19 February 1890: Robert Louis Stevenson writes a letter from Sydney

In February 1890, during one of the great roving periods of his life, Robert Louis Stevenson was travelling with his family through the Pacific and found himself briefly in Sydney. Illness struck in February 1890, and feeling unwell after a meeting with journalists, Stevenson sought quiet quarters to rest. He moved to The Union Club in Bent Street, one of Sydney’s most distinguished gentleman’s institutions at this time, to stay. The Club’s comforts—polished wood, deep chairs, calm reading rooms—made it an ideal refuge for an unwell writer far from home.

From this quiet haven, on 19 February 1890, Stevenson wrote a now-famous letter to his friend Henry James. Opening with a sense of place, “Union Club, Sydney, February 19, 1890,” he continued with, “in this excellent civilised, antipodal club smoking-room.”

His words captured both the charm of the moment: a Scotsman who had wandered halfway around the world suddenly finding himself in comfort in Sydney, reading the latest instalment of a Henry James story and responding to it with familiar warmth.

The Union Club offered Stevenson a place of respite, and it was there that he recovered his strength, corresponded with friends, and continued the work that would take him back into the Pacific just weeks later. Contemporary accounts confirm that Stevenson spent several days lodged at the club.

Today, the club still treasures a relic of his stay: the library chair in which Stevenson liked to sit. When I visited the Union Club recently, I sat in that same seat (see photo). It was my special moment linking me with one of the nineteenth century’s most celebrated storytellers. How special!

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