The Write Life
Image Courtesy of iStock
Hey Readers!
Welcome to my new monthly column, The Write Life, here at A Busy Lady.
For the next few months, I’m going to be visiting the homes of several prominent writers, mostly from New England. I’m so excited about this journey with you! Together, we’ll walk in the steps of Mark Twain, Louisa May Alcott, Harriet Beecher Stowe, Nathaniel Hawthorne—just to name a few!
This project came from my burning desire to see where these writers lived, worked, and dreamed. Some of it is personal—as my own recent genealogy research showed distant relation to some of these writers. Mostly, I realized there were so many opportunities right outside my back door of New England to discover the magnificent lives of the people that brought us the stories, essays, and poetry we’re still reading today.
So, come along and join me as I share my experience at each of their historic homes, marvel at their writing spaces, and share the anecdotes tour guides shared with me.
Note: all the information shared here is my own personal experience. I haven’t fact checked the tour guides’ anecdotes and encourage you to research these talented writers on your own as well.
A Visit to Mark Twain’s Hartford Home
Samuel Clemens, better known as Mark Twain and author of several well-known treasured stories, include The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, Roughing It, Huckleberry Finn and my personal favorite, A Connecticut Yankee in King Author’s Court, is a fascinating writer to study. His life, like his stories, is riddled with adventure. During his lifetime, he mined silver and gold, drove a steamboat, worked as a journalist, deserted the Confederate Militia, traveled all over the world, met Ghandi and Edison and befriended Helen Keller and Nichola Tesla, to name just a few of his adventures.[1]
Famous in later years for his white suit, which he unveiled in 1906 at 71, when he testified about a copyright reform bill before the Congressional Joint Committee on Patents, Twain was not afraid to stand out. Reportedly, the audience “shivered” when they saw him wearing the summer clothes on a snowy December day. Twain later explained he’d reached an age where dark clothes had a “depressing effect on him.”[2] Grief certainly wasn’t far reaching from Twain’s heart, having lost his father as a child, siblings, his first-born child, two daughters, and then his wife. Which makes me think of Twain’s own famous quote, “Grief can take care of itself, but to get the full value of joy you must have somebody to divide it with.”[3]
According to FamilySearch.Org, Mark Twain is my 8th cousin, three times removed. Here are my impressions after visiting his beloved home in Hartford, Connecticut.
Photo courtesy of iStock
1. The house, originally built on Nook Farm, known for its park-like grounds and farmland, during a time when Hartford held over two dozen book publishers, must have been incredibly appealing to Twain given its publishing opportunities and beautiful landscape. Today, while Twain’s house still stands, Nook Farm is long gone. Several apartment complexes, busy traffic, and other city bustle surround it. Clearly, Twain had a very different view out his balcony during his cigar and writing breaks. It’s a surreal liminal space—reminding us how landscapes change.
2. One of the biggest surprises for me was that Harriet Beecher Stowe lived in a grey house across the lawn. Two prominent writers as neighbors! Of course, they were friends and, according to the tour guide, Harriet Beecher Stowe knew Twain’s wife’s family very well. This lead me to wonder . . . did Twain and Stowe discuss their current works over tea? I imagined Twain yelling to Stowe across the lawn from his balcony, Hey Harriet, how is the writing today?
Here’s a photo I took while standing on Twain’s porch, looking at Harriet Beecher Stowe’s house across the lawn.
3. Twain also had another neighbor, a lawyer, who, according to the tour guide, didn’t want Twain to move in because he thought he was weird.
4. My favorite part of Twain’s house was the library. No pictures were allowed during the tour, but here’s one I took from Facebook found here. Twain would entertain his daughters here, telling them adventurous stories. The atrium of the library was mesmerizing, what a writing space that would be! According to the tour guide, his girls often played “safari” in the atrium with all the plants.
Photo Courtesy of www.MarkTwainHouse.org/writing/twains_library.php
5. Twain’s actual writing space, though moved a couple times (once it was in the barn loft), was a tiny space in the corner of his billiard room. In fact, he had a larger desk in the room, but, according to the tour guide, since it faced his pool table, it only made him think about what he’d rather be doing, other than writing. So, he had a smaller desk shoved into the corner and that’s where he wrote many of his greatest works. This intrigued me the most—the man that traveled all over the world had a tiny desk in a corner to write. My writing space is tiny and so, this inspired me! In fact, you will soon learn like me as I visit various writer homes that many wrote at a tiny desk.
6. Also, in Twain’s office/Billiard room, are his pigeonhole cubbies where he kept his manuscripts. According to the tour guide, he left Huckleberry Finn there for quite some time because he wasn’t pleased with it. All of us writers have been there! Twain would also often work on several works at a time. When he got stuck, the manuscript went into the pigeonhole until he was ready to finish the story.
Photo courtesy of iStock
7. Twain’s wife, Olivia Clemens, held his copyrights and edited all of his work. She also ran the household, overseeing staff. Not only that, but she also homeschooled all three children. The room where she homeschooled them is delightful. It’s a large space where I imagine many lessons took place. It was supposed to be Twain’s office, but he gave it up when he realized writing next to his children’s bedroom was not the best idea for a quiet setting.
8. The home felt filled with wonder, story, and adventure. The family did everything here: writing, playing, teaching, working. The stories the tour guide told defiantly painted a picture of a family focused home. Stories in the library, plays the children put on, exploration outside, etc. It is said that Twain idolized his daughters, who each had a distinct personality. Susy was an imaginative writer. Jean, the animal activist. Clara, strong willed and the only one to outlive him. Sadly, both Susy and Jean died young. Susy, from spinal meningitis at age 24, and Jean of complications from epilepsy at 29.[4]
9. According to the tour guide, given Twain’s fiery opinions on many various topics, the family often used code words in conversations when guests came over, as a silent warning to Twain to settle down. Apparently, “Blue” was a common one, as his wife would say, “Don’t you just love how the blue dishes match the blue vase is this room?” when he got feisty at dinner parties.
10. Twain’s bed had angels on the bed posts that twisted off. His wife, who, according to the tour guide, was religious, liked the angels looking down on her when they slept and/or when she had to rest from a headache. The girls also loved the angels, so one is slightly lighter than the rest because they would twist the angel off the bed, using it as a bath toy.
Photo courtesy of GettyImages.com
Overall, I highly recommend visiting Mark Twain’s Hartford home. There is something about standing in the spaces where a writer once lived and worked that sparks the imagination! I also encourage you to research his life and writings on your own. There is so much information on him, which is probably why there are several books written on his life.
Next, I’m off to Louisa May Alcott’s Orchard House to learn more about Little Women and her other great works and life. Stay tuned for the next The Write Life post next month!
Sarah
AKA A Busy Lady
1. https://www.fultonsun.com/news/2021/feb/18/many-friendships-mark-twain/
3. https://quoteinvestigator.com/2022/09/07/value-joy/
4. https://digitaledition.courant.com/tribune/article_popover.aspx?guid=ab9d740d-d8e7-4515-9dbe-96660f4026b5
© 2024 WHAT’S GOIN ON?!! SLN Publishing, LLC ALL RIGHTS RESERVED