Who would guess there are 83 regional groups of the Jane Austen Society of North America, with over 5,000 members. There are only seven regional branches in the U.K. in comparison. 2025 is the 250th anniversary of her life. The birth date is December 16th, so we will expect some news articles with women dressed in period costumes at “Regency Balls”. There is a Jane Austen Birthday Bash in Niagara-on-the-Lake at Navy Hall on her birthday. There will be a lecture, tea and birthday cake.
She is very quotable and often quoted. “It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune, must be in want of a wife” from Pride and Prejudice. Perhaps this is one of her most appreciated: “It isn’t what we say or think that defines us, but what we do.”
Here’s a house worthy of a Jane Austen birthday party. It is the Smith-Geddes House. It is in the Italianate-style. It is on Main Street West in Grimsby and nicely set in the rural farmland around it. You can read more about this heritage house HERE.
