Articles Tagged with ''louisa may alcott''

Little Women, Big Screen: A New Presentation of the Classic Novel Debuts on Christmas Day

December 15, 2019

Each year, more than 100,000 people visit Louisa May Alcott’s Orchard House. This December 25th, millions more will have the chance to learn about Louisa May and her amazing family through the lens of Sony Picture’s newest presentation of the classic book Little Women.

Spending the Holidays with Louisa May Alcott

December 15, 2019

Susan Bailey

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“‘Christmas won’t be Christmas without any presents, grumbled Jo, lying on the rug.’” This opening line from Little Women has linked Louisa May Alcott with Christmas for the past 150 years. In keeping with the spirit of the novel, Alcott penned dozens of short stories about the true meaning of Christmas, loosely modeled after Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol. Like Dickens, Alcott sought to teach her young readers about the virtues of giving versus receiving.

And the Emmy Goes to… Orchard House: Home of Little Women!

September 15, 2019

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After four years in the making, the documentary Orchard House: Home of Little Women was awarded the Emmy for “Best Historical/Cultural Program/Special” during the 42nd New England Emmy Awards ceremony on June 15, 2019.

The Battles of Lexington and Concord: The Revolution Begins

The Battles of Lexington and Concord, fought on April 19, 1775, marked the outbreak of the American Revolutionary War. The British, seeking to suppress a growing colonial rebellion, dispatched 700 elite troops under the command of Lieutenant Colonel Francis Smith to seize a stockpile of arms and ammunition in Concord, Massachusetts. News of this impending operation quickly spread through the colonial network, alerting local militias. The operation began with British troops crossing the Charles River to Cambridge and marching toward Concord under darkness. The confrontation began at Lexington Green, where a small contingent of colonial militiamen, under the command of Captain John Parker, faced a significantly larger British force. As the Regulars approached the town common, Parker told his men to “Stand your ground, don’t fire unless fired upon, but if they mean to have a war, let it begin here!”1

Patriots' Day is Coming!

Don't miss these exciting events as you plan your Patriots' Day visit to Concord, Lexington, and the surrounding towns.

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“I Haven’t a Man Who is Afraid to Go” The Acton Minutemen on April 19, 1775

The Acton Minutemen were formed at the end of 1774 at a town meeting. Tensions with England had grown to a boil, and towns everywhere were responding by training their men to fight. The town of Acton, which had previously been part of Concord, chose their best men from their existing militia units to form the new Minute Company, and those men voted 30-year-old Isaac Davis as their captain.It was the law of the land that every man between the ages of 16 and 60 was required to serve in his town’s militia. They were not paid and met twice each year to conduct marching and musket drills. By contrast, minute companies were paid and met twice each week to drill and train and were arguably among the best trained soldiers in the area when hostilities broke out in April of 1775.