Autumn 2008
Welcome to the Autumn edition of your Letter from Chawton, the quarterly newsletter from Chawton House Library. We have lots of exciting plans for this year, and more for 2009, which is the bicentenary of Jane Austen’s arrival in Chawton. We hope that you enjoy reading our latest news and that you can join us for some of our events in the year ahead.
A Year of Celebrations With 2009 just around the corner, an exciting programme of events to mark the bicentenary of Jane Austen’s arrival in Chawton will be coming to press. Next year will see the kind of entertainment that Austen herself would have taken part in, such as a costume ball and a Regency card party. There will also be activities that would probably have made her smile, namely ‘Undressing Mr Darcy’: a wry look at what made the ‘hunk in the wet shirt’ so irresistible. Details of all the events taking place between February and July next year are enclosed with this edition of Letter from Chawton. Another feature of the bicentenary is the Jane Austen Short Story Award; bestselling author Sarah Waters has agreed to judge the competition, which is for stories inspired by Jane Austen’s novels or by Chawton House’s history. Entries have already started to come in, although the closing date is not until March 31st 2009. The top prize is £1000 plus a writers’ retreat at Chawton House Library. Full guidelines and an entry form are available on our website. For those in need of some extra inspiration for the competition, a Writers’ Workshop will be held at Chawton House Library on Saturday 7th February. Led by short story editor Janet Thomas details of the workshop are included in the events programme.
Hello Boys! Chawton House Library has a new arrival: graceful, glossy-haired and eighteen hands two high, Charlotte came to join the estate’s Shire horses at the end of October. This brings the total number of horses to five and, as the others are all boys, there’s been considerable interest in the newcomer. Charlotte, who is fourteen years old, has come to us on loan from David Peters, who also loaned Harry to Chawton House. ‘She’s settling in with the boys, who all seem to be in love with her,’ said Head Horseman Angie McLaren, ‘But we won’t be hearing the patter of little hooves any time soon because, unfortunately, she is unable to foal’. The horses are a hard-working team, carrying out logging and chain-harrowing on the estate but Angie says that Charlotte won’t be expected to do any work until she’s settled in over the winter.
Ghostly Goings-On With a history dating back more than five hundred years, it’s perhaps not surprising that Chawton House is reported to be haunted. Over the years there have been several alleged sightings of ‘The Grey Lady’ – a woman thought to be a nursemaid who carries a candle from the Oak Room to what used to be known as the Red Bedroom. Visitors to the house have also claimed to have seen the
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figure of a man wandering through the south of the house. To mark the day when spooks and spirits are supposed to be at their most active, Chawton House Library staged Halloween events for both adults and children. The afternoon saw a pumpkin treasure hunt followed by craft activities: making spiders and bats from egg boxes and pipe cleaners proved particularly popular! While those who braved the house after dark had their appetites whetted with a reading from a Gothic novel. This was followed by a ‘ghost tour’ of the house; an opportunity to learn about Chawton’s history while following the spectral footsteps of those who, apparently, can’t bear to leave. For guests who found it all a bit too much, there was hot pumpkin soup and wine to revive the spirits (sorry – couldn’t resist that one!) in the Old Kitchen. The popularity of the events exceeded all expectations – both were sold out several days before Halloween. Events Coordinator Sarah Cross said: ‘It was a huge success and we’ll definitely be repeating it next year.’
Austen’s Legacy to the Historic House Industry’, was well-received. CHL also participated in the Emporium, which housed a wide range of merchandise for sale and very steady business was achieved for both Regency memorabilia and memberships. The stall also provided an ideal opportunity to talk to people about the history and mission of the Library. However, none of it could have happened without the significant and sustained support of both the North American Friends of Chawton House Library (NAFCHL) and the officers and members of JASNA. The Jane Austen Society of Japan (JASJ) AGM was held in Kobe this year and Chawton House Library was represented by Dr. Hatsuyo Shimazaki . Dr. Hatsuyo Shimazaki was one of the first Chawton House Library Visiting Fellows in 2007-8 and she is one of the founding members of JASJ, along with her colleague Professor Hisamori, of the Meiji Gakuin University in Tokyo. One of the characteristics of JASJ is in its openness. It does not define the area of studies only to Jane Austen and her works but accepts papers on other writers’
Jane Austen Conference Season The 2008 AGM of the Jane Austen Society of North America took place in Chicago this October. The theme of the event – ‘Jane Austen’s Legacy: Life, Love and Laughter’ – attracted a sell-out audience. CHL was wellrepresented by Gillian Dow, Sarah Parry and Steve Lawrence. Gillian made a major contribution to the Plenary session panel: ‘How far across countries, cultures and disciplines does Jane Austen’s legacy reach?’ Judging by the increasing involvement of Chawton House Library with JA societies in, for example, Japan and Australia, the answer has to be very far indeed! Sarah was also involved on stage – her presentation, ‘The Pemberley Effect:
Recruiting Support Judith Meyrick has been appointed Volunteer Co-ordinator at Chawton House. This is an unpaid post which is vital to the smooth-running of the small army of people who assist with guided tours, open days and the upkeep of the estate. Judith first came to Chawton House as a volunteer in the garden. Her background in management makes her ideally qualified to assist in the training and recruitment of others. ‘With the bicentenary coming up next year we need to increase the number of volunteers in both the house and the garden. If you are interested in becoming a volunteer, contact Judith on 01420 541010.