Bronte Birthplace
The youngest Bronte sister, Anne, was born on the 17th January, 1820. Thousands of tourists flock to Haworth each year to visit the Parsonage where this amazing family grew up, but Anne- her famous sisters, Charlotte and Emily and her bother, Branwell- were actually born at Thornton, a small village about 6 miles away.
When I last visited in 2017, 74, Market Street was open as a cafe called ‘Emily’s’. A plaque on the wall and a sign were the only indicators of the significance of the building where three of the most extraordinary English authors were born. To be away from the hustle and bustle of others visiting a literary location and to be able to ‘enjoy the moment’ was a real delight - and one not often possible!
When this was the parsonage provided by the parish for the Brontes, it had only three rooms on each of its two floors. The front of the house faced Market Street, a that time the main road through Thornton; the back would have been quieter with a yard backing onto the hillside. The Brontes two oldest daughters, Maria and Elizabeth, were born at Hartshead, their previous parish so it was their more famous siblings who, legend has it, were born by this very fire. And here, I sat, with a cup of tea and a delicious slice of cake, thinking about their lives and the incredible books they wrote.
A second room on the ground floor is also open to the public. There are pictures of the family on the walls and it is not hard to imagine a young family rushing through these rooms. A narrow staircase temptingly leads to the upper floor of the property, but this is not open to the public.
Since my last visit, there have been some changes. A new blue plaque commemorating the birthplace was unveiled in July 2021 on what would have been Emily’s birthday. A group of stones, known as The Brontë Stones, have been placed in the landscape between the birthplace of the Brontë family in Thornton and the parsonage where they wrote their famous work in Haworth. These were devised by author, Michael Stewart- one stone to celebrate the bicentenary of each sister and a fourth to mark their significance as a literary family. Walking routes have been created so people can enjoy these. I will be planning another visit very soon!
For children, ‘The Brontes’ by Anna Doherty is an excellent place to start. Here, the story of the Bronte family is told simply, offering the perfect introduction to their lives and the time they lived. Starting with a family tree including all the siblings, their pets and Tabby the cook and housekeeper, Anna Doherty picks up the family tale when the family are living in Haworth. Here, the reader is shown where the children grew up in the house overlooking the churchyard, surrounded by the wild Yorkshire moors.
The book does not shy away from the sadder events in the children’s lives; it recounts their time at the terrible Cowan Bridge School where the two eldest girls, Maria and Elizabeth, died . However, the creativity of the surviving siblings, Charlotte, Bramwell, Emily and Anne, the joy of their childhood games and their imagined kingdoms of Angria and Gondal.
Their path to being published authors- first as poets and then as novelists-is explored. Each of their novels is is briefly outlined before the death of each sibling, tragically early, follow one after another.
The Brontës: The Fantastically Feminist (and Totally True) Story of the Astonishing Authors
Anna Doherty
Wren and Rook ISBN: 978-1526361066