Elsie M. Palmer Letters, Mf 0298 and Ms 0335
Received 1993. Source unknown.
Queen Mellen, September 21, 1865, "Dictation"
Dear Mr. Macdonald from Elsie Palmer, "The Brunswick" (ca. 1885?)
My own darling Motherling from Elsie, October 3, 1889, when Elsie is on her way home from traveling in Germany (Rhine, Cologne, etc.)
My dearest Elsie from Rowena (Bell), January 11 (1907?), responding to announcement of Elsie's engagement to Leo Myers
Darling Elsie from "your old Aunt Sara," February 19, 1909
My darling Elsie from Katie, March 13, 1909, on the death of General Palmer. (Katie Bennett school friend of Elsie's in New York school.)
Else dear from Senore (artist Peter Harrison?), March 15, 1909
"Soon after General Palmer's death..." from F.C. Thornton, Colorado Springs, March 11, 1920 concerning financial matters between him and General Palmer, with copies of letter from Mrs. Watt to Thornton (Chalmondley) and Thornton's response
Dearest Daddy from Mary (Mellen), June 15, 1926
Dearest Elsie from Mary (Mellen), March 13, 1927 New Haven, Connecticut
Dearest Else from Peter, Oct 24, 1935
Dear Mrs. Myers from [N. Ward?] Tunbridge Wells, Kent, September 16, 1938
Dear Madam (Elsie) from V.C. Dove (chauffeur) "During the war 1939-1945"
Dear Mrs. Myers from George H. Krause, October 28, 1940, suggesting that the Myers send their grandchildren from England to Colorado Springs to stay with his son during the war.
My Dearest Elsie from Ivy, July 21, 1941
Dear Mrs. Myers and Dear Miss Palmer from [Sara?], Nov 2, 1943, with copy of Sept 13 letter concerning the Liberty Ship William J. Palmer
Dear Mrs. Myers from George H. Krause, December 11, 1943, concerning the launching of the S.S. William J. Palmer
My dear Elsie from Charlie (Tennyson), July 7, 1944
My dear Elsie from Charlie (Tennyson), July 24, 1944
My dear Elsie from Charlie (Tennyson), Feb 23, 1946
My dearest Elsie from Rowena (Bell), Aug 27, 1947, S. Rhodesia Africa
Dearest Cousin Elsie from Mary, September 11, 1947
Elsie darling from Sister / Dos (Dorothy Palmer), October 30, 1947 (multiple greetings and signatures on multiple pages).
Cablegram to Miss Dorothy Palmer from Cess, Oct 28, 1947 (birthday wishes)
Dearest Cousin Elsie from Mary (Mellen) October 29, 1947
Dearest Dos [Dorothy Palmer] from Susan S. Fisher, October 30, 1947 (Susan Stirling Fisher was the mother of John Stirling Fisher (author of A Builder of the West) and the sister of Dr. Henry Chorley Watt) transcribed below
Else darling from Dos, Nov 15, 1947, enclosing Postlethwaite's letter of Nov 16 (Dear Geoffrey, copy)
Else darling from Dos, Nov 19, 1947
My dearest Elsie from Susan S. Fisher January 21, 1948 transcribed below
Dearest Elsie from Susan S. Fisher, February 13, 1948 transcribed below
Dear Aunt Else from John (Fisher), February 20, 1948 transcribed below
Dear Aunt Else from John Fisher February 25, 1948
undated
Dearest Friend from Saxonbury Lodge, Frant, Sussex
My dearest Elsie from Maud (Mellen)
"An Ode to his horse by a Colorado Cow-boy" (poem by F.C. Thornton?)
"The Vision" by F.C. Thornton (poem). "Written to Margaret when the going was hard and we were both suffering and so may be excused"
Newspaper clippings: death of FDR in 1945; "Colorado Springs scraps" 1950 from Alma Anderson
Misc.: advertisement for household service, note fragments
Gift of Lewis and Louisa Creed, 1998
Scope and content
Correspondence sent to Elsie M. Palmer, eldest daughter of William J. Palmer, 1934-1950. Most are from her daughter, Elsie Queen "E. Q." Nicholson, and are undated but probably written during the early 1940s, when both mother and daughter lived in England. Included are handwritten poems from a friend of Elsie's, Lillian Bowes-Lyon; letters of sympathy written after the 1944 death of Elsie's husband Leo Myers; and newspaper clippings from the late 1940s, including reviews of Myers's novels. A small group of letters exchanged by Leo and "Coley" Cole are included.
Inventory
Folder 1
#1 Letter to Elsie from "Leslie," L. P. Hartley, dated October 28, 1934
#2 Letter to Mrs. Myers from Helen Bolton, dated April 18, 1944
#3 Letter to Elsie from "Charlie," Charles Tennyson, dated April 27, 1944
#4 Letter to Elsie from "Coley," Coley Cole (?), dated May 4, 1944
#5 Letter to Elsie from "Dos," sister Dorothy Palmer, dated June 24, 1944
#6 Letter to Elsie from Charles Tennyson, dated August 4, 1946 (?)
#7 Letter to Elsie from "Cess," Cecile Jacobeit, governess to the Palmer family, dated April 1, 1947
#8 Quotation from "Epipsychidion" by Shelley, "copied for Else – Jan 1950"
Folder 2
Letters to Elsie from her daughter, "E. Q.," Elsie Queen Nicholson, signed "Bob", undated as to year, sent from "Blasdon, Cranborne" (?) and "Mill House" (13)
Folder 3
9 Poems by Lillian Bowes-Lyon, most handwritten, two cut from newspapers or journals; 6 letters to Elsie from "Lil," 1943.
Folder 4
Miscellaneous newspaper clippings
Folder 5
Newspaper clippings of reviews of L. H. Myers's books, The Root and the Flower and
The Pool of Vishnu, from a variety of British and American publications.
Letters exchanged between Leo Myers, Elsie's husband, and "Coley" Cole, a family friend, on the subject of Elsie's "Shakespeare-phobia." Several of the letters had been copied and numbered by Dorothy Palmer, Elsie's sister.
Four letters transcribed by Barbara Meredith, 2026.
The London Hotel, Lancaster Gate, W 2.
October 30th 1947
Dearest Dos
I wonder if I am right that yesterday was your birthday & today is Elsie's? If it was yesterday will you mid having belated very loving wishes, dear Dos, and for Else today too. I am not quite sure, but I think so. I wonder if you are at home or visiting at Bath [?] & if your lovely pictures are safely hung in Oakley Gardens. We did so enjoy our lunch with you both. The settlement of Phoebe's American holdings is still dragging on. The U.S. Federal Government valued all her Antlers Stocks & Bonds at $10,050 and Mr Krause has now offered to buy them in at $ 6,775. I don't know whether Jeanie & John will want to accept his offer, but will not write to them till I hear if you & Else would think it all right for us to do so if they want it. Else said that she thought of selling some of her Bonds but would let us know if she did & of course we none of us want to do anything you & she would not approve of. You are both always so dear to us & I feel I am sometimes a bother with tiresome business things.
John has had a lot of nice letters & some nice reviews & some reviews which think too much happens off stage. It was discussed with another book on the wireless in The Current events thing [?] but we happened to miss that unfortunately. He would like reviews in The Sunday Times & The Times Literary Supplement but they are slow in coming. However he met his Literary Agent for lunch two days ago, and he told John that Hodder & Stoughton are very much pleased with the sales. In the first four weeks 8,000 copies were sold in this country and 6,000 in a Colonial edition, which makes 14,000 altogether.
I am so glad & I know you & Else will be, that things are going well about it.
Much love to you dear Dos from us both & love to Coley.
Your loving
Susan S. Fisher
The Windsor Hotel, Lancaster Gate, London W 2
Jan 21st 1948
My dearest Elsie
We loved getting your letter. I do hope you are pretty well. John & I think & speak of you very often. He and I would like very much to come to you about the middle of February for a few day. We can fix the exact days later perhaps if you are well enough to have us there. From about a Tuesday to a Friday is best because of our rations.
Jeanie sends her love but she is going back to Peebles in about ten days. She has enjoyed her little stay in London but is almost too old + set in her ways now for journeys and hotel life and is best at home. She will be eighty next month & has never been very strong.
John has had nice Royalties from Long Journey which is heartening. A cheque for £597, and he had already had £100. He is now racking his brains to find a plot for another novel but has not yet found anything that satisfied him which is worrying for him. I hope something will suggest itself to him soon.
With much love from us both.
Always very affectionately yours
Susan S. Fisher
[different handwriting, arrow to name says: Mother of John Fisher Builder of the West]
The Windsor Hotel, Lancaster Gate, W2
Feb 13 1948
Dearest Elsie
John and I are looking forward with such great pleasure to our little visit next week. We shall come on Tuesday the 17th as was arranged, and by the 3.40 from Liverpool Street, and we shall look out for your driver at Ipswich.
How nice it will be to see you again dear Elsie.
I am so glad to hear from Dos that your treatments are really helping you.
With our love
I am always
Your loving
Susan S. Fisher
Windsor Hotel, Lancaster Gate, London W 2
20th February 1948
Dear Aunt Else,
We got back home safely before lunch, after a very easy but rather chilly journey, and I do want to thank you again for such a delightful time with you. It is always such a joy to come back to Enwarton [?], and to see you again, and to have such talks about everything, and it was especially nice this time to find you so well and able to walk more. I hope that as the summer comes you will be able to walk still more.
Today I am afraid can hardly have been a day for walking much in the garden – as we drove to Ipswich it was quite sunny, but there were really considerable snowdrifts along the road, and sheets of ice everywhere. Still it is nice to feel that spring must come soon.
With many thanks again for a delightful visit.
Ever yours affectionately
John
[different handwriting: From John Fisher 'Builder of the West']
P.S. I do hope you had good news of your little grandson. Will you remember me to Eve when she comes?
[different handwriting:] John Fisher's mother may have been a sister of Dr Watts
[transcriber's note: Yes, John Stirling Fisher was the son of Susan Stirling Fisher nee Watt – note, no 's' on surname Watt, sister of Dr Henry Chroley Watt]
maintained by Special Collections; last revised, 8-2026, jr.