It was in the year of 1827 when Charles Dodgson of Daresbury, Warrington was to marry Frances Jane Lutwidge. Frances went on to give birth to seven girls and four boys during their marriage.
On the 27th January 1832 their third son was born at All Saints’ vicarage in Daresbury and his name was Charles Lutwidge Dodgson. In his later life he was to become world famous as a writer of childrens’ fiction whilst a lecturer at Oxford University under the pen name of Lewis Carroll notably publishing his works ‘Alice in Wonderland’ and ‘Through the Looking Glass’. In his early years Charles could often be seen playing between the gravestones in the churchyard of All Saints church in the village. His father was the perpetual curate at the church and Charles would often play outside whilst his father saw to matters within the church.
Young Charles was educated at home rather than attending school. He was an avid reader and extremely intelligent. He suffered with a stammer that had an effect upon his social life throughout his later years. His father was a much-loved vicar of the church and serving sixteen years of his life at All Saints preaching to the parishoners of the village. But it was at the young age of just eleven years old when his father accepted a new position in Stockton-on-Tees in the North Riding of Yorkshire meaning that Charles would no longer be able to play around in the grounds of the church or hide behind the old gravestones.
All Saints church
The whole family was to move to the North Riding rectory where they made it their new home and remained there for the next twenty-five years. At the age of twelve Charles was to attend Richmond school in North Yorkshire where he was to study hard in the years to come before eventually entering the University of Oxford in 1849. In later life his fame increased as his written works attracted worldwide recognition. By the time he reached his sixties Charles suffered severe illness that led to the loss of his ability to walk for much of the time and leaving him bed-ridden for weeks and sometimes months. It was on 14th January 1898 whilst staying at his sister’s home in Guilford that Charles died of pneumonia. Charles was buried at nearby Mount cemetery in Guilford.
The church at Daresbury that we see today was entirely rebuilt in 1872, however the original tower remains intact and is believed to date back to 1550 AD. Within the churchyard stand many tombstones that pre-date the current church including one simply marked in memory of Elizabeth and dated to 1703.
Today there stands within the grounds of All Saints church at Daresbury ‘The Lewis Carroll centre’ dedicated to the work and memory of Charles Lutwidge Dodgson. People from around the world come to visit the centre and to see for themselves the Lewis Carroll church window in the church.
You can view my history feature ‘A Wander to Wonderland’ telling the story of Charles Lutwige Dodgson And his life by visiting my history channel YouTube.com/@tvpresenter4history
