Separation
and Death
In 1858 Charles and Catherine Dickens were legally separated
and they continued to live apart for the rest of their lives.
The 1861 census finds Charles living in Hanover Terrace, London
with several of his children and his housekeeper/sister-in-law,
Georgina Hogarth.
1861 Census. The National Archives ref:
RG 9/83 folio 111 page 1
However, by then Charles had bought the house that he had
been determined to own ever since his father had pointed it
out it to him when he was still a young boy living in Chatham.
Gad’s Hill Place, Higham, Kent became the Dickens family
home until Charles’s death. The 1867 edition of the
Post Office Directory for Kent contains an entry for the parish
of Higham which records Charles Dickens living at Gad’s
Hill Place.
The 1867 edition of the Post Office Directory
for Higham, Kent
Dickens continued to produce outstanding novels over the
last decade of his life with Great Expectations and Our Mutual
Friend appearing in the 1860s. Dickens was at Gad’s
Hill, working on what proved to be his final work, The Mystery
of Edwin Drood, when he fell ill and died in 1870. He was
buried at Westminster Abbey in Poet’s Corner.
Death Certificate. General Register Office (GRO) ref: 1870 JUN - North Aylesford 2a 257
Dickens left a will which was written on 12 May 1869 and
proved some six weeks after his death. The will itself makes
fascinating reading - you can read the whole document here.
| Grant of Probate & Will (first page).
Principle Registry of the Family Division (PRFD) ref: Probate, 19 July 1870, Principal Registry |
The final document in the exhibition dates from the year
after Dickens died. The family took some time to sell Gad’s
Hill Place and at the time of the 1871 census, a gardener
named George Brunt was in charge of the property – a
situation of which he seems to have been particularly proud
as his occupation is given as 'Gardener in charge of the residence
of the late Mr Charles Dickens'.
1871 Census. The National Archives ref: RG10/898
folio 51 page 27
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