Unknown letters

[Katia]

Hello everybody,

I'm new and I need your help. I own several letters of J.M. Barrie to a Miss Dove. Theses letters are a mysteries for me because I can't read correctly the address.

So, all I know is that J. M. Barrie has written 4 or maybe more, letters to a Miss S. E. Dove who lived in the Gloucestershire.
Theses letters were written between 1926 to 1962.
 
Here a transcription of one letter :
"24 May 1926
Dear Miss Dove,
I thank you for your interesting letter. Now with this general strike is over and the weather becoming summary at last we should all  have better times.
I am  ()   near 7 april ()   I shall certainly give myself this pleasure on calling on you. With all ()   royals
J.M.BARRIE"

If somebody know who is this miss Dove, it will really help me.

[GOSH]

Hi Katia. How exciting to own several letters from JM Barrie although I'm afraid I can't help you identify this mysterious Miss Dove who lived in Gloucestershire, but perhaps someone on this forum can help.  If you want, you could send me a scan of one of the letters and I can try working out the address.

I am however a little puzzled by the fact you say the letters were written between 1926 and 1962, since Barrie died in 1937.

[Katia]

Oh, yes sorry, the letters were written in may, october and november 1892, january 1897 and the last one in may 1926.

Sorry about the date, i didn't re-read myself.

I'll be happy to send you a scan of one of the enveloppes. How am i doing this ?

Thank you for your help, it's really important for me.

[GOSH]

You can send the scan to peterpan@gosh.org, which I receive at work. I cannot guarantee I'll be able to decipher the address, since Barrie's handwriting is notoriously difficult to read - but I'll give it a try!
Christine

[Katia]

Oh thanks !

I know Barrie writing is very difficult to read... I try every week to decipher Barrie's handwritting !

And I only own five Barrie's letters !

[Katia]

So, thanks to GOSH, I've founded the Miss Dove.

It's Miss Susanna Elizabeth Dove , Falfield House Gloucertershire.

Still, I have no idea how they met but as we said : step by step !

[Katia]

Ok... I've found it !

[ AUTOGRAPHS ] [ BOOKS ] Subject to VAT - Barrie (Sir James Matthew, 1860-1937). A collection of seven Autograph Letters Signed ('J.M. Barrie'), 28th November 1892 to 24th May 1926, all addressed to J.M. Barrie and literarature fan Miss Susanna E. Dove, Falfield House, Falfield, Glos., conerning the art of writing, the merits of biographies as against novels, suggested reading, the press and its untrustability in its reportage on him, weather, planned journies, thanks for flowers, etc., some in a very difficult hand, 1 to 4 pp., 8vo, with orig. envelopes, together with two port. photos (by Fred Hollyer and Elliott & Fry), each with signed presentation inscription to Miss Dove to versos, each appro. 13 x 10 cm, plus afurther twenty- two ALsS from Barrie's wife Mary to Miss Dove, mostly London, c. 1894- 1908, largely writing on her husband's behalf (two written before they were married) telling of his health, writing and publishing activities planned trips, and most usually thanking Miss Dove for her flowers, mostly one to four pages, 8vo, all but one with orig. envelopes, plus two related letters by David Barrie and C. Greene on behalf of Sir James Barrie, plus a further group of eighteen Autograph Letters Signed addressed to Miss Dove, from other authors and similar, c. 1873 1926, generally of a similar nature thanking miss Dover for her praise flowers, etc., mostly one or two pages, 8vo, with orig. envelopes, the authors incl. Sybil Thorndike, B.W. Leader, R.M. Ballantyne, Henry Shorthouse, Albert Fleming (3 plus printed note about Langdale Linen), Stanley Weyman (4), Hugh Macmillan, E. Armitage, A. McLaren and S.D. Anderson (approx. 50)


So, my five letters are coming from this lot.
Chapter closed.

[GOSH]

Glad to have helped towards solving the mystery!
By the way, the C. Greene mentioned is actually Cynthia Asquith, Barrie's personal secretary, who often wrote on his behalf using that pen name.

[Holly G.]

I daresay I know the previous owner of these letters... And I own one of them. I also have a photocopy of each of them. I showed them to Andrew a few years ago.