Spas and Spies in Saratoga Springs

 

The Hudson River, seen from the train

When I heard that JASNA, the Jane Austen Society of New York, was having an April conference in Saratoga Springs, NY, called “Spas and Spies”, I knew that was one I wanted to attend.  I love the Hudson Valley, so beautiful and history-filled, and riding alongside the river on Amtrak is a joy.  Knowing that Abigail Reynolds would be there too, clinched it, and I booked.
From Penn Station I boarded Amtrak, and gloried in watching the river roll by, while wondering if Jane Austen had known anything about it. In Mansfield Park she has Tom Bertram talk about “this business in America,” at a time when the War of 1812 and the blockading of American ports, was on the public mind. And in a humorous poem about her niece Anna, she made several mentions of America, comparing Anna’s wit to Niagara Falls. She was indeed aware of what went on in America, and the Hudson Valley in particular saw plenty of action in the Revolutionary War and afterwards. Still, American authors Washington Irving and Fenimore Cooper had closer associations with the region than their contemporary, Englishwoman Jane Austen, who never set foot in America herself or sent her characters there – except in the Variations of our imagination (such as my own Mrs. Elton in America).

Yaddo

Rivers don’t feature greatly in Austen’s writing, either, it is true, but spas certainly do. Spa towns such as Bath, Brighton, Lyme, Sidmouth and Ramsgate are all featured in her  novels, and she and her family made many visits to spas, actually living in Bath for a period of five years following her father’s death. Not all spas featured mineral springs, where the fashionable, the ailing, and sometimes raffish people went to “take the waters,” but Bath did. So this American version of the spa, Saratoga Springs, is a fine place to luxuriate in Jane Austen lifestyle and associations. The Mohawk and Iroquois Indians drank from the springs first, but the mineral waters became popular among early settlers and George Washington was a patron in the 1780s. The town reached its social height later, famous during the Gilded Age in the mid to late 19th century for its horse racing, as well as the springs. Jane Austen was certainly familiar with racing, but seems to have rather disapproved of the sport (as well as other activities that went on in spa towns). She has Tom Bertram in Mansfield Park become very ill after a fall at the famous racing town, Newmarket, and her very last piece of writing, the poem “Winchester Races,” dictated just days before her death, has St. Swithin curse the frivolous racegoers. Jane Austen would probably have found Saratoga Springs a familiar sort of place (despite American differences), but she disliked Bath, and might not have liked Saratoga Springs either!

Bachellor Mansion

 Arriving in Saratoga Springs we were picked up at the station by shuttle vans, and taken to the Holiday Inn, directly across the street from the handsome Victorian Bachellor Mansion, which we toured later. The Friday evening speaker was Professor Celia Easton of SONY/Genesco, who talked about “Seduction and Seducers in English Spa Towns.” She mentioned a few of the risque and undesirable incidents that occurred in spa towns in Jane Austen’s novels, such as Willoughby’s seduction of Col. Brandon’s ward in Bath, and Lydia’s elopement with Wickham to Brighton.  On Saturday, Captain Steven E. Maffeo, a retired Naval Intelligence officer who has written about military intelligence in the age of Nelson, gave a fascinating talk about the methods employed by spies during the wars with France. Sunday morning speaker, Professor Sheila Hwang of Webster University, talked about Bath and other watering places of Jane Austen’s day, with emphasis on the louche behavior so prevalent in spas.

A walk by the Hudson

 In between the talks, there were tours of the Congress Park with its mineral spring, and the Bachellor Mansion. This gave a good idea of what it was like to live in one of the many Victorian mansions in this gay spa where you can almost sense the lively social life of past times. The conference finished up with a book signing at one of the town’s wonderful bookshops. Abigail presented her brilliant newest variation novel, Conceit & Concealment, in which Napoleon intriguingly wins the war; Captain Maffeo was there with his book on Nelson, as was the debut novelist Kathleen Flynn whose The Jane Austen Project, about going back in time to meet Jane Austen, is winning fine reviews.

Authors Abigail Reynolds, Steven Maffeo, and Kathleen Flynn with their books

Diana and Abigail on their walk

An enjoyable weekend indeed, but my only cavil about the conference was that I had not seen quite enough of Saratoga Springs. The racetrack was closed for the season, and the town is only home to the New York City Ballet during the summer, but I would have liked to see more of the surroundings. Fortunately for me, Abigail, who grew up in the area, generously drove me around on an idyllic personalized tour, which included seeing Lake Saratoga, the gorgeous grounds of the Yaddo artists’ community, and the ballet theater. We also had a beautiful walk by the river, to a picturesque spot where a mineral spring ran into the water, and wildflowers were plentiful. We chatted about our lives, writing, and cats, and it was truly a golden afternoon.

Trillium

 

15 comments

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    • Glynis on May 19, 2017 at 5:56 am
    • Reply

    It sounds like you had a wonderful time (especially thanks to Abigail!)
    I have been to Bath (my daughter took myself and my mum 6 years ago as a treat for my 65th birthday). I also live close to Buxton (another spa town famous for its water) There is a well with running water so if you take a bottle you can fill up for free! It’s a beautiful town and quite close to Chatsworth.
    You seem to have had good weather for your trip and some lovely countryside to explore. Thank you for sharing.

      • Glynis on May 19, 2017 at 5:57 am
      • Reply

      Sorry the treat was for my 60th! I’m 65 now and obviously confused!!!😱😂😉

      1. Well, then, that was a good error Glynis, better to be younger! Perhaps you are benefiting from drinking the Buxton waters! 🙂 Glad you enjoyed hearing about my trip. I can’t keep away from your beautiful country.

    • Nancy on May 19, 2017 at 7:06 am
    • Reply

    Will the talks be available in any form?
    Sounds like a good conference.
    I’ve been to Bath but rarely think of it as a spa as one might other places where the whole focus is on the water. There is a book The Spas Of England that tells about the ones Austen would have known. One that was contemporary with her can be found on Google books.

    1. Hi Nancy, I don’t know about plans for publication, but you might contact JASNA-NY to see if they have any information about any of the talks. The Roman baths are kind of a centerpiece of that town, and the Pump Room, right next to the baths, is where the fashionable folk (including Austen herself)drank the waters. Plus the name of the city! I became very interested in spas (used to be pronounced spaw!) and did a lot of research when I gave a paper at a JASNA-SW meeting a couple of years ago. So the conference papers didn’t seem very “new” to me, except for the one that gave a delightful history of Saratoga Springs.

  1. I’ve been to Saratoga Springs; it is indeed lovely! We were there in July, visiting my college roomie and her family. Her husband grew up giving tours of the battlefield as a docent (he’s a Revolutionary War reenactor…and Civil War, and WWI, and WWII…), so we had a delightful tour.

    Glad you had such marvelous weather and Abigail to hang out with! 😀

    Thanks for all the photos and a summary of your weekend, Diana!

    Warmly,
    Susanne 🙂

    1. Thank you, Susanne, it was great fun sharing. I wonder if your friend’s husband knew the tour people who entertained us so fabulously. They were excellent, really brought the history of the place alive.

    • Carole in Canada on May 19, 2017 at 12:08 pm
    • Reply

    What a wonderful location for a meeting! You certainly had some wonderful speakers there. I’m going to buy Abigail’s book and plan to eventually get ‘The Austen Project’. Now the spy book by Captain Maffeo certainly sounds intriguing. I think I will add that to my wishlist as my husband just might like it too!

    As for Saratoga Springs, I have been there three times. Twice in the late 70’s to see a Linda Ronstadt concert and then Fleetwood Mac. During one of those times we went to the racetrack. Then in the early 80’s, we stayed at a bed & breakfast for one night before heading down to Long Island for a wedding. Needless to say, I loved the town but didn’t get to explore the surrounding area.

    Love your pictures and the Trillium is beautiful. I have only ever seen white ones up here.

    1. Glad you enjoyed my visit, Carole! I have to say, those three books were a real trifecta of excellence. Abigail’s new book I is one of her best, Captain Maffeo was such a fine speaker I’m sure your husband would enjoy his book, and Kathleen Flynn is a new literary star.

  2. It was indeed a golden afternoon. It was a treat to show you the parts of Saratoga I love and to discover all the red trilliums (trillia?). You were very patient about being shown my old ‘special places.’ My white trillium is now blooming, but I’m thinking about adding some red ones.

    1. I was the one being treated, Abigail – and I’m so grateful. You tripled my fun! I’m looking forward to seeing you at the AGM in October and we’ll have to arrange a side visit as AGM can to some extent be “a sad crowd in a little room,” and you can never “talk about books in a ballroom”!

  3. This was indeed a great conference and a lovely town. It was great having the chance to meet you, Diana — I’ve long been a fan of your work.

    1. I really enjoyed meeting you too, Kathleen, and am taking your book to read when I go to Toronto next week. I have heard golden opinions about it on all sides!

    • Sheila L. Majczan on May 26, 2017 at 5:58 pm
    • Reply

    My husband and I went to Bath as part of our tour of GB in spring of 2004. We tasted the mineral water there and I cannot imagine drinking that regularly. I have not been to Saratoga but your trip sounded interesting. The Bachellor Mansion looks especially interesting. Glad to hear you had a tour with Abigail Reynolds. Thanks for sharing.

      • Diana Birchall on May 26, 2017 at 6:28 pm
      • Reply

      Thanks for commenting, Sheila. Isn’t Bath wonderful! Saratoga Springs is interesting too, but truly the best part of the trip was spending time and improving my friendship with Abigail!

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