FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Nancy Grohol, Executive Director
Thoreau Farm Trust
978.369.3091
978.369.1515 (fax)
nancy@thoreaufarm.org
www.thoreaufarm.org

Thoreau Farm Trust to take title of Thoreau birthplace

July 12, 2007

Concord, MA—The Thoreau Farm Trust has received approval to take title of the Henry David Thoreau Birth House from the Town of Concord. The town’s Board of Selectmen voted unanimously on July 9 to transfer title of the property as soon as possible, expressing gratitude for the Trust’s fundraising success to date and confidence in its ability to raise the rest of the money needed for the rehabilitation and re-use of the house as a community resource.

The 18th-century farmhouse, which is listed on the National Register of Historic Places, has been uninhabitable since the town purchased the property from a private owner in 1997. The Thoreau Farm Trust, a nonprofit group composed of local citizens, has been raising funds to rehabilitate the house for multi-use purposes: as a place where the public can visit the room Thoreau was born in; as a community meeting space for local groups; and as an education center focused on the history of New England agriculture and the environmental legacy of Henry Thoreau.

Robert Pinsky, former U.S. Poet Laureate, is honorary chair of the Thoreau Farm Trust’s capital campaign. Thus far, nearly $700,000 has been raised, including Community Preservation Act funds approved by Concord town voters last spring. The total cost of the rehabilitation project is expected to be $1 million.

“We are excited at the prospect of owning the house and beginning necessary work this summer,” said Lucille Stott, president of the Thoreau Farm Trust. “We appreciate all the work Town Manager Chris Whelan and Town Planner Marcia Rasmussen have done to make this possible. And the selectmen’s confidence in us as stewards of the property has given us new momentum as we move forward to complete the project.” Stressing that the house is not meant to become a museum or “a relic of the past,” Stott added, “The beauty of the project, in our eyes, is the fact that it will take something from the past and project it—through education and community use—into the future. That is what has excited us all along and what keeps us going.”

The closing is expected to take place this summer, as soon as the legal formalities are completed. The title transfer means the Trust can begin much-needed work at the site. Initial construction will focus on rehabilitating the exterior of the structure by the end of the fall—shoring up the foundation, installing custom reproduction windows, restoring the doorway, repairing the roof, and replacing and repainting clapboards.

Future plans call for the restoration of the historic fabric that remains inside the building, much of which is in the Thoreau birth room. The rest will be rehabilitated for rental offices for the Thoreau Society, which will locate its headquarters in the house, and for community meeting and public educational space. A small addition will be added to the back of the house to allow for a handicap-accessible ramp and bathroom.

“This is a very exciting time for us and for the town,” said Nancy Grohol, executive director of the Trust. “We are very grateful for all the support we have received. We do still have fundraising to do, but with continued help from the community we are confident we will meet our $1,000,000 goal. We welcome visitors to the house, and invite anyone interested to log on to our website (www.thoreaufarm.org) to see how to schedule a visit or make a contribution online.”

The Thoreau Farm Trust (www.thoreaufarm.org) is a nonprofit organization dedicated to restoring and rehabilitating the Henry David Thoreau’s birthplace in Concord and using the house, which is on the National Register of Historic Places, as an education and community center. If you are interested in touring the house, learning more about the organization, or how you can help, please contact Nancy Grohol at 978.369.3091 or nancy@thoreaufarm.org.