At Bowdoin: Original Documents

Original Documents Related to Nathaniel Hawthorne at Bowdoin

Hawthorne, Nathaniel. Fanshawe: A Tale. Boston: Marsh & Capen, 1828. Gift: Friends of the Library
Fanshawe, Hawthorne's first novel, is also the earliest college novel written in America. Hawthorne based his fictional "Harley College" on Bowdoin. Published anonymously and subsequently disavowed by the author, Hawthorne attempted to suppress its distribution (his friend Horatio Bridge burned his copy at Hawthorne's request). all text copyright Bowdoin College, 2009. (courtesy of Nathaniel Hawthorne Collection, Bowdoin College Library, Brunswick, Maine)

Hawthorne's copy of the Laws of Bowdoin College. Brunswick: Printed by Joseph Griffin, 1824. Gift: In memory of Edward A. Noyes by Sidney Webb Noyes.
Although surnamed "Hathorne" throughout his youth and college days, these doodlings show that Hawthorne was already considering other spelling forms. Whether he ultimately added the "w" to insure the short "a" pronunciation or to return to an ancient form of the family name, as he later claimed, has never been proved. all text copyright Bowdoin College, 2009. (courtesy of Nathaniel Hawthorne Collection, Bowdoin College Library, Brunswick, Maine)

$\"Students Admitted into Bowdoin College.\" [Bowdoin College Matriculation Book].$

"Students Admitted into Bowdoin College." [Bowdoin College Matriculation Book].
Hawthorne's name appears near the center of the right-hand page, reflecting the spelling of his surname that was maintained by the College throughout Hawthorne's time at Bowdoin. The Class of 1825, perhaps the College's most distinguished based on subsequent achievements, also included Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, Commodore Horatio Bridge, U.S. Rep. Jonathan Cilley, and popular historian J. S. C. Abbott. Hawthorne's college friend Franklin Pierce was a member of the Class of 1824. all text copyright Bowdoin College, 2009. (courtesy of Nathaniel Hawthorne Collection, Bowdoin College Library, Brunswick, Maine)

Catalogue of the Officers and Students of Bowdoin College and the Medical School of Maine, February 1823. Brunswick: J. Griffin, 1823.
These pages reveal the course of study that Hawthorne and his classmates completed during their four years at Bowdoin. all text copyright by Bowdoin College, 2009. (courtesy of Nathaniel Hawthorne Collection, Bowdoin College Library, Brunswick, Maine)

$\"Constitution of [Pot]-8-O Club\" [ca. 1824]. Gift: Leon Brooks Leavitt.$

"Constitution of [Pot]-8-O Club" [ca. 1824]. Gift: Leon Brooks Leavitt.
The document is signed by all the members of this college secret social society, including Hawthorne, and the third by-law is in Hawthorne's hand. Perhaps the emphasis on the rule that "ardent spirits shall never be introduced" suggests that it was intended to be broken; scholars have suggested that this was a dining club characterized more by its drinking than much of anything else. all text copyright Bowdoin College, 2009. (courtesy of Nathaniel Hawthorne Collection, Bowdoin College Library, Brunswick, Maine)

$\"Bye-Laws of the Constitution of [Pot]-8-O Club\" [ca. 1824]; Gift: Leon Brooks Leavitt.$

"Bye-Laws of the Constitution of [Pot]-8-O Club" [ca. 1824]; Gift: Leon Brooks Leavitt.
The third by-law is in Hawthorne’s hand according to records at Bowdoin College Library, Special Collections. (courtesy of Nathaniel Hawthorne Collection, Bowdoin College Library, Brunswick, Maine)

$\"Preamble and first three articles of the Constitution of [Pot]-8-O Club\" [ca. 1824]; Gift: Leon Brooks Leavitt$

"Preamble and first three articles of the Constitution of [Pot]-8-O Club" [ca. 1824]; Gift: Leon Brooks Leavitt
"We the undersigned subscribers being convinced that it is beneficial both to the health and understanding of man, to use vegetable diet and considering that the Potatoe is nutritious and procured with less difficulty and expence [sic] than most other vegetables, do hereby agree to form ourselves into an association under the name of the POT-8-O Club and to be governed by the following rules and regulations-- (courtesy of Nathaniel Hawthorne Collection, Bowdoin College Library, Brunswick, Maine)

$\"Articles 4-8 of the Constitution of [Pot]-8-O Club\" [ca. 1824]; Gift: Leon Brooks Leavitt$

"Articles 4-8 of the Constitution of [Pot]-8-O Club" [ca. 1824]; Gift: Leon Brooks Leavitt
(courtesy of Nathaniel Hawthorne Collection, Bowdoin College Library, Brunswick, Maine)

Marriage bet between Hawthorne and Jonathan Cilley. Autograph document signed, Brunswick, Me., November 14, 1824. Source unknown.
A barrel of Madeira wine was at stake on whether Hawthorne, then a senior at Bowdoin, would remain unmarried for twelve more years. Fellow classmate Horatio Bridge agreed to hold the note and faithfully notified Cilley (then a congressman) at the appointed date that Hawthorne had won the wager. Cilley was killed in a duel before he could honor the debt; the death prompted federal legislation outlawing dueling. all text copyright Bowdoin College, 2009. (courtesy of Nathaniel Hawthorne Collection, Bowdoin College Library, Brunswick, Maine)

$Nathaniel Hawthorne to \"My dear sister\" [Elizabeth M. Hawthorne]. Autograph letter signed, Brunswick, Me., October 1, 1824. Gift: Leon Brooks Leavitt.$

Nathaniel Hawthorne to "My dear sister" [Elizabeth M. Hawthorne]. Autograph letter signed, Brunswick, Me., October 1, 1824. Gift: Leon Brooks Leavitt.
Hawthorne's personality, mood, and circumstance find a clear voice in this letter home, where he is at once rakish, discouraged, and impecunious. all text copyright Bowdoin College, 2009. (courtesy of Nathaniel Hawthorne Collection, Bowdoin College Library, Brunswick, Maine)

$Hawthorne, Nathaniel. \"De patribus conscriptis Romanorum.\" Autograph manuscript signed, [autumn 1824]. Source unknown.$

Hawthorne, Nathaniel. "De patribus conscriptis Romanorum." Autograph manuscript signed, [autumn 1824]. Source unknown.
In August of his senior year, Hawthorne was assigned his part for the traditional October academic exhibition. The penciled note at the foot of his dissertation lacks attribution. all text copyright Bowdoin College, 2009. (courtesy of Nathaniel Hawthorne Collection, Bowdoin College Library, Brunswick, Maine)

$Hawthorne, Nathaniel. \"De patribus conscriptis Romanorum.\" (page 2) Autograph manuscript signed, [autumn 1824]. Source unknown.$

Hawthorne, Nathaniel. "De patribus conscriptis Romanorum." (page 2) Autograph manuscript signed, [autumn 1824]. Source unknown.
In August of his senior year, Hawthorne was assigned his part for the traditional October academic exhibition. The penciled note at the foot of his dissertation lacks attribution. all text copyright Bowdoin College, 2009. (courtesy of Nathaniel Hawthorne Collection, Bowdoin College Library, Brunswick, Maine)

Records of the Executive Government of Bowdoin College.
These faculty minutes document disciplinary actions against students and the assignment of academic disputations. Hawthorne's name appears with some regularity beginning in his sophomore year for such infractions as "absence from recitation," "neglect of themes," "walking unnecessarily on the Sabbath," and,on May 29, 1822, "for playing cards for money." Overall, Hawthorne's deportment and academic achievement at Bowdoin were middling. all text copyright Bowdoin College, 2009. (courtesy of Nathaniel Hawthorne Collection, Bowdoin College Library, Brunswick, Maine)

Hawthorne at Salem

Biographical Information

At Bowdoin: Original Documents

Original Documents Related to Nathaniel Hawthorne at Bowdoin