Jane Austen's House Museum facts for kids
Jane Austen's House Museum is a special museum in the small village of Chawton, near Alton in Hampshire, England. It's a writer's house museum, meaning it's the actual house where a famous writer lived. This 17th-century house, sometimes called Chawton Cottage, was the home of the famous novelist Jane Austen for the last eight years of her life. During this time, she worked on and published all six of her well-known novels. The museum building has been a very important historical site since 1963.
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Jane Austen's Home
This house was once a home for local farmers. For a short time, between 1781 and 1787, it was even a public house called The New Inn. Later, Jane Austen's brother, Edward Austen Knight, let his mother and sisters live there. This gave them a permanent place to stay.
Jane Austen lived in the house with her mother, her sister Cassandra, and a family friend named Martha Lloyd. They moved in on July 7, 1809. Jane lived there until May 1817, when she moved to Winchester because she was ill. She passed away in Winchester on July 18, 1817. Her mother and sister continued to live in the house until they passed away in 1827 and 1845.
A Special Place for Writing
When Jane Austen arrived at Chawton, she had already written early versions of three novels: Sense and Sensibility, Pride and Prejudice, and Northanger Abbey. She worked on these books at the house, making them ready to be published. It was also here that she wrote three more famous novels: Mansfield Park, Emma, and Persuasion.
The Museum Today
After Jane's sister Cassandra passed away, the house was divided into smaller apartments. Later, part of it became a club for workers. The rest of the house was split into cottages for people working on the estate. These parts were known as Petty Johns and Chawton Cottage.
The Jane Austen's House Museum officially opened in 1947. It was managed by the Jane Austen Memorial Trust until 2014. The house was bought in 1948 by Thomas Edward Carpenter. He then gave the house in trust in 1949. This was done to remember his son, Lieutenant Philip John Carpenter, who bravely passed away in Italy in 1944.
The museum first opened its doors to the public in July 1949. About 40,000 people visit it every year. Today, the museum is owned and run by a charity called Jane Austen's House Museum CIO. Its main goal is to help people learn about English literature, especially the works of Jane Austen.
What You Can See
The museum has many interesting items that belonged to Jane Austen and her family. You can see eighteen music books that Jane Austen owned. Some of these books even have music copied by her own hand.
Among the furniture, there is a Muzio Clementi pianoforte from 1813. This piano is similar to the one Jane Austen owned. There's also a Hepplewhite bureau-bookcase that holds several of her books. The museum also displays other items and furniture from the Austen family.
The museum owns the only three pieces of jewelry known to have belonged to Jane Austen. These are a turquoise beaded bracelet, a topaz cross, and a turquoise and gold ring. The gold ring stayed in Austen's family for a long time. In 2012, it was sold at an auction to the American singer Kelly Clarkson. However, the British government stopped the ring from leaving the country because it was so important historically. With help from a generous donation, the museum was able to buy the ring. It was put on display at the museum in February 2014.
Special Events
The museum often holds events to help people appreciate Jane Austen's work even more. These events also encourage new writers. Sometimes, there are music performances using the Clementi pianoforte. You can also watch performances based on her famous novels.
See also
- Chawton House
- Jane Austen Centre, Bath
- Timeline of Jane Austen
