Opening Hours
Daily: 10 A.M.–5 P.M.
Closed on Tuesdays
1151 Oxford Road
San Marino, CA 91108
Rare Books
Charles Dickens rare print collection
Image not available
Daily: 10 A.M.–5 P.M.
Closed on Tuesdays
1151 Oxford Road
San Marino, CA 91108
Image not available
Manuscripts
A collection of letters, manuscripts, and ephemera related to Charles Dickens. The majority of the material is written by Dickens and covers the most productive years of his writing career. The letters are written from Devonshire Terrace, Broadstairs, and Tavistock House, as well as letters from various cities in England, Europe, and America. The collection also includes letters by Dickens' family members, friends, and business associates; there is also one forgery (mssHM 18751) and many of the letters include envelopes. Correspondents in the collection include, among others, Maria Beadnell, Hablot Knight Browne, George Cruikshank, Frederick Dickens, Georgina Hogarth, Charles Kent, William Charles Macready, Thomas Mitton, Frederic Ouvry, Richard Watson, Livinia Jane Watson, William Henry Wills, and the publisher Chapman and Hall. The collection also includes a small amount of ephemera.
mssDickens
Image not available
Rare Books
287902
Image not available
Manuscripts
A series of letters written to Charles Kent on the occasion of a dinner held in honor of Charles Dickens before his departure to the United States in November 1867. The letters were written in response to Kent's request the letter writers would be stewards for the dinner on November 2, 1867. The majority of the letters are short notes accepting or declining the invitation; many of the letters with envelopes. The letters were written by many of the most famous men of Victorian Britain, including prime ministers, politicians, authors, actors, artists, and businessmen, including, among others, Wilkie Collins, Frederick Locker-Lampson, and William Henry Wills. The collection also includes a small number of letters by Charles Dickens, printed copies of all the letters and other ephemera, a large printed poster announcing the dinner, and the original separated bindings.
mssHM 18584-18746
Image not available
Visual Materials
A collection of 201 photographs consisting primarily of photographic portraits of Charles Dickens and photographs of family members and residences associated with him and his works. The portraits (no. 1-95) are arranged chronologically and most are later reproductions. The group includes a signed portrait by Herbert Watkins (no. 15), as well as several portraits with the London Stereoscopic & Photographic Co. stamp (no. 30-33). Items 96 through 111 are photographic reproductions of painted, sketched, and lithographed portraits of Dickens. Photographs of Dickens and his family and friends include his children Kate Perugini, Mamie Dickens, Charles Dickens, Jr., Walter Savage Landor Dickens, Alfred Tennyson Dickens, Sydney Smith Haldimand Dickens, Henry Fielding Dickens, and Edward Bulmer Lytton Dickens (known as "Plorn"). There are several photographs of Georgina Hogarth. Items 141 through 201 are photographs of residences that Dickens occupied, sometimes very briefly, throughout his lifetime. There is also a London Stereoscopic Company photograph of Dickens's stuffed raven "Grip," which that firm purchased at auction in 1870. Some of the photographers include Henri Claudet, C. Watkins, Herbert Watkins, J. & C. Watkins, John Watkins, Octavius Watkins, Alphonse Maze-Sencier, Mason & Co., and J. Gurney & Son.
photCL 36
Image not available
Manuscripts
A collection of drawings, etchings, prints, and watercolors originally part of a bound volume; the material is related to Charles Dickens, his life, and some of the characters from his books, including "Nicholas Nickleby," "The Old Curiosity Shop," "Oliver Twist," and "The Pickwick Papers." Also included are drawings of Dickens and his wife, Catherine Dickens, and their visit to America in 1842. The material was created by various artists including Hablot Knight Browne ("Phiz"), George Cattermole, George Cruikshank, Daniel Maclise, Joseph Kenny Meadows, Pierre Morand, Frederick Sem, and Sir Leslie Ward ("Spy"). Also included is the original binding.
HM 39987 (5)