Exploring Boston’s Literary District, Boston, Massachusetts

Exploring Boston’s Literary District was a dream come true when I returned to Boston for my “Now Vaccinated!” vaca from Washington DC. As an English major in college, I was always obsessed with 19th-century female novelists. They blazed the way for women to have careers in a time when most occupations were prohibited. And they permanently saved a record for the modern-day reader about their lives.

As a young girl, I must have read Louisa May Alcott’s Little Women about a dozen times. Their seemingly idyllic home kept the four sisters united through every trial-the Civil War, poverty, and finally sister Beth’s premature death. My whirlwind literary tour followed my trek on Boston’s Freedom Trail. So there wasn’t any question that I would explore Boston’s literary district by hunting down the Boston home of Louisa May Alcott. (I also saw the Bar Harbor home of mystery writer Mary Roberts Rinehart during my vacation in Maine.)

My friend Irma agreed to a twilight walk in Beacon Hill, one of the most exclusive neighborhoods in Boston. Using my map, I was able to locate Alcott’s home at 10 Louisburg Square in the heart of Boston’s literary district. Now a private residence, the house can only be viewed standing on the sidewalk. ...... (follow the instructions below for accessing the rest of this article).