Concord: Stories to Be Told (Town Memoir.) (Boston & Concord) [Hardcover]

Liz Nelson (Author), Amy Bishop (Illustrator)

Book Description

Series: Boston & Concord | Publication Date: March 1, 2002

"Wherever men have lived, there is a story to be told," wrote Henry David Thoreau, a native of Concord, Massachusetts. From the first settlers in 1635, through the events of April 19, 1775, to twentieth-century efforts at preservation, author Liz Nelson tells the compelling stories of Concord, Massachusetts.

She describes The Old Manse, where Ralph Waldo Emerson wrote "Nature," where Nathaniel Hawthorne brought his bride, Sophia, in 1842, and where, it is said, ghosts still wander. She captures the words of President Abraham Lincoln's bodyguard, Concordian John Shepard Keyes, and those of Samuel Melvin, one of three brothers who died in the Civil War, to whom the Melvin Memorial at Sleepy Hollow Cemetery was commemorated in 1909. Nelson tells the true stories behind the icons&emdash;like that of sculptor Daniel Chester French, who created the statue of the Concord Minute Man.

Century by century, here are the true stories of one of the oldest and most venerated towns in the United States.

Editorial Reviews

From the Inside Flap

From the story of John Hoar’s courage in protecting Christian Native Americans during King Philip’s War, this collection of true tales from history winds its way to the present day. Author Liz Nelson writes of Thoreau’s expertise at making pencils, as well as his days at Walden. She tells of Louisa May Alcott, author of Little Women and the first woman in Concord to register to vote; Ephraim Bull, who created the Concord grape; and Daniel Chester French, who sculpted the Minute Man statue. Story by story, the history of Concord comes alive.

Town Memoirs (toun mem'-wärs).
1. True stories that capture the spirit of a community, its genius loci. 2. Anecdotes passed on within a community from generation to generation. 3. A series of books by regional storytellers, illustrated by local artists, preserving the popular history of great American towns.

About the Author

Liz Nelson is the author of Newburyport: Stories from the Waterside, the first book in the Town Memoirs series. A resident of Boston's North Shore for over twenty-five years, she has written extensively on its historic and scenic places.

Amy Bishop Anastacio grew up in Concord's neighboring town, Acton, Massachusetts. She has a B.F.A. in Illustration from the Hartford Art School in Connecticut. She resides in Acton with her husband and one very old cat.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 150 pages
• Publisher: Commonwealth Editions (March 1, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1889833312
• ISBN-13: 978-1889833316
• Product Dimensions: 8.8 x 6 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 10.6 ounces
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #4,977,977 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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