A Winter’s Afternoon…

 
 
 
 

 
 

Come walk with us through the snowy streets of Concord, Massachusetts, home of Emerson, Thoreau, Hawthorne, and Alcott. Though generations have passed since they strolled the lanes of this historic town, much is yet unchanged. Several of the original buildings stand just as they did in the nineteenth century, beautifully and lovingly preserved for us to enjoy. Many are now museums, inns, or public buildings, and stand as a testament to the town’s commitment to historic preservation.
 

Though best known for its role in the opening days of the Revolutionary War, Concord was also the home of some of this country’s best known philosophers and authors. Just steps from where the “shot heard ‘round the world” was fired, you can find the dwelling of Rev. William Emerson, grandfather of Ralph Waldo Emerson. It is where Emerson’s essay “Nature” was penned, where love notes were written on window panes by a young Nathaniel and Sophia Hawthorne; and where a vegetable garden was specially designed for them by Henry David Thoreau.

Just a short walk down the road, you can turn to left visit Sleepy Hollow Cemetery, and climb the steep hill to Author’s Ridge where rest the remains of Louisa May Alcott and Ralph Waldo Emerson. Nearby are the Hawthorne’s who were separated in death until June 2006, when Sophia and daughter Una were re-interred from England to the family plot. Thoreau’s gravestone within his family’s plot reads simply, “Henry”. And Harriet Lothrop, who was better know as Margaret Sidney, the author of the “Little Peppers”stories, is also a Ridge resident. It is tradition to leave a penny on the gravestones as a token of thanks for their work.

Turning back down Bedford Road, you come to the village green, which boasts a rather impressive obelisk commemorating the Civil War. On Lang Street sits the Concord Colonial Inn, built in 1716. It once served as a storehouse for arms and provisions during the American Revolution. Henry David Thoreau also lived here while attending Harvard College. It now provides fine lodging and dining to visitors of Concord.

On Monument Square, the town common, is a large pink edifice, formerly the town’s courthouse. It is said that one of three British soldiers, killed at the battle of North Bridge was buried where the building now stands. 30 Monument Square now houses offices for several small businesses.

Surrounding Monument Square, are serveral houses of worship including Concord’s First Parish, a wonderful example of a New England Meeting House; though it is actually the fourth church building belonging to the parish to be erected since 1637. The present church building was built at the turn of the 20th century after fire destroyed its predecessor. The architects and builders took great care to faithfully reproduce the original structure.

Ralph Waldo Emerson’s grandfather, William, was once the pastor here.

Further along Lexington road, past the First Parish Church, you will come to Orchard House, the home of the Alcott Family: Bronson, a transcendentalist philosopher, his wife Abigail, daughter Louisa and two of her three sisters. Younger sister Elizabeth, after whom the character Beth in Little Women was fashioned, died before the family moved here.
 
 
 
 

Visitors to the museum will be delighted by the number of original furnishings, and by May Alcott’s (Amy March’s inspiration) original artwork painted directly on to walls and woodwork.

Hillside Chapel, where Louisa Alcott’s father Bronson conducted the Concord School of Philosophy and Literature each summer for nearly a decade.

One may certainly imagine the students of Plumfield Estate School from LM Alcott’s novel “Little Men” passing through the doors of the chapel, though the book was written in 1871, eight years before her father’s pupils filed in to hear lectures. 
 

Next door to Orchard House, The Wayside’s chimneys rise up to meet the sky. Painted a cheerful yellow, the home gives the passerby a clue as to the happy memories contained within its walls.

When the Hawthorne family bought it from the Alcotts, Nathaniel changed its name from “Hillside” to Wayside. Certainly it did provide a welcome place for literary friends to lay their heads of an evening, among them Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, who wrote the poem “The Bells of Lynn” in Hawthorne’s honor following his death in 1864.

Several years later, the home was purchased and restored by Harriet Lothrop (aka Margaret Sidney). It is now maintained by the National Parks Service.

 
 

About two miles out of town, in woods by Walden pond, this granite pillar marks the place where Henry David Thoreau built his cabin, on land owned by his friend Ralph Waldo Emerson. There he spent two years, following the death of his beloved older brother John, wandering through the woods, contemplating materialism, and writing his consummate work, “Walden”. Though not popular in his own lifetime, “Walden” has inspired many a naturalist, and aspirant to a simpler way of life.
 
 
 
 

 
 
 
 
In 1990, singer Don Henley founded “The Walden Woods Project” to preserve this beautiful sanctuary from development, a feat that would have made Henry proud. Although the cabin has long since returned to nature, a replica has been built, alongside a statue of Thoreau, for visitors to admire.
 
 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Visiting Concord
 

Lodging

Concord’s Colonial Inn
Hawthorne Inn
Colonel Roger Brown House
North Bridge Inn
Mill Brook Inn – 69 Walden Street ~ Concord ~ (978) 369-5515
Best Western at Historic Concord **FCL family pick**

Dining

Walden Grille
Helen’s Cafe – 17 Main St~ Concord~ (978) 369-9885
Main Street Market and Cafe
Serafina Ristorante

Shopping

Rare Elements (antiques)
The Toy Shop
The Cottage
Fritz and Gigi (heirloom children’s clothing)

Sites

Battle Road – walk the trails that British soldiers and Colonial militia took that morning in April 1775. Junior Ranger Booklets are available for children to fill in as they walk. Present the completed booklet to the Ranger at Lexington to receive a Junior Ranger badge.

Sleepy Hollow Cemetery – Bedford Road, Concord. Stroll up Author’s Ridge and leave a token for Alcott, Hawthorne, Emerson and Thoreau… and keep an eye out for the headless horseman!

The Old Manse – 269 Monument Street Concord. Home of Emerson and Hawthorne

Orchard House – The Home of the Alcotts

The Wayside – Home of Alcott, Hawthorne, and Sidney.

Walden Woods – Home of Henry David Thoreau