Charles Hammond Gibson, Jr. (Charlie)
1874-1954
Founder, Gibson House Museum
Founder, Gibson House Museum
The ways we define same-sex attraction and sexual identity, and the words we use to do so, have changed dramatically over the last 150 years. We have chosen to use modern terms, like "gay" or "queer," to talk about Charlie Gibson and his contemporaries, although these definitions were not yet in regular use.
Charles Hammond Gibson, Jr., or “Charlie,” as friends called him, was a writer, a preservationist, a gay man, and the last resident of 137 Beacon Street. Thanks to his vision, the Gibson House survives as a museum, opening to the public in 1957.
Coming of Age
Charlie grew up during the Victorian era in Boston’s Back Bay, one of the city’s trendiest neighborhoods. His family’s home, located a block from the Boston Public Garden, was sophisticated and worldly—filled with the finest American furniture, European paintings, and decorative arts from across the globe. The family’s comfortable lifestyle was made possible by a staff of domestic servants; there were a total of seven working at the house by the time Charlie was six years old. The Gibsons spent the warmer months at their summer home along the shoreline north of Boston in Nahant. It was this period of wealth, leisure, and elaborate social decorum that Charlie would always idolize, and eventually work to preserve.
In his teens and early twenties, Charlie participated in a “bohemian” subculture, a word used to signal queer communities. Often these communities were formed around artistic endeavors like architecture, writing, or interior design. Such was the case with Charlie and many of his contemporaries, including Ogden Codman and Henry Davis Sleeper.
Charlie never married nor had a long-term partner. He did, however, stay in close contact with Maurice Talvande (the Count de Mauny), a man with whom he had a romantic relationship while traveling in France in his twenties. In his travelogue, Two Gentlemen in Touraine (1899), Charlie described Talvande as “a noble type… His light brown hair fell back in a slight wave, from his broad forehead, showing two large temples that were neither high nor low, but that spoke of a wonderful intelligence behind them…“
Coming of Age
Charlie grew up during the Victorian era in Boston’s Back Bay, one of the city’s trendiest neighborhoods. His family’s home, located a block from the Boston Public Garden, was sophisticated and worldly—filled with the finest American furniture, European paintings, and decorative arts from across the globe. The family’s comfortable lifestyle was made possible by a staff of domestic servants; there were a total of seven working at the house by the time Charlie was six years old. The Gibsons spent the warmer months at their summer home along the shoreline north of Boston in Nahant. It was this period of wealth, leisure, and elaborate social decorum that Charlie would always idolize, and eventually work to preserve.
In his teens and early twenties, Charlie participated in a “bohemian” subculture, a word used to signal queer communities. Often these communities were formed around artistic endeavors like architecture, writing, or interior design. Such was the case with Charlie and many of his contemporaries, including Ogden Codman and Henry Davis Sleeper.
Charlie never married nor had a long-term partner. He did, however, stay in close contact with Maurice Talvande (the Count de Mauny), a man with whom he had a romantic relationship while traveling in France in his twenties. In his travelogue, Two Gentlemen in Touraine (1899), Charlie described Talvande as “a noble type… His light brown hair fell back in a slight wave, from his broad forehead, showing two large temples that were neither high nor low, but that spoke of a wonderful intelligence behind them…“
When Charlie moved back to 137 Beacon Street, he turned this room into his study, where he could write and entertain close friends.
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The first chapter of "Two Gentlemen in Touraine" is part of the Museum's manuscript collection.
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The Writerly Life
Charlie was a prolific writer throughout his life. The museum’s archives are filled with his poetry, travel lectures, odes to various dignitaries, a family genealogy, and even song lyrics. After the relative success of his travelogues, Charlie self-published two volumes of poetry, including The Wounded Eros (1908), a collection of sonnets which seems to be largely about unfulfilled love. He offered lectures on travel and history and readings of his poetry in parlors around Boston.
Charlie was a prolific writer throughout his life. The museum’s archives are filled with his poetry, travel lectures, odes to various dignitaries, a family genealogy, and even song lyrics. After the relative success of his travelogues, Charlie self-published two volumes of poetry, including The Wounded Eros (1908), a collection of sonnets which seems to be largely about unfulfilled love. He offered lectures on travel and history and readings of his poetry in parlors around Boston.
Following Charles, Sr.’s death, Charlie took over his father’s office, making it his own by featuring his writing and favorite books, along with images of Nahant and the family members he most admired.
Image: Charlie in the gardens at his Nahant summer home, circa 1910.
Preserving His Past
Charlie returned to the Gibson House to take care of his ailing mother when he was sixty. It was 1934, and his beloved neighborhood was changing; most of Charlie’s former neighbors were leaving the city to seek more space and modern accommodations in the suburbs. Charlie remained nostalgic for a previous version of Boston—one with a rigid class structure and wealth and power concentrated in the hands of people like his family and Back Bay neighbors.
The creation of this museum was Charlie’s way of holding onto the aesthetics and society of his youth. As he preserved his family’s home and story, Charlie overlaid his 1930s-era perspective onto his family’s 1800s-era Victorian possessions. He hoped this museum would be both a testament to his family’s importance and a shrine to his own literary accomplishments. In many ways, this house is less the story of the Gibson family and more the story of Charlie Gibson.
Charlie returned to the Gibson House to take care of his ailing mother when he was sixty. It was 1934, and his beloved neighborhood was changing; most of Charlie’s former neighbors were leaving the city to seek more space and modern accommodations in the suburbs. Charlie remained nostalgic for a previous version of Boston—one with a rigid class structure and wealth and power concentrated in the hands of people like his family and Back Bay neighbors.
The creation of this museum was Charlie’s way of holding onto the aesthetics and society of his youth. As he preserved his family’s home and story, Charlie overlaid his 1930s-era perspective onto his family’s 1800s-era Victorian possessions. He hoped this museum would be both a testament to his family’s importance and a shrine to his own literary accomplishments. In many ways, this house is less the story of the Gibson family and more the story of Charlie Gibson.
Explore MORE
The Wounded Eros - Remembering Charles Hammond Gibson. Jr.
Todd S. Gernes, Associate Professor of History at Stonehill College and GHM Board Member, directed this short film, exploring Charlie's literary life and sexuality in the context of the Gibson House. |
Charlie Gibson's Queer Boston
To experience the Gibson House through Charlie's eyes, take our specialty tour. |
Charlie's Family
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Charlie's Study
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Part 1: The Wounded Eros
-Gibson House Blog
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2018 Pride Guide Article
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Charlie Reading his Poetry
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Charlie's Book of Sonnets
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