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When the Dodgsons moved to Croft, Charles Ludwig Dodgson was eleven years old, a dark-haired, dreamy-eyed boy, slightly deaf in one ear and with a noticeable stammer. On Sundays he and his family would go to the quaint old church to hear Papa preach his lengthy sermons. St. Peter’s always fascinated Charles. It had so many stories to tell. Here had come the Clervaux, the Milbankes and the Chaytors to worship and to take their last, deep sleep. Here had come Byron with his unhappy bride from near Halnaby hall, to sit in the huge red-curtained Milbanke pew. Here had come George Hudson, the Railway king, turning his back to the parson when he was bored while his wife, no less eccentric, put up her parasol during the lesson. In the week days the children would tumble into the rectory garden to play their innumerable games, mostly devised by Charles. Always he took great delight in entertaining his brothers and sisters, especially the latter who were more appreciative of his efforts. With the aid of the village carpenter he made a troupe of marionettes and a puppet theatre. He wrote all his own plays, the most popular being “The Tragedy of King John” and “L a Guida di Bragia” – a ballad opera which poked fun at Bradshaw’s Railway Guide. But Charles was at his best when he wrote “funny” plays, when his sisters would shriek with laughter at his clever lines. Dressed in a long white cloak and wearing a brown wig, Charles also ran conjuring shows, sometimes in the garden or if the weather was unfavourable, in the nursery. |
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One of the children’s greatest interests was the railways, probably owing to Croft’s proximity to Darlington where the world’s first passenger railway services-The Darlington to Stockton line had originated in 1825. By 1845 both Croft and Richmond had their own railway stations. A Handbill, published in 1845, advertised Darlington races to be held on the new course at Croft (where was this?) on September 3rd. Special trains were run from Bank Top Station, Darlington, Return Fare: 6d. Railways indeed, in these early Victorian days, were all the rage and this great new thrilling invention was the subject of much of the youngster’s fun and games. Lewis Carroll and his brothers & sisters were no exception and their railways were no remote thing, Croft being on the main line to York. In the walled back-garden Charles set up the family’s very favourite pastime - the Railway Game. Using barrels and a wheelbarrow for his train he ran his railway along the many intersecting paths of the garden. There were stations and booking offices and refreshment rooms set at intervals along the lines. There were rules too, of course! You had, for example, to be run over three times at least before you were considered “injured”. The many amusing rules that Charles wrote for this game have fortunately been preserved and are now held in Harvard College Library. One of his little railway stations remained for many years in the huge gardens of the rectory, long after he had left Croft. In letters to her sister, Lucy Lutwidge, Mrs Dodgson constantly referred to Charles’s strenuous efforts to keep his brothers and sisters entertained during these precious years at Croft. He must have been a blessing to his harassed mother with her many children, the running of the large house and her duties as Rector’s wife to fulfil. |
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