New Book: The History of the Tinwhistle by Norman Dannatt

The Ultimate On-Line Whistle Community. If you find one more ultimater, let us know.
User avatar
PhilO
Posts: 2931
Joined: Wed Jun 27, 2001 6:00 pm
Please enter the next number in sequence: 1
Location: New York

Post by PhilO »

A well deserved congratulations, my good man.

Philo
"This is this; this ain't something else. This is this." - Robert DeNiro, "The Deer Hunter," 1978.
User avatar
Wanderer
Posts: 4450
Joined: Wed Mar 24, 2004 10:49 pm
antispam: No
Please enter the next number in sequence: 8
Location: Lovettsville, VA
Contact:

Post by Wanderer »

BillChin wrote:
Wanderer wrote:I just got this book today..very nice :)
I have a question. What does the book say about the price of the tinwhistles in 1843? Was it really an English penny and later a halfpenny (Meg)? Or does it side with some revisionists and say the name pennywhistle is derived from buskers receiving pennies?

Thanks.
I haven't read the whole book yet, but the early chapters don't speculate on the term "pennywhistle". Sales flyers in the early 1900 still called them "Clarke London Flageolets" or "Clarke Flageolets". By 1903, they were $1.35 a dozen, so considerably more than a penny. in 1953, George Goddard (some relation to Clarke's wife Sarah Goddard) wrote in the Oldham Chronicle "...one of his conceptions eventually developed into the making of the first Pennywhistle as we know it today..."
Craig Stuntz
Posts: 576
Joined: Thu Apr 21, 2005 10:58 am
Please enter the next number in sequence: 1
Location: Columbus, OH
Contact:

Post by Craig Stuntz »

I've done some research and determined that while the words "penny-whistle" and "tin-whistle" both predate Clarke, neither were likely in common use until later in the 20th century.
Adrian
Posts: 769
Joined: Mon Jul 18, 2005 12:37 pm
Please enter the next number in sequence: 1
Location: Rhodope Mountains, Greece

Post by Adrian »

Craig Stuntz wrote:I've done some research and determined that while the words "penny-whistle" and "tin-whistle" both predate Clarke, neither were likely in common use until later in the 20th century.
Ooops!

OED = QED!

Thanks for upsetting the whistle-cart :wink:
Craig Stuntz
Posts: 576
Joined: Thu Apr 21, 2005 10:58 am
Please enter the next number in sequence: 1
Location: Columbus, OH
Contact:

Post by Craig Stuntz »

Adrian wrote:
Craig Stuntz wrote:I've done some research and determined that while the words "penny-whistle" and "tin-whistle" both predate Clarke, neither were likely in common use until later in the 20th century.
Ooops!

OED = QED!
Sorta. The OED doesn't reflect common usage, and I'm still curious about that. As best as I can tell, neither term was common until well into the 20th century, but I'm still looking for definitive evidence on that.
Post Reply