Charlotte Mason Travel & History
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Want to learn more about Charlotte Mason by visiting the important places of her life, or investigate further the persons, history and geography of her era? Below we share information on traveling to England, the former Ambleside College, and the Lake Region of England, as well as various other locales resources related to the time period in which she lived. Please feel free to send us additional tips and recommendations, and leave your constructive comments below!
TRAVEL TOURS & DESTINATIONS
These tours are not specifically oriented to Charlotte Mason, but do give you time to soak up the beauty of the Lake Country she lived in. When inquiring with tour companies, ask about opportunities to stop in Ambleside and visit the University of Cumbria where the former Ambleside College is located.
Rabbies – This tour company offers a number of tours in small coaches, ranging from 3 to 9 days, exploring various aspects and areas of the Lake Country, beginning in London, Ediburgh or Manchester. Costs vary.
LOCAL INFORMATION
Why is Ambleside Special? – The Lake District National Park service explains why Ambleside is important in the history, and conservation, of the United Kingdom.
Good-bye to Lady of the Lakes – Article from 2010 explains the unfortunate closure of Charlotte Mason’s teacher college in Ambleside, UK.
Potted Guide to Ambleside – Brief history of the Ambleside region as well as a short list of activities throughout the year, from the website of The Forest Side Hotel in Cumbria.
Charlotte Mason at the Armitt Museum — Biography of Charlotte Mason on the website of the Armitt Museum Gallery Library, in Ambleside, where the UK center of Charlotte Mason archives is being established.
EVENTS and TOURS
2023 Centenary Conference – Charlotte Mason Institute is celebrating the great work and legacy of Charlotte Mason by hosting this conference in the Lake Country of England, at the University of Cumbria, original home of Ambleside College, mid-July, 2023. Visit the website to register for updates and get more information.
RELATED INFORMATION
Charlotte Mason Comes to America – Karen Andreola writes the story of how Charlotte Mason’s Original Homeschooling Series — most copies of which had been thrown in dumpsters due to lack of interest — came to the United States, and ignited a new revolution in education.
Everything Charlotte Mason 
Is this a replacement for PNEU ?
As a Pupil of the PNEU system at Fairfield, Ambleside, in 1940s and 1950s: and a student teacher at CMC later, in 1970s, I wonder how much of her ethics and methods really fit in with teaching in the current education system?
Testing now is overdone, and definitely against Charlottes principles!
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Hello, Otalia. How nice to hear from someone who actually experienced the PNEU system! I think today’s CM educators would agree with you heartily about testing. And, yes, I think most current Charlotte Mason educators would consider most of the “pure” CM curricula and reading lists quite similar to at the least the academic portion of the PNEU system. There are a number of articles that discuss your question in various places online, and I would suggest using a good search engine to see what you can find to answer your question more thoroughly. Thank you for commenting!
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Hello, and thank you for this site! I was hoping to find information about possible colleges which teach Charlotte Mason, on behalf of one of my young library patrons who is thoroughly disappointed with the views of the Christian college she is attending currently. Might you know of any? Also, you have kindly mentioned my Children’s Preservation Library on your “how to find a “living books” library” page, thank you. It is still going strong, but I thought you may want to know that we now also have an even larger library (two branches) in the greater West Palm Beach area of Florida. http://www.LivingLearningLibraries.org. Over 35,000 volumes. And I still do help budding librarians, as you cited there, with my LivingBooksLady service, so I can still help people launch their own such libraries. Thank you! Michelle Miller Howard
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Hi, Michelle. So glad to hear about such a great expansion! We certainly need more than ever strong living libraries, and I will happily add your new information onto the existing listing on the Libraries page of this website. As for colleges, unfortunately I have yet to find any American schools (or British, for that matter) that actively teach CM style to education majors. If you or your patron have not already, please visit the Education page of everythingcharlottemason.com to find what schools at least offer something akin to the “study of relations” or at the very least, engage college students in a “great books” atmosphere of learning. I hope she will find something satisfactory — though with that great desire, she will likely be able to take any quality program and use it to become a terrific CM educator/advocate!
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