Worthy memorial to a true genius

IT is not unusual to find many places laying claim to famous people and Charles Lutwidge Dodgson, better known as Lewis Carroll, author of “Alice in Wonderland”, is no exception.
Daresbury, where he was born, Croft on Tees in North Yorkshire, where he lived for 20 years, Rugby, where he studied, Oxford, were he taught, Guildford, where he died and even Llandudno, where he might or might not have visited, all stake their claim.
But we think Daresbury, where he was born in 1832, has the most legitimate claim.
So it is good to see an £800,000 Lewis Carroll Centre being built as an extension to All Saints Church, where his father was Rector and where there are unique stained-glass windows depicting characters from his most famous work.
For too long, Daresbury has had too little to commemorate the great man, who was not just an author and poet but also a gifted mathematician and pioneer photographer.
This new centre, due to open in the autumn, with free admission, should put things right and, in doing so, become another major tourist attraction for Cheshire, with a themed shop, displays illustrating Carroll’s life and his stories, specially recorded by comedian Ken Dodd and actress Dillie Keane.
It will not be just a visitor centre, however, important though that aspect will be. It will also be an education centre, working with local schools and providing adult literacy and numeracy programmes.
A worthy memorial to a true genius.