The Old Manse facts for kids
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Old Manse
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The Old Manse, as seen from Monument Street
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 Location in Massachusetts
Location in the United States
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| Location | Concord, Massachusetts |
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| Built | 1770 |
| Architectural style | Georgian |
| NRHP reference No. | 66000775 |
Quick facts for kids Significant dates |
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| Added to NRHP | October 15, 1966 |
| Designated NHL | December 29, 1962 |
The Old Manse is a very old house in Concord, Massachusetts. It is famous because many important American writers and historical events are connected to it. Today, it is a museum that you can visit. The house is run by a group called the Trustees of Reservations. It sits on Monument Street, right next to the Concord River. The famous North Bridge, part of Minute Man National Historical Park, is also very close by.
Contents
A Look Back: The Manse's History
The Emerson Family's Time
The Old Manse was built in 1770. It was built for Reverend William Emerson. He was a minister and the grandfather of the famous writer Ralph Waldo Emerson. Reverend Emerson was the town minister in Concord. He was also a chaplain for the American soldiers during the American Revolutionary War.
He even watched the fight at the North Bridge from his farm fields. This fight was part of the Concord Fight. His wife and children watched the battle from the windows of their home.
Reverend Emerson passed away in 1776. His wife, Phebe Emerson, later married Ezra Ripley. He became the new minister for Concord. Their family kept living in the Old Manse. Reverend Ripley served as the town's minister for 63 years!
In 1834, Ralph Waldo Emerson moved to Concord. He lived at the Manse with his step-grandfather, Ezra Ripley. His mother, brother, and aunt also lived there. While living in this house, Ralph Waldo Emerson wrote the first version of his important essay called "Nature". This book helped start the Transcendentalist movement. This was a new way of thinking about nature and life. While at the Old Manse, he also asked Lydia Jackson to marry him. After they got married, they moved to another house in Concord.
The Hawthorne Family's Time
In 1842, the American writer Nathaniel Hawthorne rented the Old Manse. He paid $100 a year. He moved in with his new wife, Sophia Peabody, on July 9, 1842. Sophia had visited Concord before. She had met Ralph Waldo Emerson. She loved the town and told Hawthorne about it. He really wanted to live there too.
Before they arrived, Henry David Thoreau even planted a vegetable garden for them! The Hawthornes lived in the house for three years. In the room Hawthorne used for writing, you can still see special messages they wrote on the windowpanes. They used a diamond to carve words like:
- 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
The Hawthornes had many famous visitors. In 1845, Franklin Pierce visited. He later became a President of the United States. Sophia Hawthorne liked him a lot.
While living at the Old Manse, Hawthorne wrote about twenty stories. These included "The Birth-Mark" and "Rappaccini's Daughter". These stories were later put into a book called Mosses from an Old Manse (1846). Hawthorne described the house as having a "gray front" seen through "an avenue of black ash trees." The Hawthornes moved out in 1845 because the Ripley family wanted the house back. They moved to Salem. Seven years later, Sophia Hawthorne visited the Old Manse again. She called it "the beloved old house."
The Manse Today
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The Emerson-Ripley family owned the house until 1939. Then, it was given to the Trustees of Reservations. The house came with all its furniture, books, and other items. It still has its original wallpaper, wood, and windows. This makes it a very special place to visit.
The Old Manse was named a National Historic Landmark in 1966. It was also named a Massachusetts Archaeological/Historic Landmark in the same year.
Today, the Manse is open for tours during certain times of the year. Guides from the Trustees of Reservations lead these tours. The garden, which Henry David Thoreau first created, has been replanted. There is also a bookstore at the house. It sells books about the American Revolution, women's history, Nathaniel Hawthorne, and the Transcendentalist movement.
