Thoreau Society keeps his ideas alive

CONCORD, Mass. - The Thoreau Society, founded in 1941, is by far the largest organized fan club of any American writer, and likely of any writer anywhere - dead or alive.

Members of the Thoreau Society, a 1,600-member fan club made up mostly of scholars, naturalists, artists and writers, this summer climbed Mount Katahdin like Thoreau did. Staff photo by John Ewing.

At last count, the nonprofit society had 1,600 members representing all 50 states and 20 countries. Many members are Thoreau scholars - professors, Ph.D.s and pedants who have spent years analyzing his texts. Others are naturalists, artists and writers - people who just admire the man considered to be the father of the American conservation movement.

The society, headquartered in the historic Walden Woods, maintains an archive and a reading room with assorted Thoreau memorabilia relevant to the writer and his times.

Though not a political organization, the society in the early 1990s did join with other groups, notably the Walden Woods Project (founded by recording artist Don Henley), to oppose a developer's plan to build an office park and luxury condominiums in Walden Woods.

For links and more information about the The Thoreau Society and Thoreau's role in history, see our Thoreau in History section.

''The society has been active in conservation issues for some time. That struggle is ongoing, and we're involved,'' said Tom Harris, the 24-year-old managing director of The Thoreau Society. ''We've never had a lot of money, but we can lend support, information and intellectual capital.''

On June 27, about 20 members of the society traveled to Maine to present a plaque to Irvin ''Buzz'' Caverly Jr., superintendent of Baxter State Park, in appreciation of the state's efforts to preserve and protect Mount Katahdin and the park.

The next day, society members climbed Katahdin, though the trail that approximates Thoreau's route - Abol Trail - was closed.

''By calling attention to Gov. (Percival) Baxter and his remarkable gift to Maine and to all of us, we hoped to reinforce the notion that preservation is a worthwhile thing,'' said Ronald Hoag, a Thoreau scholar who teaches English and American literature at East Carolina University in Greenville, N.C. ''While the use of the woods for commercial purposes is unavoidable, other values should take precedent when push comes to shove.

''You can't go there if it doesn't exist,'' Hoag said.

The society publishes a quarterly bulletin and the annual Concord Saunterer, a collection of the latest scholarship relating to Thoreau, his associates, Concord and transcendentalism. Membership in the society is open to the public.

The group's annual meeting is held on the weekend closest to Thoreau's birthday - July 12 - at various Thoreau-related locations around Concord. This summer's get-together included a lecture at the First Parish Church, the church attended by every member of Thoreau's family - except Thoreau, who was a transcendentalist.