15. Alcott and Schoolchildren in Front of Town House, Early 1860s

Concord's Town House, built in part to accommodate local public school students at the intermediate and high school levels, originally served as a center for the town's educational activities. Classes were held in it, and, in the early 1860s (during the tenure of Bronson Alcott as Superintendent of Schools), yearly school exhibitions to showcase the achievements of the young people of Concord. Amos Bronson Alcott (1799-1888) - idealistic educator, philosopher, lecturer, poet, essayist, diarist, reformer, and father of popular author Louisa May Alcott - was a progressive teacher who sought to draw innate spiritual and moral truth from his pupils through dialogue. He founded the Concord School of Philosophy - a forum for adult education - here in 1879. He is distinguished in this photograph (to the right of the tree standing right of the Town House steps) by his white hair and top hat.