Jane Austen Society of North America
Indulge your imagination in every possible flight. ― Jane Austen, Pride & Prejudice
What is JASNA?
The Jane Austen Society of North America (JASNA) was founded in 1979 by Joan Austen-Leigh, Henry G. Burke, and J. David Grey. One hundred Janeites attended the society’s inaugural dinner on October 5, 1979, at the Gramercy Park Hotel in Manhattan. Since then, the society’s ranks have grown to more than 5,000 members, making JASNA the largest literary society devoted to Jane Austen. Members are of all ages and from diverse walks of life. Although most members live in the United States and Canada, Austen admirers from more than a dozen countries are also JASNA members.
Jane Austen's House Museum
Jane Austen’s House Museum in Chawton, Hampshire, is the house where Jane Austen lived and wrote. It is the most treasured Austen site in the world. It was here that Jane’s genius flourished and where she wrote, revised and published all her major works: Sense and Sensibility, Pride and Prejudice, Mansfield Park, Emma, Northanger Abbey and Persuasion. Jane lived at what is now Jane Austen’s House Museum for the last eight years of her life. The Museum holds an important collection of objects associated with Jane Austen, including letters written by Jane and personal effects belonging to her and her family.
Chawton House
Discover the ‘Great House’ referred to in Jane Austen’s letters, now sensitively restored, relax in the peace and tranquillity of the gardens, and find inspiration in the lives and works of our women writers. We foster research and understanding of early women writers, restoring them to their rightful place in the history of English literature and enabling them to speak directly to – and inspire – future generations. We have a unique collection of women’s writing which is accessible to anyone who wishes to use it. The House and Gardens are open to visitors, and the historic setting brings to life the context within which our women writers lived and worked.
Become a Member
It is well to have as many holds upon happiness as possible. ― Jane Austen, Northanger Abbey
Reap the many benefits
of joining JASNA
Whether you have just become interested in Jane Austen from seeing the film adaptations of her novels or have been reading her for years, we would love to welcome you to become a member of the Jane Austen Society of North America and the North Texas Region. Our members are truly Janeites*, enthusiastic admirers of Jane Austen's writings. We host five regional meetings annually that feature interesting speakers and presentations. Our annual December meeting is a celebration of Jane Austen’s birthday. We also provide our members with opportunities to get together for book clubs and informal events to see Austen-related movies, plays and events. Membership dues are paid to the Jane Austen Society of North America (JASNA), our parent organization. These dues are your membership in JASNA and the North Texas Region.
Benefits included in a JASNA membership are:
• Invitation to our five meetings each year
• Ability to participate in sponsored regional events such as book clubs, informal gatherings
• A subscription to JASNA News, the society's newsletter, which is published four times a year and includes news, feature articles, and book reviews
• JASNA’s annual journal, Persuasions, a leading source for Austen studies
• An opt-in email subscription to JASNA's monthly e-bulletin and other timely announcements
• Ability to attend the JASNA Annual General Meeting (AGM) each Autumn, which is held in different locations in the US and Canada
*According to Wikipedia, George Saintsbury coined the term “Janeite” (as "Janite") in the introduction to an 1894 edition of Pride & Prejudice.