Henry David Thoreau was born in Concord, Massachusetts on this date in 1817.
The
Friends of Huntley Meadows Park encourage subscribers of this service to
reflect
on the influence Thoreau has had on the world's understanding and appreciation
of nature and the natural world. One of the most influential writers and
philosophers of the American experience, Thoreau was a primary influence on
naturalists and scientists such as John Muir, John Burroughs, E.O. Wilson,
Theodore Roosevelt, as well as ordinary people like you and me. I commend not
only Thoreau's best known works such as 'Walden', 'Civil Disobedience', and
'Walking', but also particularly his Journal, which he kept most of his life.
Some say that his Journal is Thoreau's best writing. What do you think?
Harry Glasgow
Friends of Huntley Meadows Park
Thoreau's writings, particularly his Journal influenced many of the worlds
leaders. Peopke like Ghandi, Martin luther King, who adopted Thoreau's
prescriptions for non-violent activism from thoreau's 'Civil Disobediance';
scientists and naturalists such as E.O. Wilson, John Muir, John Burroughs, and
B.F. Skinner were guided in much of their work by Thoreau's writings;
