Last week, I visited the Dickens Victorian Village at Cambridge, Ohio. This is not too far from where my parents live. The last time we visited and walked around to see the statues was in 2009, and you can read my post about it here. The Dickens Victorian Village is an exhibit that has taken place since 2006 with local businessman Bob Ley creating the figures and dressing them in Victorian fashion; Ley's business was in men's clothing. The Dickens Victorian Village and the light show at the courthouse (I'll cover this in another post) draw crowds over Christmas, and we saw at least one bus in town on the day we visited.
There are now over 180 life-sized figures in 93 different scenes on the main street of Cambridge, and a bronze plaque next to each one gives interesting facts and information about Victorian life. Some of these are in shop windows, and others are out in the streets. Mimicking our 2009 visit, we had heavy snowfall the day before; we'd planned to visit that day but were snowed in so planned to go the following day. The snow was on the figures and over some of the bronze plaques. (We took care to walk the pavements/sidewalks as it was very cold the day we visited and any snow that had started to melt had turned to ice in places.)
Cambridge's main street has a lot to offer in terms of craft shops, coffee shops, supermarkets, specialist food shop, bakeries, antique shops, and restaurants. There's also an old-style theatre, and it had just finished a production of "A Chrostmas Story", based on the film. Cambridge is also known for its glassware with local companies Boyds (now closed) and Mosser glass. Some of the glass is sold in local stores or at its location a couple of minutes drive from the main street. It's also sold in the Discovery Center, where you can learn more about the Dickens Village. We did visit Mosser's and bought some nice glassware.
We walked up and down the street so that we could see the figures and had a meal at Theo's restaurant, which is a popular and recommended restaurant on the main street. After getting warmed up, we headed back outside to catch the Courthouse Holiday Light Show, which I will post about later.
Dickens Victorian Village runs from the first of November until the 2nd of January. For more information, visit their official website at http://www.dickensvictorianvillage.com. Worth a stop is Kennedy's Bakery, one of the best bakeries in the area. I love the Chinese tea cakes. Also do not forget to visit the antique shops (Penny Court) and Mosser's glassware (a short drive away), and stay for the light show on the courthouse in the middle of the main street; it starts at 5:30pm.
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