A Gentlewoman's Home
The Whole Art of Building, Furnishing, and Beautifying the Home

First published in 1896, this is a guide to creating the 'dream house', written by a nineteenth-century domestic expert.

Jane Ellen Panton (Author)

9781108053013, Cambridge University Press

Paperback / softback, published 16 August 2012

470 pages, 33 b/w illus.
21.6 x 14 x 2.7 cm, 0.59 kg

Jane Ellen Panton (1847–1923) was the second daughter of the artist William Powell Frith, and an expert on domestic issues. First published in 1896, this is her guide to creating the 'dream house'. In it she draws on the experiences of Deborah and Dick, clients who sought her advice after looking unsuccessfully for a suitable home. The book is based on the notion that turning an existing building into a dream house is impossible, and begins by offering advice on finding land and building on it to create a home that could be 'the cradle of the race', passed on to successive generations. Panton devotes a chapter to each of the different parts of the house, from the governess's rooms to the maids' quarters. Providing a revealing insight into domestic middle-class tastes and concerns in late nineteenth-century England, this book remains of interest to social historians.

1. Introductory
2. Building the house
3. Kitchens and basements
4. Baths and sinks
5. Halls and staircases
6. Dining rooms
7. Morning rooms
8. Drawing rooms
9. Libraries
10. Billiard rooms
11. Day and night nurseries
12. Children's bedrooms
13. The mother's rooms
14. Governess's rooms and schoolroom
15. Spare rooms
16. Dressing rooms
17. Girls' bedrooms
18. Bachelors' rooms
19. The maids' quarters
20. The coping stone is laid, the dream-house vanishes.

Subject Areas: Social & cultural history [HBTB]