She is a dear good valuable friend.’– Elizabeth Gaskell, 1865
Elizabeth’s maid, Ann Hearn, was already a vital member of the Gaskell household when the family moved to Plymouth Grove. She not only looked after the little girls, but also helped Elizabeth with her clothes and the endless work of sewing and mending. In the years that followed, when Elizabeth travelled abroad, Hearn was invariably at her side. Perhaps most telling are Elizabeth’s reports of the chaos that ensued whenever Hearn was away from Plymouth Grove.
In 1855, Hearn went home for Christmas for the first time in 12 years, and Elizabeth reported that the house was ‘all bustle and confusion’ and that she found herself ‘in an unusual state of busy-ness’.
Elizabeth’s fond references to Hearn provide a glimpse of their servant-friend relationship. Certainly, Elizabeth depended on her loyal servant and, in turn, Hearn was assured of her mistress’s concern for her wellbeing. Hearn stayed in service at Plymouth Grove for some 50 years.