The Great Dickens Christmas Fair is taking Bay Area locals and tourists alike on a journey back to the heart of Victorian London. For just five weekends every holiday season, they graciously bring back the sights, sounds, and even scents of that beautiful period to history.
Imagine this, you stroll down narrow streets dotted with unique and authentic carnival games, English pubs with heaps of hot food being made before your eyes, and specialty shops selling handmade goods from all over. From street sellers and chimney sweepers singing carols, to characters like Ebenezer Scrooge, Bob Cratchit, Tiny Tim, the Ghosts of Christmas Past, Present, & Future, and even Mr. Dickens himself, will wander the alleys. The streets of the fair are crowded and bustling with people dressed in elaborate 1800s costumes, including sailors and seamen, businessmen, suffragists, thieves, and nobility. Numerous stores filled with presents, books, jewelry, textiles, artwork, and apparel pass by as you wind through neighborhoods and roads that have been meticulously recreated. You can smell hot, candied cinnamon almonds, pine and burnt wood, hot toddies, and musk. All of this, and just in the heart of the Bay Area, San Francisco.
The fair, which has been a much beloved Bay Area institution for now 55 years, is still one of the most intricate and detailed Victorian Christmas events in the world. The Cow Palace is the site of The Great Dickens Christmas Fair, a long-standing Daly City facility that holds a variety of events, including concerts and even rodeos. It has opened its doors to the public since 1941, being the site of many of the historic conventions and moments for California. But once you enter during the holiday season, you time-travel back to Victorian London, completely forgetting that only 20 minutes ago you were struggling through thick 101 traffic.
The History
Image of Ron & Brian Patterson 
But where did this incredible tradition start? The majority of visitors to Dickens London are likely unaware of its unique origin at a very different kind of fair in Los Angeles in the 1960s; Renaissance Faires. The birth of wide spread Renaissance Faires in America were arguable all thanks to the work of Ron and Phyllis Patterson. The Pattersons, still on the high of their successes in early “novelty themed” fairs made the decision to throw a small but special holiday party at their Hollywood Hills home in the winter of 1968, for their closest friends and family.
They moved away from their tried-and-true Renaissance roots for this occasion and looked to Charles Dickens’ works and late 19th-century history for inspiration. The occasion’s costumes, food, décor, and activities were so enjoyable to the Pattersons and their guests that they proposed holding the event annually, possibly on an even larger scale.
In the meantime, the Pattersons had extended their Renaissance Faire productions to Marin County in Northern California, hosting it in the historic brick warehouses along Fisherman’s Wharf in nearby San Francisco. The scenery was reminiscent of the covered marketplaces of Victorian London, and the experience served as the inspiration for an extravagant Victorian Christmas Fair open for the public to enjoy. What started out as a house party was transformed into a large indoor fair for the Bay Area community. The Great Dickens Christmas Fair (or Pickwick Comic Annual, as it was once known) soon was born. In December 1970, the Anchor Works, a historic warehouse next to San Francisco’s waterfront Embarcadero neighborhood, hosted the first Dickens Fair for only three weekends. At the time, a newspaper article poignantly compared the Fair experience to walking onto a movie set.
The Great Dickens Christmas Fair has changed over the course of its over 50 year run because of the participation of three generations of the original Patterson family, a big multi-talented ensemble of performers and artists, and thousands of loyal patrons and visitors. The only festival of its sort in the entire globe, it has grown to be one of the most cherished and eagerly awaited yearly events in the San Francisco Bay Area!
What to Look Forward to
From traditional English pantomimes and juggling acts to music hall concerts, sea shanties, and scenes performed from “A Christmas Carol” across the venue, there is always something to see. With numerous stages and activities, you can never really be bored. You can sing along with boisterous performers at Mad Sal’s Dockside Alehouse, learn a new dance at Fezziwig’s Warehouse, or even just listen in on the goings-on of the streets. The hand-powered Adventure Carousel, “Punch and Judy” puppet shows, Victorian fairy home crafting, and, of course, a visit from Father Christmas are just a few of the magical moments that await at the fair. And you are welcome to dress the part too. Costumes that are appropriate for the time period are not necessary, but they are highly encouraged.
By inspiring the resurgence of local art, food, community, and music, the idea of living history fairs give back greatly to our beautiful Bay Area culture. We find connection in creation, and that cannot be lost. So, if you need a break from the hustle and complications of today’s world, take a trip to somewhere that brings you joy and warmth, for many that is The Great Dickens Christmas Fair. They offer a chance for playfulness, an opportunity to be both a performer and the audience, a reason for coming together to, just for a moment, emphasize the true spirit of the holiday season; connection.
Below a collage of photos by Sheri Salado
The Lighthouse 