Research

This has been a somewhat different trip than normal because the planning involved was related to where to do research as opposed to what cool place can I go visit. This last week I spent three out of the four days (Monday doesn't count because of the bank holiday) at the British Library and one day at John Strachey's daughter's house. More on that in a bit.

This is what research is like (for me) at the BL. I take the tube from Hendon Central down to King's Cross/St. Pancras. It takes like 25 minutes. All the money we saved staying in a cheap hostel is being negated by tube tickets. Cannot wait for Hyde Park. When I get to King's Cross/St. Pancras, I go up to Euston Road and walk five minutes to the Library. I love the courtyard of the Library, with its brick and huge statues and steps. I enter the Library and go downstairs to unpack my things into the clear, already provided for me plastic bag. This means my folder, notebooks, pencil (which I bought at the BL shop since I didn't bring one- and no pens are allowed), phone, i-pod, little purse with some money, passport and reader's card. Then I give my bag ("Nope, no valuables!") to the coat-check and head upstairs. I go to the third floor where the Social Sciences room is located. I enter, show the guard my reader's card and then stop by the desk to pick up my books for the day. I find a study carrel, put on some music (usually Mumford and Sons or Owl City since all the songs sound the same and it distracts me less) and get to work.

What is wonderful about the BL is that books arrive in about an hour. Almost anything you might need has multiple copies, one in London and one up in Yorkshire, so as long as you reserve the London copy, you get it within the house. Nobody bothers you, nobody distracts you, nobody cares what you do as long as you're not disruptive. Books are sometimes totally helpful and other times are totally useless. But it doesn't matter because someone else gets them for you and you don't spend hours wandering through the stacks.

Around 1:00 pm, I leave my books on the desk, take my plastic bag, show the guard I haven't stolen anything, and go downstairs to have lunch. I usually sit next to the Folio Gallery and watch them put together a new exhibit while eating my sandwich, having a drink of water and reading. On Friday, it was gorgeous so I sat outside and got some sun before heading back inside. I give coat check my bag back, go back upstairs, find my books sitting on the desk still undisturbed and get back to work for another few hours.

Today I did my research at the Cadbury Research Library at the University of Birmingham. First of all (and this may have a lot to do with how beautiful a day it was today), the campus is just gorgeous. Lots of pretty spectacular buildings and greenery and the sunshine didn't hurt. This afternoon, after arriving from Nottingham and dropping my bags off at my airbnb flat, I headed over to the University and found my way to the Muir Tower. It's about a twenty minute walk, slightly uphill, which is good because on the way home, except for the last bit, it'll all be downhill. After I received my reader's ard, I was admitted into the research center (they have to let you in) and was told how the system works. The library is obviously a fraction of the size of the BL but the people there are so friendly and helpful. They give you a stack of little pink slips and a catalogue and you write down the documents you want. Within about 10 minutes, they have boxes for you. Once you're finished with a box, they have another one waiting for you and just let you rotate in and out. There are these huge pillows on the table that are supposed to be for placing old books onto but they can't get mad if on long days, I just use them for a short shut-eye, right? The Research Library is on the lower ground floor and just upstairs is a Starbucks and a big sunny balcony which is perfect for lunch breaks. I've gotten a lot done in the last few hours and am excited to see what else I can find in the next few days.

Now, let's talk about Thursday for a moment. John Strachey's papers are registered with the National Archive but are the possession of Elizabeth Strachey, his daughter. I was in touch with her by email and she invited me over to the house to see the papers. She lives down in Wimbledon so I left two hours early, preferring to be there early than late. Plus, I didn't know how long it would actually take me to walk to her house so I wanted to be cautious. Wimbledon is a beautiful area, despite the kind of cloudy and slightly damp weather. The High Street had all the shops that a Regent's Street or Covent Garden would have, which just spoke to the income of Wimbledon residents. I found the house and stood around the corner listening to my ipod for about 15 minutes before showing up. "You're not a man!" she said, when I rang the doorbell. Well, it's a common mistake with a name like mine. Elizabeth sat me down and gave me some coffee immediately to warm me up and asked me about my research and told me to let her know if there was anything she could do to help. Then she took me up the stairs, past the painters, into her study to show me a picture of her father and her mother, Celia, had painted, and then up another flight of stairs to the room with all the documents. I met Silvia, their housekeeper/assistant, who was also very nice and helpful. Then they let me be and I sorted through documents, took pictures, made notes and tried to decipher handwriting. Public Service Announcement: If you plan to be famous and have people go through your papers one day, be considerate with your handwriting. Mosley's handwriting is atrocious and Strachey's wasn't that great either.

Around 1:30, Siliva came to fetch me for lunch and they just fed me non-stop for the next 40 minutes. Quiche and potatoes and veggies and bread with tuna, salad, melon, ice cream and cake for dessert. I ate more that day for lunch than I had the entire week previously. Martin, Elizabeth's husband, came in to join us on the late side and he was also very nice, telling me about their children and grandchildren. I worked for another hour and a half or so, taking more pictures and then making sure my area was nice and clean before thanking Elizabeth profusely. This was my first foray into actual documents and I'm so grateful that she made the process so simple and painless. I'm excited to see what is helpful and what I can use when i have the time to go through everything a little more carefully.

I'll be in B'ham until Thursday, then the Library again on Friday, then a free weekend (although depending on where I stand, I migth need to do some more library research on Saturday), then possible the Naval Maritime Museum during the following week. So little time, so much to learn!