Upstairs and Downstairs: Running a Nineteenth-Century House with Dr Suzanne Bravery

This lecture explores the roles, rules and rooms of running a house in the 1800s.  What happened in the Housekeeper’s Room?  Who decided the dinner menu? Where did the servants sleep? What was a ‘Drawing Room’ and why was it so important? This lecture demonstrates how the many tasks and responsibilities related to the day-to-day logistics of the nineteenth-century house shaped the appearance of the house’s interiors.

Suzanne Bravery curated and has managed house museums at the Historic Houses Trust of NSW (now Museums of History NSW), including Elizabeth Bay House, Vaucluse House, Elizabeth Farm, Rouse Hill estate and Meroogal. She previously managed the Grainger Museum at the University of Melbourne, and was a Head Curator at the National Museum of Australia. Suzanne’s research interests include historic interiors, social history and conservation housekeeping. Suzanne has recently completed her Doctor of Philosophy where her thesis explored the role of the Curator in determining the appearance of interiors in house museums in Australia.

Your ticket includes tea or Market Lane coffee served before the presentation, and time to browse our exclusive range of books, gifts, and homewares at TJC Emporium.

This event is presented on-site at The Johnston Collection. Please see your ticket for details. NOTE: Tickets for this event do not include access to our house museum, Fairhall. Guided tours of the current exhibition can be booked separately.

This event is supported by The Colin Holden Charitable Trust.

Image: The brass servants’ bells at Erddig. Photo: Andreas von Einsiedel.