Heritage Open Days 2014: Chawton House Library

Chawton House Library is a rare books library containing over 9,000 titles from the period 1600-1830. Focusing on early English women's writing, it contains manuscript and print material, and is open Monday-Friday 9.30-16.45 to all readers with an appointment. On Thursday the 11th of September, visit this Elizabethan manor house that once belonged to Jane Austen’s brother in the village of Chawton in Hampshire. Exhibitions will focus on Jane Austen's reading, and on Maria Graham (1785-1842), an important woman travel writer who published several volumes on her voyages to South America. In commemoration of the centenary of the First World war, there will be a small exhibition on World War 1 and its impact on estates similar to that of Chawton House. Refreshments and light lunches will be available to purchase in the Old Kitchen.