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Litchfield, Henrietta Emma née Darwin, 1843-1927 (editor of Darwin Papers)

 Person

Dates

  • Existence: 1843 - 1927

Biography

Henrietta “Etty” Darwin was the eldest of Charles Darwin’s daughters to reach adulthood. She married Richard Buckley Litchfield in 1871. She was a valued editor to her father as well as companion and correspondent to both of her parents. Henrietta played a significant role in the continuing memorialization of both of her parents: she edited passages of The Autobiography of Charles Darwin (1887), as well as a collection of her mother’s private papers which were published as Emma Darwin, Wife of Charles Darwin: A Century of Letters (1904).

Although Henrietta was not afforded the formal schooling provided to her brothers, her keen editorial eye was sought after by her father for his scientific writing, particularly his 1871 work, The Descent of Man. In this Henrietta provided far more than grammatical assistance; Darwin asked her to help clarify and enliven his work. Though far less recognised by Victorian society for her intellectual worth than her father or brothers, Henrietta was an essential lynchpin in the Darwin circle, and helped anchor both the scientific and domestic activities of her family.

Found in 1 Collection or Record:

 Fonds

Darwin Archive

 Fonds
Reference Code: GBR/0012/MS DAR
Scope and Contents The Darwin archive comprises the personal and scientific working papers of Charles Robert Darwin (1809-1882), together with correspondence and papers of many members of the wider Darwin family. Darwin’s scientific papers include his significant corpus of work on species, evolution and natural selection, and papers relating to the voyage of HMS Beagle, 1831-6. This material consists of: experimental and theoretical notebooks; draft essays; loose notes and scraps of notes, generally...
Dates: [1662- 1980s], bulk 19th century
Conditions Governing Access: Some material in the Darwin archive is not available because it is unfit for production and access to some very fragile material may only be possible with support from specialist conservation staff. Please see descriptions for further details.

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  • Type: Collection X