Explanations – Van Cooten Voices

Kathleen May Thomas – Musical progress

rodney — Tue, 24 Nov 2020 07:05:44 +0000

Kathleen May Thomas progressed through the examination syllabus of the Trinity College London, and ultimately was awarded an Associate Diploma of the Trinity College of Music, London, in Piano, which qualified her to become a recognised piano teacher.

An article in the Beaudesert Times¹ explains the requirements:

… Up to, and including the year 1913, the syllabus required that a candidate who wished to obtain an Associate (A.T.C.L) Diploma was obliged to pass (a) a practical examination before an examiner of the college, and (b) a paperwork examination on rudiments of music. This entitled the candidate to the use of the letters A.T.C.L. This syllabus was then withdrawn, and the standard raised so that a candidate passing in the above subjects would receive a higher grade certificate (without the letters), and if he or she wished to obtain the A.T.C.L Diploma, it would be necessary to take, in addition to the above, a paperwork examination on “Art of Teaching.” …

The table below summarises Kathleen’s progress, culminating in passing the “Art of Teaching Music” examination, and thus qualifying her to teach. This was quite an achievement, the qualification itself being the equivalent of matriculation or first year University level, and quite comparable with the qualifications of many of the school classroom teachers of the day.

Publication date	Examination date	Examination	Teacher	Result
Wednesday 3 August 1910²	Monday 1 August 1910	Preparatory Piano practical	Miss B. Swift	77
Thursday 8 September 1910³	June 1910	Preparatory Music theory	Miss B. Swift	98
Friday 8 September 1911⁴	10th June 1911	Lower Division (Grade 2) Music theory	Miss B. Swift	88, honours
Thursday 29 August 1912⁵	June 1912	Intermediate music theory	Miss Beryl Swift	87, honours
Thursday 24 July 1913⁶	Monday/Tuesday 21/22 July 1913	Intermediate piano practical	Miss Beryl Swift	77
Thursday 5 March 1914⁷	December 1913	Upper intermediate music theory	Miss Beryl Swift	71
Thursday 16 July 1914⁸	13–15 July, 1914	Senior piano practical	Miss B. Swift	76
Tuesday 13 July 1915⁹	July 1915	Higher local piano practical	Miss B. Swift	66
Thursday 19 April 1917¹⁰	December 1916	Higher theory, Rudiments of Music	Miss B. Swift	60
Saturday 15 June 1918¹¹	10–12 June 1918	A.T.C.L. piano practical	Miss Swift	71
Wednesday 7 May 1919¹²	December 1918	Art of Teaching Music (Teacher’s Diploma)	Miss B. Swift	63 associate pianiste

Courtesy of the Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance Jerwood Library, Kathleen is is listed in the 1920 Calendar of Trinity College London as having been awarded The Associate Diploma: Pianoforte.

Australian Music Examinations

rodney — Wed, 18 Nov 2020 12:58:44 +0000

My paternal grandmother (Nana Van) Kathleen May Thomas was born in 1900, and was raised by her grandparents in Maryborough, Queensland, owing to the death of her mother (and baby) following childbirth in 1902. Young Katie was supported and encouraged to learn the piano from an early age. She advanced quite quickly, and gained her qualifications as a piano teacher. She taught piano until she was 79 years old.

Kathleen May Van Cooten (née Thomas) sitting near her piano circa 1964

As a young student she would have had several choices as to the musical syllabus or examination system that she followed.

In colonial/early federation times the options were:

The Trinity College of Music
The London College of Music
Local University conservatoriums of music, later the Australian Music Examination Board (AMEB)

The Trinity College examinations were clearly the best established available in Maryborough in during 1900-1920 when Katie was acquiring her musical skills.

Doreen M. Bridges gives an excellent overview of the scene in Australia in her Sydney University PhD Thesis “THE ROLE OF UNIVERSITIES IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF MUSIC EDUCATION IN AUSTRALIA 1885-1970” submitted in 1970¹. In it she describes the development of Departments of Music and Conservertoire of Music in Australian Universities, the rivalry between the various examining bodies, as well as the struggle to develop a characteristically Australian music examination and education system.

The Trinity College of Music

Trinity College of Music was founded in central London in 1872 by the Reverend Henry George Bonavia Hunt to improve the teaching of church music. Trinity College London was founded in 1877 as the external examinations board of Trinity College of Music.

A newspaper article in The Telegraph (Brisbane) on 27 June 1882² announces:

We are informed that the Council of Trinity College, London, have determined upon establishing a local centre in Brisbane for conducting examinations in music. The examinations are open to persons of either sex, and the scheme of instruction embraces — 1. Matriculation ; 2. Students in Music ; 3. Associates in Music ; 4. Licentiates in Music ; and 5. Certificates of Competency in Solo Playing or Singing. There are several Musical Colleges now in London ; Trinity College is the first, however, to found a branch in the colonies, and this is due to our townsman, Mr. W. H. Wilson, who has consented to act as honorary secretary.

Advertisements by Brisbane music teachers in July 1882 indicate that they prepare students for the Trinity College, and an paragraph in the Maryborough Chronicle of 4 December 1896³ details a meeting forming a Maryborough centre. Theory examinations were held on 5 June 1897.

An article in the Maryborough Chronicle in 1898⁴ features an article reporting on an interview with Mr. Charles Edwards, the travelling examiner of Trinity College, London. It states that

Mr. Edwards explained that the examinations that he was now conducting throughout Australasia were the first the College had held in the colonies, though it was the fourth year that it had sent out examiners. The general results in Queensland as far as he had gone had been quite equal to those he had found in the best centres in England. In fact, they had been equal to any he had had anywhere except in South Africa, which he visited two years ago, and where the results were really excellent.

Trinity College continues as an examination authority – see https://www.trinitycollege.com/local-trinity with a branch in Australia – https://www.trinitycollege.com/local-trinity/australia. In 2005, Trinity College of Music merged with Laban Dance Centre to form Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance – see https://www.trinitylaban.ac.uk/.

The London College of Music

LCM Examinations was founded as the external examinations department of the London College of Music (LCM), a music conservatoire which was founded in 1887. In 1991, the LCM and its external examinations board became part of the Polytechnic of West London (which became Thames Valley University in 1992 and was renamed the University of West London in 2011). In 1966 the London College of Music, after a decision of the Council, ceased all operations overseas.

The Brisbane Courier of 27 October 1903⁵ reports that the first examinations in Brisbane had been held.

An advertisement in the Maryborough Chronicle of 2 August 1909⁶ indicated that practical examinations would be held in Maryborough.

Australian Music Examination Board

In 1887 a programme of music examinations was initiated in Australia by the Universities of Adelaide and Melbourne. Subsequently the Australian Music Examinations Board (AMEB) emerged in 1918 as a national body with the purpose of providing graded assessments of the achievements of music students. Later, examinations were also provided for students of speech and drama. Moves in Queensland commenced with the foundation of the University of Queensland in 1910. An article in the Maryborough Chronicle of 15 February 1913⁷ reports the promotion of the establishment of an Australian music examination board, and examinations were to commence in 1913 in centres which included Maryborough⁸.

Where was J. B. Edward’s Jewellers Shop

rodney — Thu, 05 Mar 2020 10:52:15 +0000

If you walk from Alexandra Fountain in Bendigo today, and head down Pall Mall towards the Law Courts, its a little hard to see where J. B. Edwards Jewellery shop at 3 Pall Mall was.

The picture below shows the scene in possibly the 1920s. J. B. Edward’s shop is the third down from the corner.

ALEXANDRA FOUNTAIN, BENDIGO, VIC. [picture]
Rose Stereograph Co [c1920-1954]
http://search.slv.vic.gov.au/permalink/f/1cl35st/SLV_VOYAGER1644169

Here’s another photo showing staff outside the shop in 1911.

Creator: W H Robinson Studio Museums Victoria https://collections.museumvictoria.com.au/items/770814

And finally, courtesy of Google streetview, is the scene today:

So it looks like the shop is about the third window from the right, with possibly some original features behind the modern facade, just behind the Aussie Cash logo.

Slave emancipation

rodney — Wed, 26 Feb 2020 06:35:03 +0000

Hendrik Van Cooten was a plantation and slave owner.

In Britain, in August 1833, the Slave Emancipation Act was passed, giving all slaves in the British empire their freedom, albeit after a set period of years. Plantation owners received compensation for the ‘loss of their slaves’ in the form of a government grant set at £20,000,000. The slaves themselves received no recognition of the injustices done them, no reparations, nor apology.

A recent segment on the Australian Broadcasting Commission (ABC) Radio National (RN) Late Night Live programme looks at some of the ramifications of slave emancipation – https://www.abc.net.au/radionational/programs/latenightlive/blood-money_-emma-christopher/11924196

An article taking a position on a current compensation movement appears in the Guardian – https://www.theguardian.com/news/2018/mar/29/slavery-abolition-compensation-when-will-britain-face-up-to-its-crimes-against-humanity

University College London hosts a website detailing the compensation money paid to slave owners at https://www.ucl.ac.uk/lbs/.

Although Hendrik died in 1825, his estates and family received payments.

Hendrik appears in the database, indicating that he had been the owner of plantations Vryheids Lust and Sheet Anchor in Demerara. The plantations had the following slaves:

Year	Males	Females	Total
1817	119	99	218
1826	124	104	228
1832	166	133	299

299 enslaved persons were registered in 1832 to the heirs of the late Hendrick van Cooten, by John L.C. Playter.

On 19^th Apr 1836 compensation for 286 enslaved of £14638 18s 6d was issued.

An Elizabeth Ann Van Cooten received £36 7s 0d (1 enslaved) and £35 9s 10d (2 enslaved). Elizabeth is possibly Eliza Ann Van Cooten or Elizabeth Van Cooten nee van Tienen.

Nicholas Van Cooten received £287 10s 2d (5 enslaved) and British Guiana £98 9s 11s (2 enslaved). This Nicholas is either Hendrik’s son or Hendrik’s grandson.

Borderless Empire : Dutch Guiana in the Atlantic World, 1750-1800

rodney — Mon, 10 Feb 2020 11:31:56 +0000

In 2015, Bram Hoonhout, then a PhD student working on the 18th century history of Essequibo and Demerara, alerted me to the existence of references to Hendrik, Jan and Nicolaas van Cooten in the letterbooks of Theodore Barrell, a merchant in Demerara.

He was able to supply images, and my transcription is now available here. The page image is made available with the permission of the New York Historical Society.

Bram has now published his history – “Borderless Empire : Dutch Guiana in the Atlantic World, 1750-1800”. The description at bookdepository.com reads:

Borderless Empire explores the volatile history of Dutch Guiana, in particular the forgotten colonies of Essequibo and Demerara, to provide new perspectives on European empire building in the Atlantic world. Bram Hoonhout argues that imperial expansion was a process of improvisation at the colonial level rather than a project that was centrally orchestrated from the metropolis. Furthermore, he emphasizes that colonial expansion was far more transnational than the oft-used divisions into “national Atlantics” suggest. In so doing, he transcends the framework of the “Dutch Atlantic” by looking at the connections across cultural and imperial boundaries.

The openness of Essequibo and Demerara affected all levels of the colonial society. Instead of counting on metropolitan soldiers, the colonists relied on Amerindian allies, who captured runaway slaves and put down revolts. Instead of waiting for Dutch slavers, the planters bought enslaved Africans from foreign smugglers. Instead of trying to populate the colonies with Dutchmen, the local authorities welcomed adventurers from many different origins. The result was a borderless world in which slavery was contingent on Amerindian support and colonial trade was rooted in illegality. These transactions created a colonial society that was far more Atlantic than Dutch.

Bram’s book has gone straight to my wishlist!

I’ll work through the information in the Theodore Barrell letters in future posts.

The Spagnoletti Speaking Instrument

rodney — Tue, 28 Jan 2020 06:21:51 +0000

Great great grandfather William Thomas, in his handwritten autobiography of 1926, refers to his time on the railways in Wales in the early 1870s, and using the “Spagoletti speaking instrument.”

Spagnoletti Code

This turns out to be a form of the Single Needle Instrument developed by Charles Ernest Spagnoletti. I’ve found details of this at Sam Hallas’ page at http://www.samhallas.co.uk/railway/single_needle.htm. He gives an explanation and diagram of the code, which is a representation of morse code.

This confirms William’s recollection of the signalling code he learned as a youth.

Dr John fails to front

rodney — Mon, 04 Feb 2008 17:02:34 +0000

I mentioned in a previous post that I needed to consult the medical directories for the UK. I have since browsed the State Library of Victoria microfiche for 1846 and 1848, and the GSV Library microfiche for 1847. Alas I was unable to find any reference to Dr John Van Cooten of Guernsey. It is possible that he was no longer in practice – the 1851 census occupation for him says that he was a physician no longer in practice. The 1846 directory was London only. The 1848 directory contained London and Provincial listings. It is likely that the list of of provincial practitioners didn’t cover the Channel Islands. I could find no reference at all to medical practitioners on Guernsey or Jersey.

A search of the Guille Alles Library catalogue for Guernsey shows that they hold “A Guernsey commercial directory for 1826 : from A guide to theisland of Guernsey, 1826”, and “Guernsey Commercial Directory for 1834 / edited by J. Stevens Cox.”. I’ll try to find if someone can consult these for me.

A Transcript is not the original!

rodney — Sun, 04 Nov 2007 01:07:35 +0000

Some time ago I obtained an 1881 English Census household entry from the LDS transcripts on CD for Thomas and Ida Gorsuch. The other day, having access to ancestry.com at the GSV Library I obtained a scanned copy of the actual census book page. In the last column of the entry for Ida, recording whether the person was (1) Deaf-and-Dumb (2) Blind (3) Imbecile or Idiot (4) Lunatic, was an entry reading “Partially blind from accident”. This information was not on the census transcript, and sheds a little more light on her personal history.

Also a reminder that the transcript is not the original! A quick check of my sources list indicates that there are a couple more LDS 1881 transcripts that I need to obtain the original for.

Orphan Chambers

rodney — Mon, 30 Jul 2007 06:48:40 +0000

The Orphan Chamber (Weeskamer) was a Dutch practise that made provision for the collection and administration of the property of persons who died intestate and left heirs absent from the Colony or were under age and therefore unable to take the duty upon themselves. The existence of notices from the Orphan Chamber to creditors implies that an estate has come under their administration, and that there are under age heirs to be provided for.