A talk given by Professor Gustavo A. Brandariz (University of Buenos Aires) on the idea of ‘nature’ in the works of Emerson, Thoreau, Sarmiento, Hudson and Martínez Estrada. Recorded in November 2024 as part of an international meeting honoring Argentinian writer Ezequiel Martínez Estrada on the 60th anniversary of his death. The linked video is in Spanish.

The friendship between two intellectual powerhouses of the mid-nineteenth century—Margaret Fuller and Ralph Waldo Emerson—began with a visit to Concord in 1836. Fuller later joined the “Transcendental Club” and her book Woman in the Nineteenth Century—the first major feminist work in America—grew from an essay published in The Dial magazine under Emerson’s editorship.

Continuing a series on the strong women in Ralph Waldo Emerson’s life with a profile of his wife Lidian (Lydia) Jackson Emerson, who worked to relieve the suffering of people and animals while also managing a busy household and supporting her husband’s work. A co-founder of Concord’s Female Anti-Slavery Society, Lidian encouraged Emerson’s own involvement in the abolitionist movement.

Beginning a series on the strong women in Ralph Waldo Emerson’s life with a profile of his Aunt Mary Moody Emerson, who helped raise him after his father died and had a profound influence on his life and works. Credited as being his “earliest and best teacher,” Mary laid the foundation of Transcendentalism for her nephew and was an inspired writer in her own right. She was also active in the antislavery and women’s rights movements.

The history and provenance of Diamond the rocking horse, a beloved family artifact in the Emerson House nursery. Already an antique when Lidian Jackson bought it in 1825, Diamond took a circuitous route to Concord, its story touching on themes of childhood, illness, family, and domesticity—and involving two dramatic incidents at sea.

Emerson House guides share answers to some of the frequently asked questions by visitors to the house.

In his new documentary film Ralph Waldo Emerson: Give All to Love, Michael Maglaras celebrates the 220th anniversary of Emerson’s birth by “telling the story of the father of American thought and literature and…his importance in contemporary life.”

Referencing Jeffrey S. Cramer’s book, Solid Seasons: The Friendship of Henry David Thoreau and Ralph Waldo Emerson, to explore the question of whether the two friends called one another “Waldo” and “Henry.”

Reprinted from The Public Domain Review, this essay explores the friendship of Transcendentalist illustrator Christopher Cranch and Ralph Waldo Emerson. Cranch’s collection of humorous sketches inspired by phrases from Emerson’s Nature—including his famed “transparent eyeball” drawing—is considered one of his greatest achievements.

A reflection on Emerson’s trip to the White Mountains in the summer of 1832 as he considered leaving the ministry after the death of his first wife, Ellen. Taking wisdom from his surroundings, it was there that Emerson made the decision to resign. Mountains continued to occupy a place in his imagination, itineraries, and poetry for the rest of his life.

Emerson and Thoreau met in the spring of 1837 and became lifelong friends. In addition to their affinity for Concord, they shared a strong belief in the importance of nature in developing creative and independent thinking. Thoreau lived with the Emerson family for several years and built the cabin of Walden on land owned by Emerson.

An examination of the themes and context of Emerson’s momentous 1837 speech, "An Oration, Delivered before the Phi Beta Kappa Society at Cambridge,” later retitled “The American Scholar.” At the time, Emerson was just embarking on his remarkable 40 year career as an essayist, poet and speaker. His mind was racing with new ideas designed to increase individual expression and promote the importance of nature to thought and literature, and the Transcendental Club was founded soon thereafter.