EXTENT: 2.83 linear feet (two containers and ten unboxed volumes)

ORGANIZATION: Organized into three series: I. General records, 1794-1903; II. Manuscript memoirs of members, [18--?]-1910 (bulk [1856]-1910); III. Published volumes, 1882-2005.
 
HISTORY: Men's organization in Concord, Mass., formed in 1794, preceded by two earlier versions, the first dating back to 1782, possibly before. Limited by the constitution to a membership of not more than twenty-five, the Circle's original stated purpose was "To strengthen the Social affections and disseminate useful communications among its members." Meetings, devoted to conversation, held at members' homes Tuesday evenings October-March. In addition, members of the Circle prepare biographies of those among their number who have died. These biographies are collected from time to time and published under the title Memoirs of Members of the Social Circle in Concord (seven volumes published to date). Membership has from the beginning included the individuals active in local politics and influential in various spheres both in Concord and beyond.

SCOPE AND CONTENT:  Manuscript and printed records, 1794-2005, include: bound volume of records 1794-1882, transcribed in the hand of John Shepard Keyes (including membership lists, constitution, minutes); ms. Authorization to publish the first volume of Memoirs (published in 1882 under the title The Centennial of the Social Circle in Concord), signed by members; ms. words of presentation to E.R. Hoar of gift in honor of his fiftieth anniversary as member, 1890; printed menu for Circle's dinner at the celebration of the centenary of Ralph Waldo Emerson's birth, 1903; two bound volumes of transcribed ms. memoirs of members, 1871-1910 (including biographies found in first five volumes of the printed Memoirs); ms. memoir of Humphrey Barrett by and in the hand of Nathan Brooks, [1856] (published in 1882 in the volume of Memoirs); notes by Nathan Brooks on Tilly Merrick and William Parkman; ms. memoirs of Jonathan Fay by Jonathan Fay Barrett, 1859 (published in 1882 in the first volume of Memoirs); file of John Shepard Keyes materials relating to Barrett family members (ms. information on Punkatasset Farm, written by George Tolman to Edward Waldo Emerson, 1906 Apr. 3; ms. notes on Humphrey Barrett; ms. transcription of biography by Nathan Brooks of Humphrey Barrett; ALS, 1862 Nov. 25, Richard Barrett to "Friend Keyes"; ms. biography of Richard Barrett by and in the hand of J.S. Keyes, published in 1907 Memoirs, Third Series; ms. biographies of Nathan Barrett and Nathan Barrett, Jr., by and in the hand of J.S. Keyes, both 1869, both published in 1888 Memoirs, Second Series; undated receipt for payment to Nathan Barrett by Miss Nancy Shephard); printed Memoirs (seven volumes, 1882-2005), and the Circle's The Centenary of the Birth of Ralph Waldo Emerson (1903).

SOURCES OF ACQUISITION:  Partially established. The volume of transcribed records, 1794-1882: a gift of Amelia F. Emerson, Raymond Emerson, and heirs of Edward W. Forbes, 1972 Apr. 3.  Two volumes of transcribed memoirs: a gift of the Social Circle in Concord. Seventh series of printed Memoirs presented by the Social Circle via Timothy M. Warren, 2006.

 

NOTES/COMMENTS:  Notes on lives of Tilly Merrick and William Parkman transferred from the old CFPL Letter Files (formerly Letter 9, M4 and P1), 1995 Mar. J.S. Keyes Barrett material: transferred from John Shepard Keyes papers, 1996.

PROCESSED BY: LPW; finding aid prepared 09/15/1996. Prepared for the Internet by Peter K. Steinberg, 05/30/2006.

Please click this link to access an index to the Social Circle memoirs.

 

CONTAINER LIST

SERIES I.  GENERAL RECORDS, 1794-1903:

Box 1, Folder 1:
Bound volume of records, 1794-1882, transcribed by John Shepard Keyes.

Box 1, Folder 2:
Loose items, [1882]-1903:

Ms. authorization to publish the first volume of Social Circle Memoirs (The Centennial of the Social Circle in Concord, March 21, 1882), signed by members.

Ms. words of presentation to E.R. Hoar of gift in honor of his fiftieth anniversary as a member, 1890.

Printed menu for Circle's dinner for Ralph Waldo Emerson centenary, 1903.

SERIES II. MANUSCRIPT MEMOIRS OF MEMBERS, [18--?]-1910 (BULK [1856]-1910):

Shelved unboxed:
Two bound volumes of transcribed ms. memoirs of members, 1871-1910 (including biographies contained in the first five volumes of printed Memoirs).

Box 2, Folder 1:
Ms. memoir of Humphrey Barrett by and in the hand of Nathan Brooks, [1856] (published in 1882 in the first volume of Memoirs), and notes by Nathan Brooks on Tilly Merrick and William Parkman.

Box 2, Folder 2:
Jonathan Fay Barrett's memoir of Jonathan Fay, 1859.

Box 2, Folder 3:
John Shepard Keyes materials relating to Barrett family members, [18--?]-1906:

Ms. information on Punkatasset Farm, written by George Tolman to Edward Waldo Emerson, 1906 Apr. 3.

Ms. notes on Humphrey Barrett.

Ms. transcription of biography by Nathan Brooks of Humphrey Barrett, published in 1882 in The Centennial of the Social Circle in Concord (the first volume of Memoirs), originally written [185-?].

ALS, 1862 Nov. 25, Richard Barrett to "Friend Keyes."

Ms. biography of Richard Barrett by and in the hand of John Shepard Keyes, published in 1907 in Memoirs, Third Series.

Ms. biographies of Nathan Barrett and Nathan Barrett, Jr., by and in the hand of John Shepard Keyes, both 1869, published in 1888 in Memoirs, Second Series.

Undated receipt for payment to Nathan Barrett by Miss Nancy Shephard.

SERIES III: PUBLISHED VOLUMES, 1882-2005:

Shelved unboxed:
The Centennial of the Social Circle in Concord, March 21, 1882 (Cambridge: Riverside Press, 1882).

Memoirs of Members of the Social Circle in Concord, Second Series, from 1795 to 1840 (Cambridge: Riverside Press, 1888).

Memoirs of Members of the Social Circle in Concord, Third Series, from 1840 to 1895 (Cambridge: Riverside Press, 1907).

Memoirs of Members of the Social Circle in Concord, Fourth Series, from 1895 to 1909 (Cambridge: Riverside Press, 1909).

Memoirs of Members of the Social Circle in Concord, Fifth Series, from 1909 to 1939 (Cambridge: The University Press, 1940).

Memoirs of Members of the Social Circle in Concord, Sixth Series, from 1939 to 1974 ([Clinton, Mass.: Colonial Press], 1975).

Memoirs of Members of the Social Circle in Concord, Seventh Series, from 1975 to 2004 ([Woburn, Mass.: Pride Printers], 2005).

 The Centenary of the Birth of Ralph Waldo Emerson, As Observed in Concord, May 25, 1903, Under the Direction of the Social Circle in Concord ([Cambridge]: Riverside Press, 1903).

 

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Not to be reproduced in any form without permission of the Curator of Special Collections, Concord Free Public Library.