‘Nothing has really changed’: letters from 1719 reveal familiar worries of London life

From expensive rent to efforts to keep up with fashion, a young man’s missives on display in Cumbria are relatable to today

When Ben Browne set off on horseback from his small village in the north of England for the bright lights of London in 1719, his concerns were not so different from those of today’s young people. Mainly: please send money, everything is so expensive.

About 65 letters sent by Browne to his father back in Troutbeck, in the historic county of Westmorland, now part of Cumbria, have survived the intervening 300 years. On Tuesday they go on display at Townend, the Browne family home that is now cared for by the National Trust.