet 1802-1876
Archival location guide — where this economist’s surviving papers are held, their notable correspondents, and key published sources.
Born 1802 · died 1876
Harriet Martineau was an English social theorist. She wrote from a sociological, holistic, religious and feminine angle, translated works by Auguste Comte, and, rare for a woman writer at the time, earned enough to support herself.
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Over 1000 items of correspondence, almost entirely in-letters, with some manuscript notes, parts of manuscripts of her works, and various printed items.
Harriet Martineau papers, Birmingham UL
A small group of in-and out-letters with other documents. Boston ( U.S.A.) Public Library.
A 41-page manuscript entitled ‘Health in the Camp’, c. 1860. Columbia UL, New York.
27 single letters between Harriet Martineau and various correspondents, 1832-1869.
Houghton Library, Harvard University.
Correspondents
CHARLES BABBAGE, four letters, n.d. BL Add. MS. 37201.
JOHN BRIGHT, about five letters, 1845-1846. BL Add. MS. 43389.
HENRY PETER BROUGHAM, 1st Baron Brougham and Vaux, 14 letters, 1832-1866.
Brougham papers, University College London (UCL)
SAMUEL BROWN, several letters, 1857-1874. National Library of Scotland (NLS), MSS. 1889-1890.
EDWARD GEORGE EARLE LYTTON BULWER-LYTTON, Baron Lytton, 16 letters (some modern copies), 1844. Bulwer-Lytton papers, Hertfordshire RO
EDWIN CHADWICK, three letters, n.d. Chadwick papers, UCL
JOHN CHAPMAN, 22 letters, 1853-1858. Bodleian, MS. Eng. Lett. d2.
JAMES FREEMAN CLARKE, three letters, 1835-1846. Houghton Library, Harvard University.
RICHARD COBDEN, six letters, 1845-1846. Cobden papers, West Sussex RO
EDWARD DAVIES DAVENPORT, two letters, n.d. Bromley-Davenport Muniments, Manchester J RUL
RALPH WALDO EMERSON, ten letters, 1836-1852. Houghton Library, Harvard University.
HENRY GEORGE GREY, 3rd Earl Grey, eight letters, 1844-1848. Grey of Howick papers, Durham D. P.
GEORGE JACOB HOLYOAKE, 13 letters, 1851-1859. BL Add. MS. 42726.
GEORGE JACOB HOLYOAKE, four letters, 1850-1857. Holyoake collection, Co-operative Union Ltd, Manchester.
JOHN GEORGE LAMBTON, 1st Earl of Durham (and Lady Durham), 17 letters, 1833-1838. Lambton papers, National Register of Archives (NRA) 11184.
EDWARD MOXON, 19 letters, n.d. Bodleian, MS. Eng. Lett. d2.
FLORENCE NIGHTINGALE, many letters, 1858-1871. BL Add. MS. 45788.
SIR ROBERT PEEL, several items, 1846. BL Add. MS. 40585.
FRANCIS PLACE , several items, 1832-1834. BL Add. MS. 35149.
HENRY CRABB ROBINSON, nine letters, 1837-1850. Crabb Robinson papers, Dr Williams’ Library, London.
JACOB SNIDER, three letters, 1844. Madeira Vaughan collection, American Philosophical Society Library, Philadelphia.
CHARLES SUMNER, three letters, 1839. Houghton Library, Harvard University.
WILLIAM TAIT, 11 letters, 1832-1837. Miscellaneous manuscripts, UCL
JOHN HAMILTON THOM, five letters, 1867. Rathbone papers, Liverpool UL
TICKNOR and FIELDS, three letters, 1861. Houghton Library, Harvard University.
Printed Material
ROBERT K. WEBB, Harriet Martineau: A Radical Victorian ( London, 1960).
VERA WHEATLEY, The Life and Work of Harriet Martineau ( London, 1957).
New Palgrave ; ODNB; Boase II 776; ESS X 168.
Portraits: BL (P); NPG; see Webb and Wheatley (above).