Maria's diary is a hardback volume containing plain pages. Her entries cover the period 13 April 1846-1 May 1848 during which time she lived in Derbyshire and the Isle of Man. The entries record details about visitors to her home, the health and subsequent death of her husband, sermons and church activities that she witnessed, and her day to day pastimes, which included teaching children.
The diary provides a detailed account of the life of a vicar and bishop's wife during the mid-19th century.
Maria Shirley was the daughter of William Waddington. She married Reverend Walter Augustus Shirley (1797-1847) in Paris in 1827 and they had one son, Walter Waddington Shirley (1828-1866). Nothing is known of Maria's life other than what is revealed in her diary or what is known of her husband. Fortunately the diary is a detailed account of two years of her life, and the career of her husband, being a prominent churchman, is well documented. Maria appears to have taken an active role as the wife of a vicar and bishop, attending church services and running classes for school children. Her diary begins after she had just moved from Brailsford, Derbyshire to Derby. She moved to the Isle of Man for a short time in 1847, and then returned to Derby in May of that year after the death of her husband.
Walter Augustus Shirley was born in Ireland, educated at Winchester and New College, Oxford, and was ordained in 1820. His career as a churchman began in Derbyshire but Shirley moved to Rome where he acted as a chaplain from 1826 to 1827. Following his marriage to Maria, he returned to Derbyshire to take his father's living as vicar at Shirley. He had the living of Whiston, near Rotherham conjointly with Shirley in the mid-1830s before becoming parson of Brailsford, the neighbouring parish to Shirley. He was made archdeacon of Derby in 1840, and Bishop of Sodor and Man in 1846, moving to the Bishop's Court, Isle of Man a year later to take up the post. He died there in April 1847.
No archival arrangement has been necessary.
ACCESS: Accessible to all registered readers.
This description is the only finding aid available for the collection. Copyright in the description belongs to The University of Nottingham.
REPROGRAPHIC: Reprographic copies can be supplied for educational use and private study purposes only, depending on access status and the condition of the documents.
COPYRIGHT: Permission to make published use of any material from this collection must be sought in advance in writing from the Keeper of the Department of Manuscripts and Special Collections (email mss-library@nottingham.ac.uk). The Department will try to assist in identifying copyright owners but this can be difficult and the responsibility for copyright clearance before publication ultimately rests with the person wishing to publish.
Nothing is known of the history of the ownership of the diary prior to its acquisition by The University of Nottingham's Library.
