"consort"?

[ElizabethClark]

Re: "consort"?

You're welcome! It's always a good idea to look outside the box, because on occasion, the "outside" answer can be the right one.

If you want to follow up, you might look for books on the rise of the middle class during the 19th century.... it's really fascinating how the Industrial Revolution in Britain, and then in the US, set the stage for the development of professional and middle classes, and how quickly a person might move through the class structure, particularly in the middle of the century.

[bodark]

Re: "consort"?

Ms Clark you are such a catalyst for sparking ideas about what to learn next. Now, if I can just find the time to utilize your chemise patterns and make them... :) Thanks again

[Edwin Carl Erwin]

Re: "consort"?

Ms. Schill,

Consort used as a noun refers to:
1)The spouse of a monarch.
2)A husband, wife, companion or partner.
3)A ship accompanying another.
4)Association or partnership.
5)A group or company, especially of musicians playing the same type of instrument.

Consort synonyms are:
(husband, wife, companion, partner): companion, escort
(association, partnership): association, partnership
(group of musicians): band, group

Our more frequent contemporary usage of consort as a intransitive verb makes for confusion when we have a go at interpreting Victorian usage:
Our slang to 'hang out' is a synonym for consort. The implications to be in association or to unite in company with are now more often assigned casual sexual conotations. Examples would be,"They were consorting (present participle)with the entire camp" or "They have consorted (past participle) with so & so". The mix of the noun usage synonym: escort, with the verb usage synonym: associate with, can lead us today into the interpretation that someone was hanging out with an escort they thought well enough of to have buried next to them.

Whilst speculation is a futile enterprise, I'd guess that the grave stone "consort" designation refers to a second spouse. Check the county marriage & probate records to solve the mystery with certainty.

Regards,

[amity]

Re: "consort"?

Since Mr. Trent has so graciously offered to help research a specific instance, doesn't anyone have particulars to share? Mrs. Lawson, I think your case is especially interesting. Could you share the names, etc., with Hank?