Charles Dickens originally chose to set David Cooperfield’s birthplace in Blundeston Suffolk following a trip to Yarmouth, a nearby city and the home of Copperfield’s Peggotty. There is debate on whether Dickens had been to Blundeston Suffolk, though his familiarity with the village suggests otherwise. However, his specificity about the town, such as the view from the church, in addition to his documented proximity, makes it highly likely that Dickens did at least stop by briefly. Located on the east side of the United Kingdom, the town of Blundeston sits in a larger seaside county known as Suffolk. As a coastal region, much of the region’s land is impacted by streams, marshes, and rivers, just shallow enough to make boat travel difficult. Blundeston Suffolk, a northern parish in Suffolk, is centrally located around its St. Mary’s church. In the 1800s, the town was pretty sparse, with a few pubs and one school; most of the population were farmers. A house in Blundeston, known in the novel as the Rookery, is where David Copperfield is born and then subsequently grows up in. Dickens details the Rookery beautifully: “And now I see the outside of our house, with the latticed bedroom-windows standing open to let in the sweet-smelling air, and the ragged old rooks'-nests still dangling in the elm-trees at the bottom of the front garden” (28). 

Currently, what used to be the Rookery is known now as the Blundeston Rectory of Blundeston Suffolk. Still functioning as a home, it was sold in 2010 for about £220,000, which is about 300 times the £617 value in 1831. The red brick building stands two stories tall, with four bedrooms, a lush front yard, and large windows. Many of the other locations in Blundeston mentioned in David Copperfield still exist to this day, including Plough Inn, St. Mary’s Church, and the graveyard. Blundeston Suffolk remains a similar population to the 1800s, with only 1000-2000 current residents. Over time, the types of jobs have changed to be more diverse, tending towards more skilled and specialized professions.