Charles Dickens Museum Facts for Kids

Quick facts for kids Charles Dickens Museum
Charles Dickens Museum, London
Alternative names	Charles Dickens House
General information
Type	House
Address	Doughty Street, London, England
Designations	Grade I listed building
Known for	Being the home of the author Charles Dickens in the 1830s

The Charles Dickens Museum is a special museum in London, England. It's located at 48 Doughty Street in an old Georgian house. This house was once the home of the famous writer Charles Dickens from 1837 to 1839. It's the only one of his London homes that is still standing today!

Charles Dickens's Home Life
- Books Written at Doughty Street
About the Museum
- What You Can See at the Museum
Gallery
See also

Charles Dickens's Home Life

When Charles Dickens lived at Doughty Street, it was a fancy street with gates to keep it private. He lived there with his wife, Catherine Dickens, and their first three children. Two of their daughters, Mary Dickens and Kate Macready Dickens, were born in this very house.

Dickens's younger brother, Frederick Dickens, also lived with them. Catherine's 17-year-old sister, Mary Hogarth, moved in too, which was common back then. She helped Catherine with the new family. Charles Dickens really liked Mary, and she sadly passed away in his arms in 1837 after a short illness. Her memory inspired characters in many of his books, like Little Nell.

Dickens rented the house for three years. As he became more famous and earned more money, his family grew, and he moved to bigger homes. But this house on Doughty Street is the only one of his London homes that you can still visit today.

Books Written at Doughty Street

The two years Charles Dickens spent in this house were very busy and important for his writing. While living here, he finished his popular book The Pickwick Papers. He also wrote all of Oliver Twist and Nicholas Nickleby during this time. He even started working on Barnaby Rudge here. It was a very creative period for him!

About the Museum

In 1923, the house at 48 Doughty Street was almost torn down. But a group called the Dickens Fellowship, which was started in 1902, saved it! They raised money to buy the house. After being fixed up, the Dickens House Museum opened its doors in 1925. Today, it's run by a special trust that is a registered charity.

What You Can See at the Museum

One of the most famous things you can see at the museum is a painting called Dickens's Dream by R. W. Buss. This painting shows Dickens in his study, surrounded by many of the characters he created in his books. It was started in 1870, after Dickens had passed away.

The museum also has many other cool items, including:

First editions of Dickens's books.
Original handwritten pages from his stories.
Letters written by Dickens himself.
Many personal items that belonged to Dickens and his family.

You can even see the only known piece of clothing worn by Dickens that still exists! It's his special Court Suit and sword, which he wore when he met the Prince of Wales in 1870.