VISITING THE “LITTLE WOMEN” HOUSE | Charming Author Home Tour

A visit inside Louisa May Alcott’s Orchard house in Concord, MA, the place where the beloved literary classic “Little Women” was written.

When I spend time at old author’s homes I get this timeless feeling that no time has passed since they made their footprints next to mine. That their thoughts and ideas who first took shape before I was even born still are floating around in the air like dew that I can’t avoid but to just breathe in as me and my wife enter the garden of one of those homes. Wherever I look, I can see small fragments of what inspired the author to come up with the plot that finally entered the final pages. As I lean towards an unaesthetic tree trunk, that despite its wiggly spine creates a majestic silhouette I wonder if the author did the same. If the area that is missing its bark and has a perfect elbow shape actually is a mark from the author herself when she went out in the garden to clear her thoughts.

The Orchard House still has the feeling that nothing has changed since Louisa May Alcott lived there.

Concord, MA, is so rich in history it could be its own book.

We are in Concord, not far from Boston, MA, that besides its rich history of literature, is of much colonial importance. A statue of a relaxed soldier proves that. He is looking out over a beautiful scenery that probably hasn’t changed too much since he was alive and wrote America’s history with his musket. It’s a stream of water, which ambient creates a nice place, suitable for meditation and self-care centered afternoons. It is a “minuteman”, a civilian self-trained colonist, ready in only one minute to break through the flanks of intruding forces of the time. (The statue is made by Daniel Chester French)

Little Women, a reflection of Louisa’s childhood.

But, back in the author’s garden, we are going to enter the home of none other than Louisa May Alcott, best known for her instant bestseller in 1868 “Little Women.” A story that is based on her childhood that took place at this home whose entrance gives us a tingling feeling as if we just entered a gateway to a fictional world. In a way we do, since Louisa based the characters from her own family, as well as the house and settings when she wrote the much-loved masterpieces. (Unfortunately, we were not allowed to take photos inside, but we’ll describe it for you.)

Almost no time had passed…

Everything inside the house feels authentic. It is as the Alcott sisters just moments ago left it there. We learn that it never passed much time between the building is home to become the museum it is today. 20 years is not long compared to other author’s homes that often had other generations of residents living, adding their marks before it turned into museums.

The Alcott’s loved to perform.

One grand example of authenticity is the famous hand-sewn “Rodrigo” boots that lay among the other handmade theater outfits that were so often in use. To the house guests delight, it was not uncommon to be offered a play written by Louisa herself, as the Alcott sisters loved to perform. I can imagine the crackle of the open fire, casting a warm light over the room as “Rodrigo” enters the stage. 

The Orchard House – A place for conversations paid with apples.

Louisa’s family was very supportive, and despite this being a time when women shouldn’t be authors, her father still made her a desk for writing. He saw her potential and seemed to have been a person full of good character. “A conversation for an apple” was a question you might have gotten from him if you lived during this era and happened to stroll by the Alcott house, which was called “The Orchard House” because of the many apple trees. The desk he made his daughter is of smaller size, located in between the two windows in Louisa’s room, facing a beautiful view over the front garden. She spent days and nights here writing “Little Women” that only took her 10 weeks to finish. What fascinates me is that it is the simple things that accomplish great work. A desk, paper, pen, and ink, in a time when there weren’t such things as auto-correction, and word documents. 4 months after Louisa started to write, the book was published to become an instant bestseller.

Abigail Alcott’s marks are still there.

Before we leave the writing corner of Louisa, we notice the many owls painted on the walls. We learn that she loved owls, as it seems as much as we do. The tour guide claimed to my wife’s delight that she and Louisa must then be “kindred spirits” which is such a compliment to get. It was Louisa’s little sister Abigail who painted them. She was a fantastic artist, a “19th-century woman artist” during an era where women shouldn’t be artists either. Abigail or May as she later preferred to be called, managed to study art in Paris and inspired other women to become more educated and independent.       

After the tour is over we have learned a lot of new things not only about Louisa but of her whole family. The loss of the sister Elizabeth whose sketched portrait still hangs next to her beloved piano whose tones served an important part of their theater escapades. The ups and downs they went through as a family. The Alcott’s seem to have been a perfect example of supporting the different gifts and talents in our loved ones, even if I am sure it came with a price from the rest of society that wasn’t yet ready for a woman to write or paint. The magnificent work called “Little Women” is a true proof that you should not let anyone stop you from working towards your dreams. To never give up, and always do your best.

Bye For Now,
Jonas & Lindsay Dianne

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