Concord Center

Concord Center

Concord, MA

This photograph of Concord Center shows the prominently positioned Jonas Hastings house—where the Thoreaus lived from 1823 to 1826—at the corner of Main and Walden (at the right, with four chimneys and a fence). When the photograph was taken, the Hastings corner projected out into what is now part of Main Street. The house was set back in the early 1870s to allow the widening of Main Street in preparation for the opening of the newly-constructed Concord Free Public Library in 1873. The Hastings house was ultimately taken down to make way for the business block put up by pharmacist John C. Friend in 1892.

All materials courtesy of the William Munroe Special Collections at the Concord Free Public Library

Concord Free Public Library

1865