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  • Title
    Letter from Charles Dickens regarding the accident on Great Western Railway
  • Reference
    DIC
  • Production date
    05-02-1870 - 05-02-1870
  • Creator
    • Dickens, Charles John HuffamBiography
  • Scope and Content
    Autograph letter and envelope from Charles Dickens to James Charles Kingett, Superintendent of the Great Western Railway Up Parcels Department at the Paddington station, dated on Saturday 5th February 1870: 'Sir, In reply to your letter I beg to say that I have no doubt my Christmas fare was destroyed by an unavoidable accident, and that I bore the loss with unbroken good humour towards the Great Western Railway Company. Faithfully Yours, Charles Dickens' Paper's letterhead refers to Dicken's country home: Gad's Hill Place, Higham by Rochester, Kent. Dickens signed the letter with his customary flourish, and the envelope bears his stamp with letters C. D. The letter is a reply to Mr Kingett's previous letter regarding a destroyed Christmas parcel. In the Christmas week of 1869, a horsebox laden with parcels from the Hereford district caught fire between Gloucester and Reading. The parcels were destroyed and the owners compensated. Mr Kingett wrote to the senders, one of whom was Charles Dickens, explaining the circumstances and apologising. The parcel contained a turkey sent by George Dolby, the manager of Dickens’ reading tours. Letter was kept by Mr Kingett and it was later published in the Great Western Railway Magazine in 1908.
  • Extent
    1 document
  • Physical description
    Fair condition, slight fading. Letter and envelope mounted on cardboard.
  • Language
    English
  • Archival history
    Letter was written by Charles Dickens and sent to J.C. Kingett at GWR Paddington Station parcel office in 1870. The letter came to the NRM from the Museum of British Transport, Clapham and according to its ledger originated from the British Rail West Offices at Paddington Station.
  • Level of description
    TOP
  • Repository name
    National Railway Museum, York
  • Associated people and organisations
    • Great Western Railway CoBiography
    • Kingett, James CharlesBiography
  • Subject
  • Conditions governing access
    Access is given in accordance with the NRM access policy. Material from this collection is available to researchers through Search Engine
  • Conditions governing Reproduction
    Copies may be supplied of items in the archive, provided that the copying process used does not damage the item or is not detrimental to its preservation. Copies will be supplied in accordance with the NRM’s terms and conditions for the supply and reproduction of copies, and the provisions of any relevant copyright legislation.