FLORENCE CLEVELAND (aka Elizabeth Tweddell nee Cole)
This page relates to information about George Markham Tweddell's wife Elizabeth Tweddell aka the dialect poet Florence Cleveland.
Born Elizabeth Cole 1824, the daughter of the daughter of Thomas Cole (1787-1867) who was 34 years parish clerk of Stokesley in North Yorkshire and renowned for being the last person to toll the town's curfew bell.
More on the early lifeof Elizabeth on the Tweddell History website http://www.tweddellhistory.co.uk/Chapter1.html
Rhymes and Sketches to illustrate the Cleveland Dialect
More on Florence Cleveland on the Tweddell History website
http://www.tweddellhistory.co.uk/chapter7.html
The book is republished here
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Rhymes-Sketches-Illustrate-Cleveland-Dialect/dp/1169132405
but the original maybe be available free on either Google Books or Open Library.
In 2009 Stockton folk Megson recorded an album of using as lyrics, 19thC poems from the North East of England. They wanted to include a female poet and Middlesbrough library suggested Elizabeth Tweddell - Florence Cleveland. Her Cleveland dialect poem Take Thyself a Wife was chosen not only as a song but as the title for the whole album and over a hundred years after her passing, was written about in Guardian, Independent and as the duo became highly popular in the media.
Some of her other poems are -
Dean't mak gam o' me (1875)
Florence Cleveland
I went last week to Stowslay(1) Fair,
My sweetheart for to see;
She promis'd she would meet me there-
Bud dean't mak gam o' me:
Oh, dean't mak gam o' me!
I rigg'd misel' all i' my best,
As fine as fine could be;
An' little thowt how things would to'n(2);
Bud dean't mak gam o' me:
Oh, dean't mak gam o' me!
I walk'd to t' toon, an' bowt a cane,
To cut a dash, ye see;
An' how I swagger'd up an' doon!
Bud dean't mak gam o' me:
Oh, dean't mak gam o' me!
I thowt, if nobbut Poll would come,
How happy we sud be!
I'd treat her into t' penny show,
Bud dean't mak gam o' me :
Oh, dean't mak gam o' me!
At last I saw her coomin' in;
Bud what else did I see?
Jack Hodge was walkin' biv her saade!
Bud dean't mak gam o' me:
Oh, dean't mak gam o' me!
Stright up I went, an' "Poll!" says I,
"I's waiting, lass, for thee!"
"Then thoo mun wait!" was all she said,
Bud dean't mak gam o' me:
Oh, dean't mak gam o' me!
She teak Jack's airm, an' there I stead
Quite flabbergash'd, ye see:
I thowt I sud hav dropt to t' grund,
Bud dean't mak gam o' me:
Oh, dean't mak gam o' me!
Poor Nancy Green com seaglin'(3) up,
"What's matter, Dick?" says she:
"Jack Hodge is off wi' Poll!" says I,
Bud dean't mak gam o' me:
Oh, dean't mak gam o' me!
"Why, niver maand her; let her gan ;
She's better gean!" said she:
Bud I thowt nut; an' then I cried,
Bud dean't mak gam o' me :
Oh, dean't mak gam o' me!
I's nobbut a poor country lad
At's lost my heart, ye see:
I'll gan nea mair to t' Pomesun Fair,(4)
Sea dean't mak gam o' me :
Oh, dean't mak gam o' me!
1. Stokesley. 2. Turn out. 3. Sauntering.
4. The fair held at Stokesley on the
Saturday before Palm Sunday
Coom, stop at yam to-neet Bob
Florence Cleveland
"Coom, stop at yam(1) to-neet, Bob,
Dean't gan oot onnywhere:
Thoo gets thisel t' leeast vex'd, lad,
When thou sits i' t' awd airm-chair.
"There's Keat an' Dick beath want thee
To stop an' tell a teale:
Tak little Keatie o' thy knee,
An' Dick 'll sit on t' steal.
"Let's have a happy neet, Bob,
Tell all t' teales thoo can tell;
For givin' pleeasure to the bairns
Will dea thee good thisel.
"I knaw it's sea wi' me, Bob,
For oft when I've been sad,
I've laik'd an' laugh'd wi' them, mon,
Untel my heart's felt glad.
"An' sing that laatle sang, Bob,
Thoo used to sing to me,
When oft we sat at t' river saade,
Under t' awd willow tree.
"What happy taames them was, Bob,
Thoo niver left me then
To gan to t' yal-hoose neet be neet
Amang all t' drunken men.
"I does my best for thoo, Bob,
An' thoo sud dea t' seame for me:
Just think what things thoo promised me
Asaade t' awd willow tree!"
"I prithee say nea mair, lass,
I see I ain't dean reet;
I'll think of all thoo's said to me,
An' stop at yam to-neet."
"I'll try to lead a better life-
I will, an' that thoo'll see!
Fra this taame fo'th I'll spend my neets
At yam, wi' t' bairns an' thee!"
1. Home.
From Dunmow Flitch of Bacon Custom - A book by William Andrews
The book contains one by George Markham Tweddell too.
You read on line or download the full book here
There is more about the Dunmow Flitch custom on this site with George's poem here
The following rare poem by Elizabeth Tweddell aka Florence Cleveland was published in the Freemason's Magazine and Masonic Mirror Dec 1870. In this downloadable collection are also poems by Middlesbrough poet Angus McPherson and George Markham Tweddell
Read on line or download here https://play.google.com/books/reader?id=GVQFAAAAQAAJ&printsec=frontcover&output=reader&authuser=0&hl=en&pg=GBS.PA538
Elizabeth Tweddell (Florence Cleveland) from Tweddell's North of England Illustrated Annual 1879 / 80
From S. Horsfall Turner 1890 Yorkshire Bibliography.
From the Paul Tweddell collection
Elizabeth Tweddell with Granddaughter Annie c 1883
From the Paul Tweddell Collection
Below - Saint Hilda's Bells - by Elizabeth Tweddell
From Tweddell's Illustrated Annual
Saint Hilda's Bells - by Elizabeth Tweddell - continued
Below - also from Tweddell's North of England Illustrated Annual
Quote from From S. Horsfall Turner 1890 Yorkshire Bibliography.
"Mrs Tweddell - Elizabeth Cole was born on January 2nd 1824 and united her lot in life with Mr Tweddell on the last day of December 1843, sharing all his varying fortunes calmly and bravely and in addition to her household duties, involving the care of young children and grand-children, and for some years the Industrial Scholars at Bury, she has delighted thousands by her spirited little poems, not the least telling and treasured being her charming dialect pieces. We have only space for three specimens of the former.
The above note by Horsfall Turner is interesting - Florence Cleveland has two dialect poem books and he suggests her many articles and verse, published in magazines and newspapers in England, America and Australia should be collected together. Paul Tweddell did that for George but we had the benefit of George's manuscript books to help. A few of them are collect above.
