The Dickens Museum at Christmas | Literary Destinations

At 48 Doughty Street in London, tucked in among the Georgian houses-turned-businesses, is the Dickens Museum—the former home of Charles Dickens himself. Now part of London’s Museum Mile (an area between Bloomsbury and the Embankment on the River Thames that houses fourteen museums), 48 Doughty Street, the only survivor among Dickens’s London houses, has been in operation as a museum since 1925. 

From early 1837 to late 1839, Charles Dickens and his wife, Catherine, lived at 48 Doughty Street. It was where they started their family, having moved in just a couple of months after the birth of their first son Charles Jr. Their next two children, Mary and Kate, were actually born at this house. At 48 Doughty, the Dickenses hosted plenty of dinners and parties, entertaining their new esteemed friends in their grand home that suited Dickens’s growing status among the literary elite. More notably, in his study with walls lined with books, Dickens wrote some of his earliest successes. Among the numerous articles, essays, and short stories he wrote in that study were classics such as Oliver Twist, The Pickwick Papers, and Nicholas Nickleby. 

 

 

In 1902, an international association of Dickens enthusiasts formed under the name The Dickens Fellowship. In 1923, when 48 Doughty Street was under threat of demolition, three members raised a mortgage to save it and were able to buy it in 1925. Raising funds to finance the project, the Dickens Fellowship then set about turning Dickens’s former house into a museum and library, also arranging a collection to exhibit and attract visitors. The Dickens Museum has been in operation ever since. In 2012, in celebration of the bicentenary of Dickens’s birth, the museum underwent a refurbishment that incorporated the house next door into the museum and restored the house to what it was like when Dickens lived there.

 

 

The Dickens Museum offers the public a uniquely personal glimpse into Dickens’s private life with over 100,000 items for visitors to explore and examine. These include personal items of the Dickens family, rare editions of his works, original manuscripts, and personal handwritten letters. Two especially notable items on display within the museum are the famous unfinished portrait of Dickens–Dickens’s Dream–by the original illustrator of Pickwick Papers, R.W. Buss, and the only known surviving item of clothing that Dickens actually wore—his Court Suit and sword, worn in 1870 to be presented to the Prince of Wales. 

 

 

The Dickens Museum is constantly shifting its focus to different aspects of Dickens’s life and work through its many exhibits. Over the years, the museum has introduced exhibits exploring themes such as how the handcrafted shop signs of Victorian London impacted Dickens’s writing to the types of food Charles and Catherine served at their many dinner parties entertaining some of the biggest figures of literary London. However, it’s at this most wonderful time of year that the Dickens Museum becomes especially appealing. 

 

 

Every December, the museum is bedecked is all manner of traditional Victorian Christmas finery—garlands, wreaths, and little trees with (flameless) candles glimmering from the branches. The spirit of the season is strong here, amongst the quotes and relics of A Christmas Carol, as the museum transforms in to the epitome of a Dickensian Christmas. During this festive season, the Dickens Museum also focuses on A Christmas Carol in its exhibitions. In the past few years, exhibitions displayed the work of illustration students’ reimagined scenes from A Christmas Carol and an exhibition exploring the inspiration behind the ghostly Christmas tale, its success, and its lasting impact. In their Beautiful Books: Dickens and the Business of Christmas exhibition that ran from November 2019 to April 2o20, the museum sought to chart the development of modern Christmas celebrations and A Christmas Carol’s place in it. Often partnering with other organizations, the Dickens Museum is able to bring together a fascinating array of items and people for these exhibitions. Just last year, they were able to display the first printed Christmas card in the world—printed in 1843, the same year A Christmas Carol was published. Though unrelated, the publication of A Christmas Carol and the printing of these Christmas cards were the beginning of a new age of Christmas celebrations. 

 

 

This year, the Dickens Museum is holding various enchantingly festive A Christmas Carol events virtually. There’s a reading of A Christmas Carol, a Dickens Family Dinner in which descendants of Charles Dickens gather for a Christmas dinner and discuss Christmas traditions and their ancestor’s lasting impact (you’re present via Zoom), a virtual housemaid’s tour of the house at Christmas and more. The museum is open to the public for booked-ahead visits.

 

 

The tale of A Christmas Carol has been warming the hearts of readers and reminding everyone of the true spirit of Christmas for over 175 years. It inspires in so many of us a simple sort of happiness, a gratefulness for the lives we have, and a reminder that we should carry the kindness and generosity that Christmas fosters all throughout the entire year. It’s impossible to put into words the impact Dickens had on how we celebrate Christmas and what we think of as “traditional” or “classic” Christmas. With such a rich display of Dickens’s life and so many fascinating exhibitions, The Dickens Museum is a must-see for all Dickens fans and classic literature readers, especially at Christmas. The history and impact of A Christmas Carol is present in everything they do at the holidays and they provide such a wonderfully festive experience for visitors. Even going virtual this year hasn’t dimmed their enthusiasm for sharing the life and works of Dickens with the world. Though it will be a long while before I ever get across the pond to visit The Dickens Museum, I’m already looking forward to it. Especially at Christmas. 

Take a look at the online Curiosity Shop to see and shop some of the items sold in the museum’s gift shop. There’s a range of A Christmas Carol-inspired items, including an exclusive edition of the story that reproduces many of the original design features of the 1843 first edition—perfect for gifting to a fan of the classic story. Click here to see some of the Dickens Museum’s past exhibitions. If you’re feeling generous, you can support the museum during this difficult year by donating.

Let me know what you think of the Dickens Museum in the comments!

Thanks for reading,

Madison