|
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
June 2007
Contact: Molly Dannenmaier
Galveston Historical Foundation
502 20th Street
Galveston, TX 77551
409-765-7834
molly.dannenmaier@galvestonhistory.org
Dickens on the Strand, Galveston’s Victorian Christmas Festival, Started 34 Years ago to Bring Attention to Downtown’s Neglected Architecture
On December 1 and 2, 2007, Galveston Historical Foundation (GHF) will mark the 34th anniversary of its Dickens on The Strand Victorian holiday celebration. Travel professionals have named the festival "One of the Top 100 Events in North America." Dickens on The Strand is the primary fundraiser for Galveston Historical Foundation's preservation, education and museum programs.
GHF started the event in 1974 as the "Old English Christmas and Hanukkah Party," a costumed evening of Victorian food along with period readings and reenactments for Galveston Historical Foundation members. The activities were so popular that the following year the event was opened to the public as "Dickens's Evening on The Strand." It remained primarily a one-evening event until 1983, when the festival was expanded to a full weekend of activities. The event was renamed Dickens on The Strand in 1984. The festival is always held the first full weekend in December.
In its early days, the festival's main purpose was to increase awareness of and attract investment in what is now The Strand National Historic Landmark District, one of the nation's most significant collections of Victorian commercial architecture. Although the area had been known as the "Wall Street of the Southwest" in its heyday in the 19th century, The Strand had entered a steep decline in the 20th century. Many of the buildings were abandoned and weeds grew through the sidewalks. During the original festivals, vendors were put inside the vacant buildings, which they lighted with kerosene lanterns. The event was held in the evening for two reasons: the lantern-lit buildings and costumed vendors and entertainers would allow visitors to see what the area had been in the 1800s and what it could be again. Because the festival was held at night, visitors were not able to see just how badly deteriorated many of the buildings were. As buildings in the district were restored, vendors were moved outside and Dickens on The Strand evolved into a Victorian-themed street festival. (The festival still requires that vendors light their booths with lanterns; no electricity is allowed.)
Charles Dickens never visited Galveston. The theme was chosen to evoke the spirit of Dickens' "A Christmas Carol," rather than celebrate any specific connection between Galveston and London, although, as an exporter of cotton to the textile mills of England, Galveston was part of the British mercantile empire, and The Strand here was named after London’s important waterside street. Five generations of the author's descendants have been special guests of Galveston Historical Foundation. Two of Dickens' great grandsons, Cedric Charles Dickens and David Charles Dickens, have been to Galveston for the event as has great-great grandson Gerald Charles Dickens, great-great-great grandson Mark Charles Dickens and great-great-great-great grandson Bob Dickens. This year, for the first time, great-great grandson Henry Dickens Hawksley will be the festival’s special guest representative of the Dickens family.
|
