In 1910, the home of one of the world’s most beloved authors was up for sale and likely to be demolished. It had been built in the mid-1600s and had been vacant for years. “Private Property” and “No Trespassing” signs were nearly obscured by tall grass, giving the overall impression of sad dilapidation. The real estate prospectus read, “perfect site for a new mansion.”

Orchard House, 1912. John Sewell Pratt Alcott is at the left in the doorway

| Courtesy of Louisa May Alcott’s Orchard House

The course of history was changed by the foresight of neighboring Wayside resident Harriett Lothrop, better known as the author Margaret Sidney. Harriett purchased the home and persuaded a group of Concord women to save it. The goal was to open it as a memorial to Louisa May Alcott and her family’s legacy in literature, education, the arts, and social justice.

Harriett Lothrop, 1893

| Courtesy of Louisa May Alcott’s Orchard House

On April 5, 1911, a small band of intrepid women who had met through the Concord Woman’s Club, formed The Louisa May Alcott Memorial Association with the help of their husbands. The men were essential because females lacked the required legal standing to form a non-profit corporation! After the gentlemen fulfilled the legal requirement, the women took over, raising funds to purchase Orchard House from Mrs. Lothrop “with all the land in front of it and 20 to 30 feet in the side and back.” Private donations poured in from around the world—including a dime from a girl in Hungary!—and totaled $8,000 for the purchase and “for papering, furnishing, and a maintenance fund,” noted an article in the Concord Patriot.

Louisa’s nephew, John Sewall Pratt Alcott, provided original furnishings, which were still in the family, as well as vital advice on placement and paint colors. John noted that “The house was in such a bad condition that one of the carpenters . . . advised . . . ‘tear it all down and build a new one.’” Happily, that advice was ignored, and “Apple Slump,” as Louisa had called Orchard House, was preserved with all its flaws. For nearly a year before the work was completed, eager visitors were admitted, and the first Guest Book was begun on July 13, 1911. The price of admission was set at 25 cents.

Finally, the official opening of Orchard House was held on May 27, 1912. People came from across the globe, as Alcott, an international sensation in her own lifetime, continued to grow in popularity. Honored guests included descendants of the Alcotts and other notable Concord families, including Ralph Waldo Emerson’s son, Edward, a frequent attendee at the many Alcott evening entertainments. John Alcott reminisced about living in Orchard House with his Alcott grandparents, his mother, Anna, and his Aunt Louisa after his father’s death in 1870. The Christian Science Monitor estimated 250 people visited Orchard House that day. Today, Orchard House welcomes more than 60,000 visitors each year. LouisaMayAlcott.org