Republished from https://www.chartography.net/p/colossal-chronography
One reason to envy information designers of yesterday is the big canvases they got to play with. Look at this 1831 timeline compared to my iPhone. Big, right?
Time goes to the right. Different empires get their own swim lanes and colorful designations. Maybe you’ve seen something similar to this before.
But if you squint and read its title, you will see that this is Plate 1. The timeline keeps going . . . and going!
An Embellished Chart of General History and Chronology is an extraordinary work of chronography from 1831 London. Considering the history of colorful timelines, it stands out in many ways:
- It is huge.
- It is relatively early.
- It seems unknown to modern researchers.
- It is by a woman.
Frances Harriet Lightfoot published her chronology when she was 29 years old. More on her in a bit.
The design
Seven of the chronology’s plates fold out, including Plate 4, below. It’s a vertical monster—about 3 feet tall covering the final 500 years of the BC era. I count 134 distinct geopolitical rows.
If we zoom to the Golden Age of Athens on the same plate you can appreciate the chronology’s level of detail. I particularly like how years specific to events are labeled.
Lightfoot’s design jumps scales in the AD era. The same horizontal space is used to detail only 100 years, giving five times more room to illustrate history.
If we fly to the Roman Civil wars of the Tetrarchy we see how crazy a single lane can get!
Lightfoot’s volume begins with a three-paragraph preface, where she refers to herself in the third person:
. . . a work which is the offspring of research rather than of genius ; and it appeared to her that the study of Chronology might be rendered more attractive to the rising generation, by a new arrangement, in the form of the Chronological Tables, combining simplicity with comprehensiveness. . . .
She also includes a list of subscribing sponsors, and dozens of reference pages split between a long table of remarkable events not noticed in the chart, and table of celebrated persons grouped by theme (geographers, mathematicians, poets, etc.).
I studied two copies of Lightfoot’s chronology for this essay. Most of the images you see are from photography recently published by the David Rumsey Map Collection. I also consulted my own recently acquired copy. It’s fun comparing the differences in their hand coloring.
To me, the sensation of discovering and reading this work is overwhelming. As much as I have enjoyed its colors, my deepest curiosity is reserved for its creator.
Who is Miss Lightfoot? How did she come to create this monumental piece of information design? Why have I never heard of her?
After spending several days studying census, newspaper, and other public records, I have pieced together what I believe to be her first biographical sketch.
Meet Frances Harriet
Frances Harriet Lightfoot was born around 1802 in Lambeth, Surrey. She was a distinguished composer and author whose works left a broad mark in the 19th century.
Lightfoot signed off on the publication of her chronology from 14 Great James Street, New Palace (London) on October 1, 1831. It received coverage in the Sun (London) newspaper the following month:
“This work is so ingeniously arranged as to afford at once glance a clear and comprehensive representation of the state of all known contemporary nations, from the Deluge to the present period. A system better calculated to facilitate the acquisition of this most puzzling, yet most valuable part of historical knowledge could hardly, we should think, be imagined; but we are not aware of even the existence of another book which possesses similar advantages, or has any claims to rival it in the public estimation.”
—Sun newspaper, 30 November 1831
About 136 copies of the chronology were listed for subscribers, including a resident of Willsbridge House, indicating an early connection to Lightfoot’s future home. The subscriber list featured a varied and high-status group, including dukes, earls, admirals, baronets, and notable politicians, reflecting the publication’s support by many elites of society.
Today, about 15 copies of the work survive according to WorldCat, with ten in the UK and five in the USA.
Professorial ventures
A decade after the chronology’s publication, in 1841, Lightfoot lived with her father and her mother, also Frances Lightfoot. They were still at 14 James Street in the parish of St Margaret, Westminster, Middlesex. In addition to her parents, Frances Harriet, listed as a “Professor of Music,” lived with three other women.
In addition to her 1831 publication, Lightfoot authored A Genealogical List of the Sovereigns of England (1838), a stylized table across 13 pages.
She also published French Participles Explained and Made Easy in 1845, showcasing her diverse intellectual interests. But Lightfoot’s most prolific format was musical scores. Between 1828 and 1855, her compositions included ballads, songs, and duets, often collaborating with women lyricists. These musical pursuits align with her listed professional occupation of “Professor of Music” and her involvement in education, as reflected in her census household records, which frequently included pupils and other boarders.
By 1851, Frances Harriet had moved to 41 Cadogan Place in the prestigious Belgravia neighborhood of London where she was now head of a household including her 86-year-old mother, and several other women, including one visiting teacher, a pupil, and servants. There, she continued her professional pursuits, again listed as a “Professor of Music,” demonstrating her enduring commitment to education and the arts:
In 1861, Frances Harriet was recorded as a “School Mistress” at Willsbridge House in Bitton and Oldland. This residence, later known as Willsbridge Castle, has some musical roots. Built circa 1730 for John Pearsall, it passed through the Pearsall family, including composer Robert Lucas de Pearsall, known for his madrigals and Anglican church music. The house’s connection to such a prominent musical figure aligns with Frances Harriet’s own musical background.
Across 1851 and 1861 censuses, Lightfoot’s household included teachers and students, all women, reflecting her ongoing commitment to education and music.
Final years and legacy
Frances Harriet Lightfoot passed away aged 71 years old on July 14, 1873, at Willsbridge House. She was buried five days later at St. Mary Churchyard, Bitton, South Gloucestershire. Her will named two executors, with an estate valued under £600.
Lightfoot’s one-acre residence was auctioned the following January at the White Lion Hotel, Broad Street, Bristol. Willsbridge House was described as a substantial mansion with extensive amenities including stables, a coach house, a detached laundry, and well-maintained gardens, highlighted the grandeur of her home. The house itself featured spacious cellars, multiple reception rooms, numerous bedrooms, and a garden stocked with fruit trees and an abundant mineral spring. Its proximity to the Bitton Station on the Midland Railway further underscored its prime location.
These connections paint a picture of Frances Harriet Lightfoot as a well-connected, intellectually versatile, and respected figure in the musical circles of her time. They also suggest a woman who maintained significant properties and professional roles, demonstrating both stability and influence.
The consistent reference to Lightfoot as a spinster in various documents, including her will, indicates she remained unmarried throughout her life, which was relatively uncommon for women of her time and social status. This detail might have influenced her professional focus and independence.
Frances Harriet Lightfoot’s life reflects a woman deeply embedded in the intellectual and artistic fabric of her time. I am excited to learn about what you find studying her colossal chronology.
Lightfoot is a good reminder that the constellation of spectacular historic designs is only partially visible to our modern eyes. I look forward to seeing more.
Republished from https://www.chartography.net/p/colossal-chronography – sign up, it’s great!
Data storyteller RJ Andrews helps organizations solve information problems. His passion is studying the history of information graphics to discover design insights. See more at infowetrust.com. RJ’s published series, Information Graphic Visionaries, features three books, each celebrating the spectacular work of pioneering data visualization creators.
