Wheeler-Minot Farmhouse/Henry David Thoreau Birth House

Thoreau lived in the town of Concord from the time of his birth until he began his studies at Harvard University, which he graduated from in 1837. After his graduation he became a protege and friend of fellow Concord resident Ralph Waldo Emerson. Under Emerson, Thoreau studied the philosophy of Transcendentalism, an American adaptation of Romantic Idealism which proclaims that “the secret of successful living was to hold oneself above material concerns as much as possible and focus on the spiritual.”4 In 1845, Thoreau built a small house on the shore of Walden Pond and put into practice his Transcendental ideals while writing books and essays. Most of his work did not become famous until after his death in 1862 from tuberculosis. Much of his unfinished work was published posthumously, including his daily journals, in which he often examined farm life during the 19th century, citing his mother’s experiences on the Wheeler-Minot Farm.5 Today Thoreau’s legacy is one of environmental conservatism far ahead of its time, as he was one of the earliest American writers to show society the value of the pure natural world. His writings "resonated with opinion leaders and the general public alike and laid the foundation for the explosion of conservation policy that began a generation later."6