Last Sunday, I gave a talk on the history of St. Paul’s Church, the oldest building in Halifax, at the launch of St. Paul’s Halifax Historical Foundation.

St. Paul’s played a significant role in the relief efforts after the sinking of RMS Titanic in 1912 and the Halifax Explosion in 1917, to mention just a couple of pieces of the fascinating story of this place. Another part of the story—which, as many of you know, is especially close to my heart—is that Jane Austen’s niece was baptized at St. Paul’s in 1809 and her nephew was married there in 1848.

Anyone who would like to help preserve this beautiful place is welcome to join the Friends of St. Paul’s. Details about how to do so are available on the St. Paul’s website.

If you enjoyed this newsletter, I hope you’ll consider recommending it to a friend. If you aren’t yet a subscriber, please sign up.

Here are the links to the last two instalments, in case you missed them:

“Awesome Jane” (a postscript for “Unexpectedly Austen”)

A January scrapbook page

CBC Radio Documentary: “Our Jane”

CBC article: “‘Our Jane’: N.S. fans celebrate her 250th birthday, and her Halifax connection”

My debut novel, The Austens, is now available from Pottersfield Press! Order signed copies (personalized, if you wish) from Bookmark (for shipping within Canada) or Woozles (for shipping within Canada and the United States). Order from Jane Austen Books (they’re based in Ohio and accept international orders as well as orders within the United States). The ebook is also available; additional sources are listed here.

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