BIB_ID
420494
Accession number
MA 1352.400
Creator
Dickens, Charles, 1812-1870.
Display Date
London, England, 1855 February 9.
Credit line
Purchased with the assistance of the Fellows, 1951.
Description
1 item (4 pages) ; 18 x 11.3 cm + envelope
Notes
Signed with initials.
Written from "Tavistock House."
Envelope addressed to: "Miss Burdett Coutts / Stratton Street."
Dickens enclosed a letter from William Jeakes, the engineer who designed the drying closet, with this letter. Jeakes's letter has been preserved and is cataloged as MA 1352.648. See the published correspondence, cited below, for additional information.
The letter is part of a collection, MA 1352, which consists of letters from Charles Dickens to the Baroness, to her companion Hannah (Meredith) Brown, or the latter's husband, William Brown; with 70 letters written by others to Miss Coutts or to Dickens in his capacity as her unofficial almoner; and a few others. See the collection-level record for more information.
Written from "Tavistock House."
Envelope addressed to: "Miss Burdett Coutts / Stratton Street."
Dickens enclosed a letter from William Jeakes, the engineer who designed the drying closet, with this letter. Jeakes's letter has been preserved and is cataloged as MA 1352.648. See the published correspondence, cited below, for additional information.
The letter is part of a collection, MA 1352, which consists of letters from Charles Dickens to the Baroness, to her companion Hannah (Meredith) Brown, or the latter's husband, William Brown; with 70 letters written by others to Miss Coutts or to Dickens in his capacity as her unofficial almoner; and a few others. See the collection-level record for more information.
Provenance
The letters formed part of the Burdett-Coutts sale (Sotheby, 17 May 1922); they were purchased for Oliver W. Barrett in whose collection they remained until it was sold by his son (Parke-Bernet, 31 October 1951).
Summary
Mentioning the drying closet and the next steps to be taken regarding that; sending news of Urania Cottage, especially about various repairs and improvements that need to be made; saying that Charley is eager to start his career at a London firm; referring to his upcoming trip to France and giving her the address at which he can be reached; describing how heavily it has been snowing in London: "On Wednesday (my birthday) I walked from Gravesend to Rochester between walls of snow varying from three to six feet high, through which a road had been hewn out by men;" mentioning dining with his dentist Samuel Cartwright; reporting that Walter is very happy at his new school; sending kindest regards to the Browns.
Catalog link
Department