The John Bargrave Collection
George Lumley ( - fl. 1719)
Educator and amateur artist. Son of George Lumley "the Aristocrat" and brother of Mary, who married Joshua Thoresby, whom Lumley refers to as "Brother Thoresby" in a letter to Ralph Thoresby, 6 June 1710 (Lancaster, 214-15).Lumley and his wife ran the Manor-house School at York, where Ralph Thoresby enrolled his daughter in July 1710 (Diary, 2: 61; Lancaster, 214, n. 3). Long before that, Thoresby appreciated George's talents, describing one of his visits to "the ingenious Mr. Lumley, ... an excellent artist in many respects, [who] paints excellently, japans incomparably," adding that he "works mezzotinto plates very fine." Thoresby came away from the visit with additions to his collection: "he made me a kind present of the lady Fenwick's, Dean Comber's, and Czar of Muscovy's, pictures of his own doing" (23 June 1703, Diary, 1: 440). In January 1710/11, Thoresby again visited his daughter and boarding school and took opportunity to "discourse [with] Mr. Lumley; looked at a variety of ingenious books; pitched upon some needlework embroidery, and some cross-stitch worsted for chairs" (Diary, 2: 61-2). A couple weeks later, he visits again, this time referring to his "cousin Lumley," going together to Henry Gyles's home "to inquire for Roman antiquities, found as digging for clay; [and] procured two of the pots" (21 January 1710/11, 2: 63). On 10 July 1711, Thoresby showed his collection to "Cousin Lumley" (2: 80), and on 20 October 1719, after morning prayer and a visit to the coffee-house, Thoresby records that he went to the Manor-school "to visit two ingenious artists, Mr. Place and cousin Lumley, who presented me with some curiosities" (2: 266)
Roles: Correspondent
Relevant locations: Residence at York
People linked to person: George Lumley was a friend of Henry Gyles (1646 (bap)-1709)
George Lumley was a friend of Francis Place (1647-1728)
George Lumley was a brother-in-law of Joshua Thoresby (-fl. 1703)
George Lumley was a correspondent of Ralph Thoresby (1658-1725)
Henry Lumley (-1720) was a brother of George Lumley