Warren Fahey: Sydney Folklore Project - Ballads and Broadsides

SECTION 15: Broadsides and Ballads

Henry Mayhew's London Labour and the London Poor (1861)

The summer of 1849 saw a serious outbreak of cholera in London, 13,000 people dying from the disease within three months. Henry Mayhew (1812-87) suggested to the Morning Chronicle newspaper to carry out an investigation into the condition of the labouring classes, which was published in a series of 82 articles and later in volume form as London Labour and the London Poor.

The following extracts from Henry Mayhew provide us with the most illuminating atmosphere of the ballad writers, publishers, street singers and sellers.

Street-sellers of stationery, literature, and the fine arts

Of Long Song-Sellers
Of the Chaunters
Of the Experience of a Chaunter
Of the Street Pinners-Up, or Wall Song-Sellers
Of Ancient and Modern Street Ballad Minstrelsy
Of Street Ballads on a Subject
Of the Street Poets and Authors
Of the Experience of a Street Author, or Poet
Of the Street-Sellers of Broad-Sheets and Song-Books

Of the Street-Sellers of Manuscript and Other Music

This portrait of Henry Mayhew appeared in
London Labour and the London Poor, volume 1.