Bibliography

 

1) Burney, Frances. Evelina. London: Penguin Books, 1994. Burney's eighteenth-century novel describes in letter form the activities and events of a young girl's entrance into London high society. There are descriptions of her shopping experiences and explanations of historical specificity in the footnotes.

2) Defoe, Daniel. The Complete English Tradesman. 2nd ed. 2 vols. New York: Augustus M. Kelley, 1969. Defoe's 1727 letters outline expectations and give advice regarding the proper behavior and qualities of an eighteenth-century English tradesman.

3) Harrison, Molly. People and Shopping. London: Ernest Benn Limited, 1975. This book discusses the increasing popularity of advertising in the eighteenth century. It gives descriptions on London shop signs and storefronts and also elaborates on bookshops and haberdashery shops in detail.

4) Hart, Roger. English Life in the Eighteenth Century. London: Wayland Publishers, 1970. This book gives a general overview of shopping in the eighteenth century, including stories and interesting anecdotes about specific shops. It also discusses the look of the London storefront and its importance to the cultural phenomenon of shopping.

5) Heal, Ambrose. London Tradesmen's Cards of the XVIII Century, an account of their origin and use. New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1925. This book offers examples of authentic tradesman cards from the eighteenth century, including examples of tradecards from a mercers shop. The names of the shopkeepers on our site were taken from this source.

6) Johnson, Nichola. Eighteenth Century London. London, HMSO, 1991. This book gives an overview of eighteenth century London, specifically outlining the historical specificity of shops, shopping, and industry of the time.

7) Kowalski-Wallace, Elizabeth. Consuming Subjects: Women, Shopping, and Business in the Eighteenth Century. New York: Columbia University Press, 1997. This book addresses the role of women in the eighteenth-century birth of shopping. It discusses how shopping became a typically-feminine activity, and gives insights as to the genderization of this fairly-new leisure activity. Included are several interesting discussions on the mercers and milliners shops which focus on the important gender differences between different vendors and shoppers.

8) Olsen, Kirsten. Daily Life in 18th-Century England. Westport, Connecticut: Greenwood Press, 1999. This book gives a general description of life in the eighteenth century. It looks at the origins of shopping as a leisure activity and what goods and services were provided. It also includes a description of shopkeepers' jobs and their wages.

9) Stobart, Jon. "Shopping Streets as Social Space: Leisure, Consumerism, and Improvement in Eighteenth Century Country Town." Urban History 25 (1998): 3-21. This article describes the beginnings of shopping as a leisure activity, and how shopping became so popular and of such great importance in the eighteenth century. It concentrates on the small town of Chester, England, giving the reader an idea of the historical specificity of shopping in areas other than London.

 

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