Charles Dickens and Massachusetts: A Tale of Power and Transformation

Charles Dickens in Lowell

University of Massachusetts Lowell

"Charles Dickens and Massachusetts: A Tale of Power and Transformation"

Located at the Boott Cotton Mills Gallery, 115 John Street, Lowell.
2012 is the bicentennial of the birth of the English author Charles Dickens. A consortium of cultural institutions in the United Kingdom and around the world are banding together to celebrate the life, impact, and relevance of Charles Dickens in the anniversary year of his birth. Lowell National Historical Park, University of Massachusetts Lowell, the Tsongas Industrial History Center, and the Worcester Polytechnic Institute have come together in partnership to contribute an exhibit to the international celebration of the bicentennial. The exhibition will highlight Dickens's relevance to the Commonwealth and New England.

In 1842, Dickens and his wife Catherine came to the United States for the first time, providing Dickens opportunities to explore the nation's growing cities, experience the culture and lifestyle of the young nation, interact with fellow authors, and examine innovations seen in science and industry.

Dickens was impressed by what he saw in Boston, Worcester, Lowell, and other Massachusetts communities. He marveled at the Perkins Institution and Massachusetts Asylum for the Blind, the House of Industry, Boston's prison, Harvard University, and the mills of Lowell. One of the greatest visual legacies of his Boston visit is the portrait painted by Francis Alexander. Dickens also had a phrenological exam performed by Worcester's L. N. Fowler during his visit. Dickens met numerous writers and community leaders while in Massachusetts and traveled to the state's largest cities. Dickens also traveled through Connecticut and Rhode Island as he journeyed south to New York. The young Dickens was already considered a celebrity, an international superstar of literature, and attracted huge crowds wherever he went. His visit was celebrated with a Boz Ball in New York City, and like events around the nation. Twenty-five years following his first trip, Dickens made his second and final trip to the United States in 1867. The itinerary was more robust than the first, with readings scheduled in multiple cities. The second trip had a very different purpose and dynamic-he was not a tourist but a performer. Unfortunately, Dickens health was poor, made worse with his travel. Upon his return to England, he continued writing but died in 1870.

Walking tour: 'In the Footsteps of Charles Dickens': this tour was a great success in 2002 when the Dickens and American conference was hosted in Lowell. The tour would be resurrected and revised to compliment the exhibit. The tour would provide a visitor an opportunity to follow Dickens's itinerary while exploring Lowell and understand his thoughts concerning industrialized labor. The staff providing the tour would use American Notes as source material, with the liberal use of quotes throughout the tour. Following the end of the exhibit's run, the tour would be made a permanent offering at LNHP.
Exhibit related talks: Working with resources connected with the exhibit partners, provide a range of speaking engagements with Dickens experts, exploring Dickens's literature, innovations, and impacts. Also, programming is being developed by students at UML to engage a youth audience in relevant topics such as "International Copyright Then and Now," a "Great International Walking Match" (1868) re-enactment, student-created videos on locations and people in Massachusetts whom Dickens saw, and other projects still to be determined.

 

Dickens Programs
Program	Presented by:	Date	Costs	Reservations
Dickens Walking Tour	Lowell NHP	Saturday, March 3, 11:00 & 2:00pm	Free	NO. Tour begins at Visitor Center
Dickens on the Line	Tsongas Industrial History Center	Saturday, March 31, 12:15pm & 3:15pm	Free	After the Dickens walking tour, visit "Dickens on the Line" at the Tsongas Industrial History Center, 3rd fl, Boott Cotton Mills Museum.
Dickens on the Line	Tsongas Industrail History Center	April 24 & 25, 2012	School Program Fee $195	Yes, 978-970-5007
Walking Tour	Lowell National Historical Park	Spring & Summer 2012	Free