Gough Square's Guardians
Dr Johnson's House in the 20th Century
First Baron Cecil Harmsworth
Cecil Harmsworth’s family ran several newspapers in the early twentieth century. Cecil, therefore, was frequently found on Fleet Street, where many of these newspapers’ printing presses operated.
Cecil himself was an MP. A Liberal candidate throughout most of the first half of the twentieth century for Lanarkshire and Luton, he held various Cabinet positions in 1915 and 1917-1922. He received his peerage as Baron of Egham, Surrey, in 1939. Cecil was also a director for one of his family’s newspaper presses, but his brothers Lord Northcliffe and Lord Rothermere were more involved than he.
When Cecil walked through Gough Square in 1911, he found the House in a ‘dilapidated’ and ‘decay[ing]’ state. As a Johnson Club member, he believed strongly in the House’s protection as means of preserving the wordsmith’s memory. He paid £4000 to save it from being demolished and began to seek methods to restore it.
Cecil went to an architect named Alfred Burr for guidance on how to best restore the property. He believed in keeping the House as historically accurate to the Georgian era as he could, especially in its architecture and interior. Cecil furnished the House lightly and simply in a ‘Cromwellian’ fashion, choosing to highlight its existent architectural features. This design has been kept and reinforced since by the House’s Curators, in order to place emphasis on Dr Johnson rather than simply exemplify the Georgian era.
Despite its decrepit state when bought in 1911, and damage incurred by the Blitz in the Second World War, the House has survived in good condition since Johnson. Today, the contemporary architecture remains clear. Inside, some of the House’s furniture even belongs directly to Johnson or are from those in his circle, such as Elizabeth Carter.
The Trust
Cecil Harmsworth formed the Trust himself in 1929, with himself as Chairman. It was created specifically so that ‘Johnsonians’ and admirers of Dr Johnson could be involved in and oversee the House.
On its formation, a dedication dinner was held, with many important literary persons in attendance. This included Sir Max Beerbohm, an English essayist and parodist, Augustine Birrell, a Former Chief Secretary of Ireland, and Sir William Orpen, an Irish painter. Alongside them, three other members of the Harmsworth family were appointed to the Trust.
Many members of the Trust were also members of the Johnson Club. In 1933, the Club gave the trustees all their books and manuscripts from their collection – this included Johnson’s dictionaries and books from his own library and Bluestocking manuscripts from the women in Johnson’s circle. In the year since, memorabilia such as china sets and walking sticks have also been acquired for the House.
Cecil had quite a specific idea for the House’s future. He envisioned many of the museum’s visitors to already be admirers of Johnson, and so did not want to emphasise the elements of the house that made it Georgian, but rather Johnsonian. On the Cecil’s death in 1948, his son Desmond took over the role of Chairman. On Desmond’s retirement in 1988, his son Thomas (Cecil’s grandson) held the post until 2018. Stephen Clarke, the current Chairman, is the first person outside Cecil Harmsworth’s direct lineage to hold the post. Regardless, he and the Trust still maintain the First Baron’s vision for the House to, first and foremost, emanate Dr Johnson’s life and works, as well as bring light to those who had an impact on him.
Curation and the Dyble Family
Upon the opening of Dr Johnson’s House, Cecil appointed Isabella Dyble and her husband as the first Curators, originally under the title of ‘custodian’. Isabella had previously been a steward at the Tower of London, but adapted to her job well and became a trusted associate by the Harmsworths and the Trustees. She remained on-site at the House during World War I, where, in December 1915, she and Johnson Club members reportedly even saw a Zeppelin fly by. Fortunately, the house was unaffected by any attacks.
In 1919, Phyllis Rowell – Isabella’s daughter, and recently widowed – joined the custodian at the House with her daughter Betty. Phyllis and Betty would later become equally as important to the museum’s curation as Isabella, with both eventually becoming Curators themselves over the 20th century period.
Phyllis’ time in Milwaukee, USA, is self-recollected by an oral history she gave on her time during World War I. She participated in the American Red Cross, and as a forewoman in a dynamo factory – noting her difficulty in the latter position over confusions about American versus British weight measurements for dynamo blades. She planned to leave the US after the death of her husband, although she had to delay her trip home until 1919 due to the sinking of the RMS Lusitania ship. On arriving at Dr Johnson’s House, she assisted her mother in her curatorial duties until Isabella’s death in 1940, during an evacuation of the museum. Phyllis took over the role as Curator and would play an important part in keeping the House safe during the Blitz. She worked until her retirement in 1963, upon which she was gifted a period teapot by the Trust, and made a governor of the House.
Phyllis’ retirement welcomed the curation of Margaret Eliot, who would hold the role for thirty years. She was recommended by the contemporary Secretary of the Trust, who also worked for the Met Public Gardens Association, and had heard of Margaret’s diligence and good reputation over there. In a lucky coincidence, she had even previously owned a cat named Hodge (a similarity she shared with Dr Johnson himself)!
Even to the present day, Margaret has been the longest-lasting Curator the House has had. As a child, her father had wished for her to become a naval officer, and this perhaps was reflected in the way she ran the House – with precision and care. Her letters from the House’s Archives show she took great care to know Johnson’s history intimately, telling one recipient that she took his questioning of her “ability to answer two elementary questions as an insult”. Although she was less interested than Phyllis in providing the House as a space for parties and entertainment, she was highly respected by the Trust and other curators.
Betty would take on the role as Curator after Margaret passed away in the role in 1993. The third generation of the Dyble family, Betty already knew how the House operated, and the Trust had confidence in her. Although she would only work for three years, her dedication was well-remembered. On her death in 1996, the current Lord Harmsworth and his sister Madeleine each wrote obituaries, and the Trustees contributed £500 to her memorial service.
World War II and Dr Johnson’s House
Dr Johnson’s House played an important and unusual role in the Second World War. In the early days of the War, Phyllis came across a group of firemen in Gough Square, and after a brief conversation, decided that she wished to help them. By chance, she knew the officer in charge of the London Fire Brigade, and she was eventually permitted to run a small canteen.
Phyllis’ – and Betty’s – support began with simple cups of tea and small acts of service. However, over time, this help grew to providing rudimentary shelter for firemen and even providing spaces for arts and entertainment.
The Auxiliary Fire Service (AFS) became particularly close to the House, and with Phyllis and Betty, as the war progressed into the 1940s. Phyllis found that the firemen had no beds, and sometimes even had to sleep on bare concrete. This would particularly affect firemen whose families were evacuated, and so had no home to return to. Phyllis and the owner of the Red Lion Tavern banded together to provide beds and blankets. In return, the firemen came to support the House against Blitz attacks.
The first bombing that directly affected Dr Johnson’s House came on the 29th of December, 1940, although there were bombings near to Gough Square as early as September of the same year. Phyllis and Betty packed the most delicate belongings into large tea chests, and many of these were sent to the sub-basement of Cecil Harmsworth’s Carmelite House in Embankment for safety. Despite this, and the evacuation from the House, the bombings frightened Isabella so much that she had a heart attack, and unfortunately passed away soon after.
The building itself would sustain some damage during the Second World War. In the Garret on the top floor, the beams were hit by an incendiary bomb, leaving them blackened and charred. Even today, you can still see this damage. Luckily, the firemen’s support meant the Garret ultimately stayed intact. A shelter was also built in the parlour to shelter the firemen and the Dyble women from V1 and V2 bomb raids.
One particularly notable night was on the 10th of May, 1941. Phyllis and Betty were invited to a party hosted by the AFS in their honour. As gratitude for the canteen and shelter provided, the women were presented with a silver teapot. Unfortunately, the party was cut short – this night would later become known as one of the worst air raids in London, nicknamed the ‘Hardest Night’. The firemen recalled “inches of ash” in Gough Square, although the House was not directly affected.
However, some great light-heartedness came from the firemen’s stays at Dr Johnson’s House. The Firemen’s Art Club, with permission from the Harmsworths, threw social events and musical evenings on the ground floor of the museum. By luck, several firefighters made up part of the string quartet of the London Symphony Orchestra! They often practiced at the House, with composer and fireman William Reed even scoring a piece named ‘Dr Johnson Suite’. The musicians performed often for the firemen, and once, at 10 Downing Street.
Betty also found love with one of the firemen, Edward Gathergood. He arrived in London in 1941 from Norfolk, and they married at St Bartholomew the Great in Smithfield, with their reception at the House. As further testament to their dedication, Edward later became a caterer for food events at the museum, and the couple also christened their son in the building. They were eventually made Honorary Friends of the House.
This online exhibition was curated by Esme McCreight and is the result of the research undertaken for in-house exhibition CUSTODIANS 2019, curated by Prof. Sheila Cavanagh, Emory College, and Celine Luppo McDaid, Curator of Dr Johnson's House.