After Dark: Myths, Misdeeds & the Paranormal

BONUS: Hear a Chapter of Anthony's New Book, Queer Georgians

Release Date: September 5, 2025
Host: Maddy Pelling
Guest/Co-Host/Author: Anthony Delaney

Brief Overview

This special bonus episode of "After Dark" features an exclusive reading of Chapter 10 from Anthony Delaney’s newly released book, Queer Georgians (published in North America as Queer Enlightenments). The episode dives into the hidden, complex, and often-overlooked histories of queer individuals in the Georgian era, focusing this time on the remarkable story of George Wilson and Elizabeth Cummins. Anthony and Maddy discuss the impetus behind the book, challenges of uncovering queer histories, and the crucial importance of spotlighting both the joys and tragedies in the LGBTQ+ past.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Introduction to the Bonus Content (03:00–04:00)

• Maddy Pelling announces the episode contains bonus material—a first for the podcast:

  "Now, today we've got some bonus content for you. We will be back with our usual programming though, from Monday." (02:57)

• Anthony Delaney reflects on publishing his book and offers thanks for support:

  "We have gone into bonus land because you may have seen, if you follow me on social media, that my book...is out now. I actually feel sick." (03:16)

2. About Queer Georgians and Its Purpose (04:00–06:15)

• The featured chapter (Chapter 10) tells the story of George Wilson—a person assigned female at birth, who lived as a man and married a woman (Elizabeth Cummins)—and their journey as early 19th-century emigrants.
• Anthony explicitly connects these histories with contemporary trans issues:

  "In this moment when our trans brothers and sisters are really under scrutiny...these people have existed for centuries." (04:26)

• Rebukes modern claims that trans identities are a 21st-century phenomenon:

  "There is a certain tech billionaire who has called transness and gender identity a woke mind virus ... these people who are archivally provable...show that is absolutely not the case." (04:29)

• The book aims to widen common perceptions, showing not only queer oppression but also joy, love, domesticity, and community:

  "...there were joys and there was love and there was frivolity and there was campness and there was color and there was fun and laughter and all these things..." (05:48)

• Anthony describes his motivation as a scholar, seeking to highlight overlooked or erased aspects of queer life.

3. The Research Process—Gaps and Surprises (06:15–08:00)

• Maddy and Anthony discuss the challenge of finding queer histories in archives, with many stories hidden or overlooked:

  "Sometimes they're hidden in plain sight and people just haven't looked at them, haven't bothered to acknowledge them." (06:48)

• Anthony’s personal experience as a queer scholar enabled new insights:

  "Maybe it was just a case that I was the first queer person who looked at these things...I looked at some of those details differently than somebody else." (06:59)

• On the frequency and normality of queer lives in the Georgian era, and how many such relationships and stories have been erased.

4. Favorite Discoveries and Complexity of Historical Identities (08:00–09:36)

• Anthony highlights the story of the Chevalier d’Éon—a complex figure often simplistically labeled as a "triumphant trans history," when their story involved espionage, gendered blackmail, and shifting self-presentations:

  "The Chevalier's gender expression is far more complex than that. And it all ties back to the French Crown, an espionage ring and blackmail, basically. And it's so much more complex and messy." (08:05)

• Mentions Mary Jones in Chapter 11 as another inspirational but complex case.

5. Book Release, Tour, and Community Support (09:36–12:04)

• Book availability: out now in the UK/Ireland/Europe as Queer Georgians (from Sept 4), and in North America as Queer Enlightenments (from Oct 7).
• Upcoming book tour:

  "I have book tour dates in the UK for 2025. In Ireland, I'm doing a very special kind of music concert tour...that'll be in 2026 and hopefully some North American dates in 2026 as well." (11:18)

• A call to listeners to support the show and authors by buying the book, and expressions of gratitude from Anthony for the After Dark audience.

Chapter 10: "A Not so Singular Case"—George Wilson and Elizabeth Cummins

Reading begins at 12:54

Main Narrative and Historical Insights

The Journey of George and Elizabeth

• Newlyweds in Glasgow, 1821, setting off for a new life in North America.
• Vivid description of perilous steerage travel across the Atlantic, hardships faced by emigrants, and economic/labor contexts on both sides of the ocean (12:54–19:29).

George’s Secret and the "Female Husband" Phenomenon

• George reveals during the voyage that he "had not always been a man," exemplifying "female husband" cases—individuals assigned female at birth who lived as men and married women, reported in 18th- and 19th-century media (19:29–22:00).

  "Historian Jen Mannion has identified George Wilson...as the first designated female husband found living in the United States." (19:53)

Emigration as Queer Self-Determination

• Notes that, amid economic and personal reasons, some migrated to America explicitly to live more freely as queer or gender-nonconforming people due to legal loopholes.

  "Some migrants went to America because their queerness compelled them to." (22:00–23:20)

Life in North America

• George and Elizabeth's efforts to build a life in Canada, and later, New Jersey and New York, working in factories, living among immigrant working classes, and integrating into community life, often under harsh conditions (23:20–27:00).

Exposure and Legal Jeopardy

• George's gender is discovered after a night of drunkenness leads to his arrest under vagrancy laws.
• Police suspicions about George's identity, efforts to protect his wife by fabricating stories, and the eventual confrontation in front of the authorities.

  "George soon felt that his former self was too precarious a thing to hide...He confessed that his real name was Jane Walker." (31:00)

Media Intrusion and Marriage Certificate Mystery

• The press takes a prurient interest; doubts about the authenticity of George and Elizabeth’s marriage arise due to inconsistencies in documentation.
• Author’s archival detective work concludes their marriage was, in fact, legal:

  "There they were in black and White, on 6 April 1821. Not the second George Wilson married Elizabeth Cummins they had been married. They had fooled the system." (39:15)

Trial, Aftermath, and Unresolved Ending

• George is convicted under vagrancy laws—not specifically for gender nonconformity but for drunkenness and then for the identity deception.
• Elizabeth maintains composure through the ordeal.
• The record then ends; what happened to them remains unknown, prompting reflection on the historical record:

  "We are bound to the information that has survived, regardless of where their lives took them next. And despite contemporary claims to the contrary, it should be noted that there is nothing singular about the case of George Wilson." (43:30)

A Hopeful Note

• Anthony's closing meditation:

  "Though we can never know for sure unless new evidence comes to light, it is my hope that their sudden archival departure denotes their happy return to that sought after obscurity, a return to the mundanity of their lives before George had had a little bit too much to drink that August night in 1836. That's my hope for them. And what's history without a little hope?" (47:50)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On the significance of trans and queer history:

  "These people...show that that is absolutely not the case. Just factually, that is not the case." (04:26)

• On historical erasure and joy in queer history:

  "...there were joys and there was love and there was frivolity and there was campness and there was color and there was fun and laughter and all these things..." (05:48)

• On researching queer archives:

  "Maybe it was just a case that I was the first queer person who looked at these things. So I looked at some of those details differently than somebody else." (06:59)

• On the complexity of historical gender identities (the Chevalier d’Éon):

  "The Chevalier's gender expression is far more complex than that. And it all ties back to the French Crown, an espionage ring and blackmail, basically..." (08:05)

• On George and Elizabeth's place in history:

  "There is nothing singular about the case of George Wilson. There were George Wilsons across America and the world..." (43:30)

• Final meditation on history and hope:

  "That's my hope for them. And what's history without a little hope?" (47:50)

Important Timestamps

• 03:00–06:15 – Introduction to bonus content & book's purpose
• 06:15–08:00 – Queer history in the archives & author’s research approach
• 08:00–09:36 – Favorite discoveries and the complexity of the Chevalier d’Éon
• 12:54–47:50 – Full reading of Chapter 10: George Wilson and Elizabeth Cummins’s story
• 37:00–40:00 – Media scrutiny, marriage certificate controversy, and archival detective work
• 47:50 – Philosophical reflection on history, hope, and queer erasure

Summary

This episode stands out for its poignant blend of archival detective work, personal storytelling, and advocacy for recognizing the richness and messiness of queer histories. Through the microhistory of George Wilson and Elizabeth Cummins—a working-class couple whose lives highlight themes of love, migration, risk, visibility, and erasure—Anthony Delaney’s Queer Georgians underscores the enduring existence and diversity of queer experience throughout modern history.

For those wishing to experience more from Anthony Delaney, check out Queer Georgians (UK/EU) or Queer Enlightenments (North America), and keep an eye on Anthony’s social media for upcoming events.