Identity area
Reference code
Title
Date(s)
- 1908-1919 (Creation)
Level of description
Extent and medium
67 pp.
Context area
Name of creator
Biographical history
Winifred Frances Barrington was born in London on 5 July 1897 as the eldest child and only daughter of Sir Charles Burton Barrington, 5th Baronet, of Glenstal Castle, county Limerick and Mary Rose née Bacon. She served as a nurse during the First World War and was a universal favourite with those who knew her. She struck up a friendship with District Inspector (Major) Henry Biggs, one of the most notorious and hated Black-and-Tan officers. On 14 May 1921, the couple were travelling in a car in Coolboreen, county Tipperary when their vehicle was ambushed by the IRA and Winifred was mistakenly shot and mortally wounded. She died later the same day at home, while Biggs died at the site of the ambush.
Archival history
Immediate source of acquisition or transfer
Content and structure area
Scope and content
Medium-sized hardback scrapbook with padded covers and the word ‘Album’ embossed in gold on the front cover. The scrapbook contains mostly drawings, either drawn directly on the page or pasted in with glue. The drawings are light-hearted and often humorous, featuring children, pets, flowers, young women, landscapes and seascapes, streetscapes of Bruges and a watercolour of the gardens at Glenstal. Some of the drawings are signed or initialled; contributors include among others Madeline Clayton, E. Powell, Kitty Haynes, F. M. Gilbert, Barbara Adams Camfray, A. B. N. Noel, C. Reeve, Victoria Arkell, E. Tenant, K. Courtenay, C. J. M. Sparks, B. Angus and L. Barnicot. Also pasted in are two poems cut out from magazines, ‘Hints to a New Girl’ by L. K. Young and ‘Sea-song’ by Dorothea Jennings’, and humorous thank-you letters in verse. There are also autographs collected from guests at parties, and two pages of mounted autographs from public figures of the day, including Prince George (later George VI), author George Grossmith, publisher Andrew Land, Lord Roberts, Duke of Bedford and Lord Lansdowne.
Appraisal, destruction and scheduling
Accruals
System of arrangement
Conditions of access and use area
Conditions governing access
Conditions governing reproduction
Language of material
Script of material
Language and script notes
Physical characteristics and technical requirements
This item is fragile with damaged spine, disintegrated binding and several loose pages requiring conservation treatment. A book cushion is required to consult the item.