Beth Potter, Friends of the Haworth NJ Library, writes:
I'm president of the Friends of the Library in Haworth, New Jersey, USA. Our library here is trying to reach out to Brontë fans everywhere to get some help for its expanding library. I figure anyone who's read and appreciated Jane Eyre or Villette or Wuthering Heights or Agnes Grey must have a soft spot for a place named Haworth. Haworth, New Jersey, is, in fact, named for Haworth, England - in 1872 a railroadman and land developer named John S. Sauzade named this little station stop Haworth in honor of the Brontë sisters' hometown. Sauzade was himself a novelist, and, obviously, a huge admirer of the Brontës.
|John S Sauzade|
Within our new local history room, we hope to have a plaque on the wall, honoring the sisters - and the British town - that gave us such a special name. We're also going to have a new children's room and a meeting room.
The new addition will have a glass 'Donor Wall' with names honoring the people and groups that have donated to our expansion, and it occurred to me that it would be meaningful to have the Brontë Society listed as a donor, because without the Brontës, we wouldn't be a Haworth. And a library in a town called Haworth is a very relevant place to remember the Brontë sisters.
If you'd care to help, there's a Paypal "Donate" button on the library website, http://haworth.bccls.org/ We sure would appreciate your support. Small donations from lots of people add up to a large donation! And come visit us sometime... a lot of folks from here have visited your Haworth and had a grand time.