Additional: Charles Dickens Museum

A small group of us which are not focusing on archives visited the house that Charles Dickens lived in from 1837-39. One of the employees, Peter, met us and gave a brief history of the house and man that lived there. While he lived in this house he had his first child and wrote several famous pieces including Oliver Twist and The Pickwick Papers. This is the only house still in existence which he lived in. Several personal effects including furniture and books are in the house. A video was showing in the basement, which used to be the servant’s quarters, which gave the history of his life. Charles was born in Portsmouth on February 7, 1812 to John Dickens and Elizabeth Baron. He lived in Chatham at Ordnance Palace where he spent many of his happiest childhood years. Much of what he saw in Chatham made appearances in his books such as The Leather Bottle, a neighborhood pub.

His family had many financial problems as his father was not adept at finances so by age 12 years he was put to work in a blacking factory labeling jars. It was at this time that the rest of his family was sent to debtor’s prison where they remained for nearly a year. Most people believe that this traumatized him and is why he dwelled so often on the poor person’s plight in his novels. However, the family soon rose out of poverty when a grandmother died and left all of her money to them.

In 1835 he was engaged to Catherine Hogarth and by the time they married he had become a public figure because of his work. The Pickwick Papers had sold 40,000 copies in a month which earned him considerable fame and a little money in which they could buy the home on Doughty Street where the museum is situated. When Catherine moved in she also brought her 17 year old sister, Mary, whom Charles doted on especially. When she died suddenly it utterly devastated him. He wore her ring for the rest of his life, kept her clothes, and wanted to be buried with her when he died. This experience altered him and it is easy to see his feeling of loss every time he writes the death of a leading female figure in his books.

Charles Dickens loved to work and besides writing he also directed and acted in theatrical works as well as gave readings of his books. Because he worked such a demanding schedule it was often remarked that he looked much older than he actually was. On June 8, 1870 he had a stroke and the very next day he died. The country mourned for the loss of its beloved author and to this day his books are still seen as some of the best ever written.