Historical Profile: Nathaniel Hawthorne

SALEM, Ma. - Nathaniel Hawthorne (July 4, 1804 – May 19, 1864) was born in Salem, Massachusetts.  In 1825, Hawthorne graduated from Bowdoin College.  While at Bowdoin, he was classmates with future U.S. President Franklin Pierce, poet Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, and future U.S. Congressman Jonathan Cilley.  Hawthorne was a writer and diplomat.  His literary works included: novels, short stories, and a biography of Franklin Pierce called The Life of Franklin Pierce.

Hawthorne’s most notable published novels include: The Scarlett Letter (1850), The House of the Seven Gables (1851), and The Blithedale Romance (1852).  The Scarlett Letter was one of the first mass-produced books in the United States.  The novel also became a best seller in the U.S.  From 1853 to 1857, Hawthorne served as United States consul in Liverpool, England during the Pierce administration.

American sculptor Bela Lyon Pratt created a statue of Nathaniel Hawthorne located in Salem, Massachusetts.



Nathaniel Hawthorne monument - Salem, MA (Photo credit - Rob Riordan)

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Recovery Month supports addiction treatment programs and services

F or twenty-three years Americans have celebrated the month of September as National Alcohol and Drug Addiction Recovery Month.   The purpose of Recovery month is to educate Americans about mental health services and addiction treatment programs that can help people struggling with substance abuse.   Recovery month also raises awareness about specific challenges that people in recovery face.   Although drug and alcohol addictions are complex problems with the correct treatment and support people who struggle with these addictions can recover. In a Presidential Proclamation On August 31, 2012, President Barack Obama declared September 2012 as National Alcohol and Drug Addiction Recovery Month.   In his proclamation Obama said: “Over the past 3 years, we have worked to strengthen substance abuse prevention and treatment programs, and to support Americans in recovery… Drug and alcohol abuse continue to take a tragic toll on millions of lives across our country.   Yet, while more remai
Read more

The Life and Art of Allan Rohan Crite

Image
The Boston Public Library was one of three locations in the city of Boston to display the art work of longtime Bostonian and artist Allan Rohan Crite. Beginning in the fall of 2007 until February 3, 2008, the BPL, the Boston Athenaeum, and the Museum of the National Center of Afro-American Artists exhibited collected works of art from Crite’s storied career in The Life and Art of Allan Rohan Crite: 1910-2007 . Funded in part by the Boston Public Library Foundation, the exhibit offered onlookers a view into Crite’s lengthy artistic career. When I visited the exhibit on January 19, 2008, over fifty collages, drawings, paintings, and sketches adorned the Wiggins Gallery in the McKim Building of The Boston Public Library. Crite was born on March 20, 1910, in Plainfield, New Jersey. In that same year, his family moved to Boston, Massachusetts. Crite would later make Boston his home as an adult. Over the course of his distinguished career he promoted visual art as a lecturer, p
Read more

Political legislation brings attention to US Dental Care Crisis

A ccording to a report created by U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and U.S. Representative Elijah E. Cummings (D-Md.) there is a national crisis in American dental care.   On June 7, 2012 Cummings and Sanders – the chairman of the Senate Subcommittee on Primary Health and Aging, introduced legislation to address the inefficiencies in the American dental care system.   Approximately 130 million Americans do not have dental insurance.   ¼ of American adults 65 and older have lost all of their teeth.   More than 75% of American adults over 30 have gum disease.   Additionally, about 17 million low-income children do not go to the dentist every year. On June 26, 2012, PBS aired a documentary about the U.S. dental care system on the investigative news program FRONTLINE .   The 50 minute documentary, Dollars and Dentists , analyzes current economic trends and patient access in the dental care industry.   The documentary is a joint investigative piece by FRONTLINE and the Center fo
Read more