| Description | The diary is a printed pocket daily diary, and is filled in as a daily account of Mr Lynd's activities, but is especially full of information about his record-making activities, describing the machines with which he was supplied, the rates at which he made records and wax cylinders, and his tours demonstrating the invention in England and Ireland. |
| Admin History | William Lynd appears to have been born on 2 Jul 1844, as the 2 Jul in his diary is marked 'Birthday. Cinquanto cinq ans'. From the earliest he seems to have been an avid supporter of the phonograph, writing 'Edison and the perfected phonograph, with a portrait of the illustrious American inventor' [2nd ed. ? 1890]. It complimented his interest in music and spoken word recordings. In 1897 he published 'A popular account of ancient musical instruments and their development, as illustrated by typical examples in the Galpin Collection at Hatfield Broad Oak, Essex'. From the internal evidence of his diary, in 1899 he was creating records for Edison Bell in some quantities. Undated titles of wax cylinder recordings he made for Edison are noted in the discography of the Edison Bell Co. With his wife Ethel he recorded 5852 'A Lover's Quarrel' (Ethel was also a recording artiste in her own name). None of these are extant in the National Sound Archive. Lynd also toured with his phonograph, demonstrating it widely in 1899 in England and Ireland. His home address in 1899 was 138 Victoria Street, Kilburn. |