Dr Samuel Johnson, who made his name as a writer, literary critic and lexicographer, grew up in Lichfield, but he spent much of his life in London, where for some years he lodged with the Thrales, a brewing family who occupied Streatham Park, aka Streatham Place. Johnson pretty much became one of the family, and had a special bond with the Thrales’ daughter Queeney, whom he addressed as Sweeting. According to Queeney by the late Beryl Bainbridge is a brilliant representation of this period of Johnson’s life, expressed in terms authentic to the period and with a great deal of humour.
Most of the day to day activities described centre around Streatham, a district of south London mostly contained in the Borough of Lambeth. The brewer Ralph Thrale built Streatham Park in the 1730s, and it was passed to his son Henry, married to Hester. It was this couple who accommodated Dr Johnson. Sadly, the property cannot be visited as it was demolished in 1863.
In 1774 Johnson takes the Thrales to his home city Lichfield, where they fetch up at the Swan Inn. They meet some of Johnson’s old acquaintances and explore some of the key areas of the city, such as the Square, the Cathedral Close and the Market, over which an argument takes place about bears supposedly being tortured in the market place. Johnson exclaims that “there were never bears in Lichfield Market, tormented or otherwise, only bulls”. Another argument erupts when Mr Thrale claims that there is a lack of industry in Lichfield, and Johnson retorts that while Birmingham works with its hands, Lichfield folk use their brains.
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| Lichfield Cathedral, west front. Photo by Tony Grist, via Wikimedia Commons. |
Lichfield is a cathedral city in Staffordshire. During Johnson’s time in the 18th century the city became a busy centre for coaching, hence inns such as The Swan Inn. Sadly, the Swan no longer exists today, but it retains the name in its current guise of accommodation. There is a website devoted to the history of the inn.
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| Swan Hotel Bird Street Lichfield WS13 6NP. Photo by Spudgun67, via Wikimedia Commons. |
Map of Lichfield.
