The Old Manse
Encyclopedia
The Old Manse is an historic manse
famous for its American literary associations. It is now owned and operated as a nonprofit museum by the Trustees of Reservations. The house is located on Monument Street in Concord, Massachusetts
, and it neighbors the North Bridge
over the Concord River
, a part of Minute Man National Historical Park
.
. The builder was the town minister in Concord, chaplain to the Provincial Congress when it met at Concord in October 1774 and later a chaplain to the Continental Army
. Rev. Emerson observed the fight at the North Bridge
, a part of the Concord Fight, from his farm fields while his wife and children witnessed the fight from the upstairs windows of their house.
Rev. Emerson died in October 1775 in West Rutland, Vermont, while returning home from Fort Ticonderoga
. His widow remarried, to the Rev. Ezra Ripley, and the family continued to live in the Old Manse. Rev. Ripley served as Concord's town minister for 63 years.
In November 1834, Ralph Waldo Emerson moved to the Manse where he lived with his aging step-grandfather Ezra Ripley. While there, he wrote the first draft of "Nature
", a foundational work of the Transcendentalist movement
.
rented the Old Manse for $100 a year. He moved in with his wife, transcendentalist Sophia Peabody, on July 9, 1842, as newlyweds. Friend Henry David Thoreau
created a vegetable garden for the couple. The Hawthornes lived in the house for three years. In the upstairs room that Hawthorne used as his study, one can still view affectionate sentiments that the two etched into the window panes. The inscription reads:
On the first anniversary of his marriage, Hawthorne and his neighbor, poet Ellery Channing, searched the neighboring Concord River for the body of Martha Hunt, a local woman who drowned. Hawthorne wrote of the incident, "I never saw or imagined a spectacle of such perfect horror... She was the very image of death-agony." The incident inspired the climactic scene in his novel The Blithedale Romance
(1852).
During his time in the Old Manse, Hawthorne published about twenty sketches and tales, including "The Birth-Mark
" and "Rappaccini's Daughter
", which would be included in the collection Mosses from an Old Manse
(1846). One description of the house he wrote notes: "Between two tall gateposts of roughhewn stone... we behold the gray front of the old parsonage, terminating the vista of an avenue of black ash trees." The Hawthornes were forced out of the home for not paying their rent. Returning to Concord seven years later, Sophia Hawthorne visited the Old Manse on October 1, 1852. She referred to it as "the beloved old house".
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The house remained in use by the Emerson-Ripley family until 1939, and was conveyed to the Trustees of Reservations on November 3, 1939. The house was conveyed complete with all its furnishings, and contains a remarkable collection of furniture, books, kitchen implements, dishware, and other items, as well as original wallpaper, woodwork, windows and architectural features.
The Old Manse was designated a National Historic Landmark
in 1966 and a Massachusetts Archaeological/Historic Landmark the same year.
The Manse is open seasonally for guided tours given by the Trustees of Reservations who also run a book store in the house specializing in the American Revolution, Women's History, Nathaniel Hawthorne, Transcendentalism, and Sustainability.
Manse
A manse is a house inhabited by, or formerly inhabited by, a minister, usually used in the context of a Presbyterian, Methodist, Baptist or United Church...
famous for its American literary associations. It is now owned and operated as a nonprofit museum by the Trustees of Reservations. The house is located on Monument Street in Concord, Massachusetts
Concord, Massachusetts
Concord is a town in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, in the United States. As of the 2010 census, the town population was 17,668. Although a small town, Concord is noted for its leading roles in American history and literature.-History:...
, and it neighbors the North Bridge
Old North Bridge, Concord, Massachusetts
The North Bridge, often colloquially called the Old North Bridge, across the Concord River in Concord, Massachusetts, is a historical site in the Battle of Concord, the first day of battle in the Revolutionary War....
over the Concord River
Concord River
The Concord River is a tributary of the Merrimack River in eastern Massachusetts in the United States. The river drains a small rural and suburban region northwest of Boston. One of the most famous small rivers in U.S...
, a part of Minute Man National Historical Park
Minute Man National Historical Park
Not to be confused with Minuteman Missile National Historic Site.Minute Man National Historical Park commemorates the opening battle in the American Revolutionary War. It also includes The Wayside, home in turn to three noted American authors...
.
Emerson years
The Old Manse was built in 1770 by Rev. William Emerson, father of noted minister Rev. William Emerson and grandfather of famous transcendentalist writer and lecturer Ralph Waldo EmersonRalph Waldo Emerson
Ralph Waldo Emerson was an American essayist, lecturer, and poet, who led the Transcendentalist movement of the mid-19th century...
. The builder was the town minister in Concord, chaplain to the Provincial Congress when it met at Concord in October 1774 and later a chaplain to the Continental Army
Continental Army
The Continental Army was formed after the outbreak of the American Revolutionary War by the colonies that became the United States of America. Established by a resolution of the Continental Congress on June 14, 1775, it was created to coordinate the military efforts of the Thirteen Colonies in...
. Rev. Emerson observed the fight at the North Bridge
Old North Bridge, Concord, Massachusetts
The North Bridge, often colloquially called the Old North Bridge, across the Concord River in Concord, Massachusetts, is a historical site in the Battle of Concord, the first day of battle in the Revolutionary War....
, a part of the Concord Fight, from his farm fields while his wife and children witnessed the fight from the upstairs windows of their house.
Rev. Emerson died in October 1775 in West Rutland, Vermont, while returning home from Fort Ticonderoga
Fort Ticonderoga
Fort Ticonderoga, formerly Fort Carillon, is a large 18th-century fort built by the Canadians and the French at a narrows near the south end of Lake Champlain in upstate New York in the United States...
. His widow remarried, to the Rev. Ezra Ripley, and the family continued to live in the Old Manse. Rev. Ripley served as Concord's town minister for 63 years.
In November 1834, Ralph Waldo Emerson moved to the Manse where he lived with his aging step-grandfather Ezra Ripley. While there, he wrote the first draft of "Nature
Nature (book)
Nature is an essay written by Ralph Waldo Emerson, published anonymously in 1836. It is in this essay that the foundation of transcendentalism is put forth, a belief system that espouses a non-traditional appreciation of nature. Transcendentalism suggests that divinity diffuses all nature, and...
", a foundational work of the Transcendentalist movement
Transcendentalism
Transcendentalism is a philosophical movement that developed in the 1830s and 1840s in the New England region of the United States as a protest against the general state of culture and society, and in particular, the state of intellectualism at Harvard University and the doctrine of the Unitarian...
.
Hawthorne years
In 1842, the American writer Nathaniel HawthorneNathaniel Hawthorne
Nathaniel Hawthorne was an American novelist and short story writer.Nathaniel Hawthorne was born in 1804 in the city of Salem, Massachusetts to Nathaniel Hathorne and the former Elizabeth Clarke Manning. His ancestors include John Hathorne, a judge during the Salem Witch Trials...
rented the Old Manse for $100 a year. He moved in with his wife, transcendentalist Sophia Peabody, on July 9, 1842, as newlyweds. Friend Henry David Thoreau
Henry David Thoreau
Henry David Thoreau was an American author, poet, philosopher, abolitionist, naturalist, tax resister, development critic, surveyor, historian, and leading transcendentalist...
created a vegetable garden for the couple. The Hawthornes lived in the house for three years. In the upstairs room that Hawthorne used as his study, one can still view affectionate sentiments that the two etched into the window panes. The inscription reads:
- Man's accidents are God's purposes. Sophia A. Hawthorne 1843
- Nath Hawthorne This is his study
- The smallest twig leans clear against the sky
- Composed by my wife and written with her diamond
- Inscribed by my husband at sunset, April 3 1843. In the Gold light.
- SAH
On the first anniversary of his marriage, Hawthorne and his neighbor, poet Ellery Channing, searched the neighboring Concord River for the body of Martha Hunt, a local woman who drowned. Hawthorne wrote of the incident, "I never saw or imagined a spectacle of such perfect horror... She was the very image of death-agony." The incident inspired the climactic scene in his novel The Blithedale Romance
The Blithedale Romance
The Blithedale Romance is Nathaniel Hawthorne's third major romance. In Hawthorne , Henry James called it "the lightest, the brightest, the liveliest" of Hawthorne's "unhumorous fictions."-Plot summary:...
(1852).
During his time in the Old Manse, Hawthorne published about twenty sketches and tales, including "The Birth-Mark
The Birth-Mark
"The Birth-Mark" is a romantic short story written by Nathaniel Hawthorne that examines obsession with human perfection. It was first published in the March, 1843 edition of The Pioneer...
" and "Rappaccini's Daughter
Rappaccini's Daughter
"Rappaccini's Daughter" is a short story written by Nathaniel Hawthorne in 1844 concerning a medical researcher in medieval Padua. It was published in the collection Mosses from an Old Manse.-Plot summary:...
", which would be included in the collection Mosses from an Old Manse
Mosses from an Old Manse
Mosses from an Old Manse was a short story collection by Nathaniel Hawthorne, first published in 1846.-Background and publication history:...
(1846). One description of the house he wrote notes: "Between two tall gateposts of roughhewn stone... we behold the gray front of the old parsonage, terminating the vista of an avenue of black ash trees." The Hawthornes were forced out of the home for not paying their rent. Returning to Concord seven years later, Sophia Hawthorne visited the Old Manse on October 1, 1852. She referred to it as "the beloved old house".
Modern history
The Old Manse was designated a National Historic Landmark
National Historic Landmark
A National Historic Landmark is a building, site, structure, object, or district, that is officially recognized by the United States government for its historical significance...
in 1966 and a Massachusetts Archaeological/Historic Landmark the same year.
The Manse is open seasonally for guided tours given by the Trustees of Reservations who also run a book store in the house specializing in the American Revolution, Women's History, Nathaniel Hawthorne, Transcendentalism, and Sustainability.