In the twenty years and more that I delved into the world's Victorian Vocalists, and wrote up some thousand of them, there were some areas on which I somewhat focussed more lightly than others. For various reasons. One of them being the sources available. I mean, Boston? One of the most important and worst documented (on line) major cities in America. Which kind of put the singers of mid-century Massachussets out of my reach. Mrs this and Mrs that ... Oh, I picked up the ones who went international, but ...
Well, yesterday a righted that neglect just a little. I picked up a piece of music ...
Well. Linley ain't rubbish. But who is Miss Northall. Julia L Northall. That frightful middle initial thing, so clearly American ...
Wrong.
Julia Lucy NORTHALL was British-born, even though her singing career was made wholly in America. She was born in Lower Mitton, Worcestershire, on a date she 'couldn't remember' and christened there 15 January 1823. She was said to be the daughter of William Knight Northall, a schoolmaster who at various times ran a 'Classical and Commercial Seminary' in Stouport and at Birmingham's Synge's Hill et al. The history of Mr Northall (b 1780?) is not quite clear, but he married an Ann Drucilla Turley in 1802 and, at undefined dates, fathered five children. He christened them all, in a job lot, at Mitton, in 1823. After Drucilla died. He remarried promptly and seems to have more children ... but in 1837 announced his departure for America.
He can be seen in King's NY, in the 1840 census. Family not listed. So I wonder who came with him. Or is this son William, born allegedy 1811 ... I don't know and I'm not going to dig any deeper. William jr became a dentist in Brooklyn ..
Henry became a 'merchant and committed suicide.
Julia became a vocalist. She played around with her date of birth, so I'm not even trying to sort that out. She claimed Drucilla as her mother, so, work it out.
Professionally, I find her first at the New York Tabernacle 6 January 1845, singing alongside the violin antics of Ole Ball. The Tabernacle would be the base of her early years, in concerts alongside such as de Begnis, Brough, Rosina Pico ... the backbone vocalists of the best concerts of the time. I don't know who sang what when they performed Messiah. Madame Pico was a 'dramatic soprano'. Julia was 'a sweet little singer'.
She was seen lavishly in New York and Philadelphia concerts thereafter, always to darling responses. She sang with the New York Sacred Music Society (Creation, Elijah, Messiah), the New York Philharmonic Society, at the Castle Gardens ('Per questa fiamma', 'Dovè mai' 'Slumber, sweetly slumber') and 6 November 1846 she gave a concert of her own at the Apollo Rooms ('Bird of Spring'. 'Giorno d'orrore' with Mme Pico). A few days later, she sang at a Henri Herz concert at the Tabernacle with a song entitled 'Jessie' (10 November). I think it may have been the only time.
More impressively, she joined de Begnis and Pico in the bass's famous duo and trio from Il fanatico per la musica, duetted Maria Padilla with Pico, and gave such pieces as Maria Hawes's 'Thou art Lovelier', Knight's 'I'm Queen of ther Fairy Band', Bellchamber's 'The spell is broken', and even 'In questo semplice'. The critic was not quite convinced by her rendition of Italian opera.
5 May 1848 she sang in a Benefit concert at the Apollo Hall where all the participants were British -- Mamvers, Eliza Brienti, Stephen Leach, Arthurson, George Loder, Mrs C E Horn, Samuel Lover -- and later that year she teamed up with pianist Moritz Strakosh for a series of concerts around Eastern America. Boston, Philadelphia, Brooklyn, Washington et al. She interleaved his keyboard items with such numbers as 'The Captive Greek Girl', the cavatina from Parisana, 'Robert toi que j'aime', 'The Heart of Norah', Salute à la France, 'Casta Diva', 'Bird of Spring' and most regulalrly, Balfe's 'By the Banks of the Guadalquivir'. And all the time, she continued to appear regularly at the Tabernacle for this society, that charity, for Allen Dodsworth the cornettist (Spohr's 'O mighty Love') , one Desire Ikelheimer, a blind harpist, and a Madame Bornstein-Routh from Paris ..
6 March 1849 she sang at a special Benefit. Brother William the dentist, between teeth, had become a playwright and journalist, and he was given a Concert at Burton's Theatre.
But the following year it came to an end. In August, Julia married a young man from Breslau by the name of Frederic William BODSTEIN. Quite what Mr Bodstein did, I cannot be sure. He is usually listed as a clerk, a bookkeeper, working for the Post Office or Customs ... but other momentary occupations seem to have intervened. Anyway, he did his husbandly daughters, and Julia gave birth to three daughters, Clara, [Julia] Lucy and Emily Pearson (20 May 1862).
Although Mrs Bodstein appeared now in concert only on special occasions, she by no means ceased singing. Since 1847 she had been the soprano of the Grace Church choir and she would continue in that employ ($1500 pa) for some twenty-six years.
Mr Bodstein seems to have died in the mid-1880s, and daughter Lucy, unmarried, 23 March 1895 at the age of 39. Julia survived them, and died 28 June 1896 at the alleged age of 73. I need to check Drucilla's death date ..
Daughter Emily was the success story. She married Mr William Proctor, son of Harley Thomas Proctor, the original Proctor of Proctor and Gamble. She died at Corfield Cottage, Bar Harbour 25 September 1949.
Clara died 1 January 1907 at 103 East 29th Street.
As for the Northalls, I don't know how many of them and which ones came to America. We know W K jr became the journalistic dentist, and another brother, Henry, hanged himself, aged 46, in Gloucester, Mass ... as for Julia, well, working out whether she was born before or after Drucilla's death ..
And now I want to know about Rosina Pico. I see her in London in 1865 ... Havana ... Mrs Adelindo Vietti .. oh! its THAT Rosina Pico (mezzo-soprano). She got around. Died Chelsea, London 1884. Maybe tomorrow ... one two-hundred-year-old soprano a day suffices ...
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