Agnes Leefe - actress

[Phoenix]

I'm back from an exhibition at the Guildhall, London of the works of John Atkinson Grimshaw.

I greatly enjoyed the paintings, but found the glimpses of home life equally fascinating.

John had sixteen children, ten of whom died before adulthood.

His long-term model was Agnes Leefe, who joined the family in 1879 and died of lung disease in 1890, having been nursed by his wife.

I've found John on the censuses. Agnes is proving more of a problem! I can't find any Agnes, nor any Leefes of the right age. She was an actress, so presumably that was her stage name. And of course there is no model in the household in 1881!

Bright ideas, anyone?

[Merry]

No bright ideas, but did you notice John A G is on the 1891 census twice?

[Merry]

I'm wondering about this death.....:

Deaths Mar 1890
Burns Agnes Locke 32 Leeds 9b 488


I tried to eliminate her, but haven't managed it yet. The GRO index page is a retyped one.

[Olde Crone]

She was an actress at the Leeds Grand theatre, apparently. She couldn't have been much good, cos' there's nothing about her career on google. One source says she was an actress "in the 1880s" (so while she lived with the Grimshaws)

If she was Agnes Locke Burns (and I think she must have been!) then that sounds Scottish to me.

OC

[Merry]

Hmmm....One of my googling sessions told me Agnes died at Knostrop Hall which is where JAG is in 1881 and 1891, but that is in South East Leeds sub district, whilst the death of A L Burns was in Kirkstall subdistrict.

Annoyingly, Yorks BMD have not yet got coverage for S E Leeds for 1890. :mad:

[Uncle John]

Any relation to Lettice Leefe, who featured in my sister's comic?

[kiterunner]

The GRO index page is a retyped one.


Looks like an original one to me?

[Mary from Italy]

I have some Leefes, but they're all in London. If you come across a Ewbank Leefe, he's one of mine :)

[kiterunner]

There is an Agnes Locke Horsburgh born 1 Jan 1858 Colinton, Midlothian, Scotland, on a few public ancestry trees. Then I thought FamilySearch had her marrying John Hall Young 15 Jan 1875 in Edinburgh, but there is another Agnes Locke Horsburgh on FamilySearch born in 1853 (different parents) so maybe that's the one who married John Hall Young. There is also another one born in 1861,again with different parents.

I can't see an Agnes Horsburgh / Burns marriage in Scotland or England, though, so maybe I'm barking up the wrong tree.

[kiterunner]

Ah, no, I found that the 1858 Agnes Locke Horsburgh married a John Davidson and they're still together in 1891 so forget her.

[Merry]

Looks like an original one to me?

Oh, I guess I don't know when they began typing them then. I thought it was around 1900. Do you know when it was?

Not that it matters in this case, because that Agnes probably died in the wrong place!

[kiterunner]

I would have said that your best bet might be to get a book about John Atkinson Grimshaw and hope it says where the info about Agnes Leefe comes from and follow the trail. But there only seem to be 2 books, one a biography only 24 pages long (by Guy Ragland Phillips) which seems to be incredibly rare, and the other one an art book by Alexander Robertson which looks as though it concentrates more on the art than on the life, and is very expensive, but might be in a library somewhere. Anyway, Guy Ragland Phillips was JAG's grandson and got most of his information from his mother, so most likely she was the source for the info about Agnes Leefe.

[Phoenix]

I've got one book and best mate has either the identical or a catalogue book from the exhibition, which was largely informed by Guy Phillips' biography, so I'll do a bit more dredging.

We did notice tiny bits of sloppiness about the exhibition: one painting was described as being of a prostitute, while text elsewhere pointed out that prostitutes did not commonly have large dogs in tow! There were several other instances where the text was patently wrong.

They did state several times that less is known than you might expect about so prolific an artist. I wondered whether Agnes was Irish. The trouble is, I doubt whether many girls would describe themselves as "artist's model" on a census!

It just seems rather sad that someone who had a name and a presence (if a trifle insipid, to judge by the paintings) should leave no discernible mark on the records.

[kiterunner]

I'm wondering whether Guy Phillips' mother just misremembered the name. Is there any other evidence that her name was Agnes Leefe?

[Phoenix]

There is at least a photograph of her, wearing the same costume as in the painting "My Wee White Rose" . It might be annotated on the back!

All the Google hits seem to be regurgitating the same information. Irritatingly, Guy's mother Elaine lived until 1971 (born 23 Feb 1877) so she had plenty of time to talk, but I've no idea whether his pictures were popular then, so I suspect nobody asked the right questions. Elaine was the youngest surviving daughter. The implication was that Agnes was probably the age of her elder siblings.

Interestingly, I'm sure the exhibition said that the introduction of Agnes into the household, which they implied was in 1879, caused a row between the parents which Elaine remembered. My parents may have quarrelled bitterly when I was two, but I certainly I don't remember it!

[Merry]

I read that about the rows when I googled, but the arrival of Agnes was said to be in te early 1880s in that piece.

[maggie_4_7]

The Leefe name hails from Yorkshire I spotted an Oswould Leefe on the 1841 or 1851 census last night but you probably already know that. My impression is she never married.

Sorry I am on iPhone so can't look for the actual census. But I have the recollection of an Agnes with a father Oswould but perhaps I dreamt it.

[kiterunner]

Yes, I saw an Agnes with father Oswould (not on the census, a baptism) but she was born in 1602.

[Uncle John]

I have some Leefes, but they're all in London. If you come across a Ewbank Leefe, he's one of mine :)

Do you want to sweep him up into your tree?