Given the timing of the composition of TOM SAWYER -- not that long after
the Cardiff, New York giant hoax (1869), and Twain's "Ghost Story"
utilizing the giant as a character (1870) it seems more likely the name
derived from Cardiff, NY unless other data is found that places Twain in
Cardiff, Wales prior to the composition of TOM SAWYER.

Barb

On Thu, Jul 27, 2023 at 11:21 AM Kevin Bochynski <[log in to unmask]> wrote:

>   ----- Forwarded Message ----- From: Henry Sweets <
> [log in to unmask]>Sent: Thursday, July 27, 2023 at
> 11:12:26 AM EDTSubject: Please Post for Forum Members
>
> Mark Twain Forum Members –
>
>   The landmark in Hannibal known as “Cardiff Hill” inThe Adventures of Tom
> Sawyer was originally known as “Holliday’s Hill” after the family living
> atop the hill.
>
>
>
> A question has come up regarding why Mark Twain chose the name “Cardiff
> Hill.” TheHannibal Courier-Post of March 6, 1935, has an interview with
> Mrs. R. E. Ireland who had lived on Cardiff Hill many years. She recalled
> meeting Mark Twain (probably 1902 visit) and asking him why he changed the
> name from Holliday’s Hill to Cardiff Hill. She stated:
>
>
>
> “I asked him why he named it ‘Cardiff Hill’ and he replied that it
> reminded him very much of a similar hill he had once seen in Cardiff, South
> Wales.”
>
>
>
> Tom Sawyer was published in 1876. Did Mark Twain visit Cardiff before
> then? In David Fears’Mark Twain Day by Day, one finds descriptions of three
> pre-1876 visits of Mark Twain to England.
>
> August 31 to November 18, 1872
>
> May 27 to October 21, 1873
>
> 8 November 1873 to 13 January 1874
>
>
>
> From the information Fears provided, Mark Twain did not visit Wales on any
> of these trips.
>
>
>
> Does anyone have documentation of Mark Twain’s having visited Cardiff,
> Wales before publishingTom Sawyer or at any other time?
>
>
>
> Is there another explanation why Mark Twain chose the name “Cardiff Hill”
> forTom Sawyer?
>
>
>
> Henry Sweets
>
>
>
> Henry Sweets, Curator
>
> Mark Twain Boyhood Home & Museum
>
> Hannibal, Missouri
>
> 573-221-9010 extension 405
>
>
>
>