Transcendentalist Readings

    Alcott's Library

    Source: Houghton Library, Harvard University (Guide AC85.Al191.Zz) & Fruitlands Museum

    Note: This is not a complete catalog of Alcott's personal library. It represents only those books held at the Houghton Library, Harvard University — acquired from the Pratt family in 1959 — and selected holdings from Fruitlands Museum. Other books from Alcott's collection, acquired from different sources, are not included here.

    The surviving Alcott holdings at Houghton reveal a library unusually rich in the mystical and philosophical traditions that structure the cabinet's spiritual cartography. Strongly represented are Platonism and its afterlives, Christian theosophy, contemplative literature, Hermetic and alchemical writing, and selected works tied to South Asian and Persian traditions. These books are especially valuable because they show the texture of Alcott's intellectual world at the level of possession and use. Emerson's borrowing records tell us what he pursued through institutions; Thoreau's reading record reconstructs a lifetime of engagement across many channels. Alcott's Houghton books, by contrast, show what remained materially gathered around him. In that sense, they help explain why Alcott was such an important mediator within the broader Transcendental network, and why Fruitlands could serve as a temporary resting place for the Greaves cabinet and its allied forms of mystical reading.

    Author Title PublicationHeld atNotes
    [Anonymous]A Philosophical Epitaph in Hieroglyphical FiguresLondon: William Cooper, 1763Fruitlands Museum
    [Anonymous]A Spiritual Journey of a Young ManLondon, 1659Houghton, Harvard
    [Anonymous]Pathomachia, or the Battell of AffectionsLondon, 1630Houghton, Harvard
    [Anonymous]The Hermetical Triumph: or, the Victorious Philosophical StoneLondon, 1723Houghton, Harvard
    Agrippa von Nettesheim, Heinrich CorneliusThe Vanity of Arts and SciencesLondon, 1676Houghton, Harvard
    Alciati, AndreaEmblemata cum Claudii Minois commentariisLeyden: Plantin, 1608Houghton, Harvard
    Alcott, Amos Bronson[Papers on Government] (collected excerpts)Concord, 1843–1854Houghton, HarvardBound excerpts including Lane, 'Voluntary Political Government'; Thoreau, 'Resistance to Civil Government'; Thoreau, 'Slavery in Massachusetts.'
    Alcott, Amos Bronson[Philosophemes] — extracted from periodicals1840–1875Houghton, Harvard
    Alcott, Amos BronsonConcord DaysBoston: Roberts Brothers, 1873Houghton, Harvard
    Alcott, Amos BronsonConversations with Children on the GospelsBoston: James Munroe, 1836–1837Houghton, Harvard
    Alcott, Amos BronsonObservations on the Principles and Methods of Infant InstructionBoston, 1830Houghton, Harvard
    Alcott, Amos BronsonSonnets and CanzonetsBoston, 1882Houghton, Harvard
    Alcott, Amos BronsonTable-TalkBoston: Roberts Bros., 1877Houghton, Harvard
    Alcott, Amos BronsonTabletsBoston, 1868Houghton, Harvard
    Alcott, William A.Vegetable Diet: As Sanctioned by Medical Men, and by Experience in All AgesBoston: Marsh, Capen and Lyon, 1838Fruitlands Museum
    AristotleEthics and PoliticsLondon, 1813Houghton, Harvard
    AristotleThe MetaphysicsLondon, 1801Houghton, Harvard
    Arnold, Sir EdwinThe Light of AsiaLondon, 1879Houghton, Harvard
    Augustinus, AureliusThe Confessions[St. Omer: College Press], 1620Houghton, Harvard
    Bacon, FrancisEssays, Moral, Economical, and PoliticalBoston, 1833Houghton, HarvardABA. With the signature: Henry D. Thoreau.
    Bacon, FrancisNovum OrganumLondon, 1850Houghton, Harvard
    Bacon, FrancisThe Essays or Counsels Civil and MoralLondon, 1836Houghton, Harvard
    Bailey, Philip JamesThe MysticBoston, 1856Houghton, Harvard
    Bellarmino, RobertoThe Soul's Ascension to GodLondon, 1703Houghton, Harvard
    Berkeley, GeorgeSiris (2nd edition)Dublin/London, 1744Houghton, Harvard
    Bhagavad GītāThe Bhăgvăt-GēētāNew York, 1867Houghton, HarvardWilkins trans. One of 261 copies. ABA. Bequeathed to Alcott by Thoreau.
    Boehme, JakobJacob Behmen's Theosophick Philosophy Unfolded (by Edward Taylor)London, 1691Houghton, Harvard
    Boehme, JakobThe Works (v. 4 only)London, 1781Houghton, Harvard
    Browne, Sir ThomasMiscellaneous WorksCambridge, 1831Houghton, Harvard
    Browning, RobertParacelsusLondon: Effingham Wilson, 1835Houghton, Harvard
    Bunyan, JohnDivine Emblems; or, Temporal Things SpiritualizedPhiladelphia, 1808Houghton, Harvard
    Bunyan, JohnGrace Abounding to the Chief of SinnersAberdeen, [18–]Houghton, Harvard
    Bunyan, JohnThe Pilgrim's Progress (21st edition)London, 1725Houghton, Harvard
    Burgh, JamesThe Dignity of Human Nature (1st American edition)Boston, 1794Houghton, Harvard
    Burton, RobertThe Anatomy of Melancholy (16th edition)London, 1838Houghton, Harvard
    Bury, ArthurThe Naked GospelLondon, 1691Houghton, Harvard
    Casaubon, MéricA Treatise Concerning Enthusiase (2nd edition)London, 1656Houghton, Harvard
    Cattermole, R. (ed.)Sacred Poetry of the Seventeenth CenturyLondon: Joseph Rickerby, 1836Fruitlands Museum
    Cohausen, Johann HeinrichHermippus Redivivus: or, the Sage's Triumph (3rd edition)London, 1771Houghton, Harvard
    Coleridge, Samuel TaylorAids to Reflection (1st American edition)Burlington, 1829Houghton, Harvard
    Coleridge, Samuel TaylorBiographia LiterariaNew York, 1817Houghton, Harvard
    Coleridge, Samuel TaylorConfessions of an Inquiring SpiritBoston, 1841Houghton, Harvard
    Coleridge, Samuel TaylorHints Towards the Formation of a More Comprehensive Theory of LifePhiladelphia, 1848Houghton, Harvard
    Coleridge, Samuel TaylorOn the Constitution of the Church and State (2nd edition)London, 1830Houghton, Harvard
    Coleridge, Samuel TaylorSpecimens of the Table Talk (4th edition)London, 1851Houghton, Harvard
    Coleridge, Samuel TaylorThe Friend (1st American from 2nd London edition)Burlington, 1831Houghton, Harvard
    Coleridge, Samuel TaylorThe Statesman's ManualBurlington, 1832Houghton, Harvard
    Colquhoun, John CampbellIsis RevelataEdinburgh, 1836Houghton, Harvard
    Cooper, John GilbertThe Life of Socrates (2nd edition)London, 1750Houghton, Harvard
    Cornaro, LuigiDiscourses on a Sober and Temperate LifeBoston, 1814Houghton, Harvard
    Crashaw, RichardSteps to the Temple (2nd edition)London [Savoy], 1670Houghton, Harvard
    Cudworth, RalphA Treatise Concerning Eternal and Immutable MoralityLondon, 1731Houghton, Harvard
    Culpeper, NicholasCulpepper's Complete HerbalLondon: Milner and Sowerby, [n.d.]Fruitlands Museum
    Dacier, AndréThe Life of Pythagoras, with the Life of HieroclesLondon, 1707Houghton, Harvard
    Davies, JohnThe Original, Nature, and Immortality of the Soul (2nd edition)London, 1714Houghton, Harvard
    Digby, Sir KenelmTwo TreatisesLondon, 1665Houghton, Harvard
    Diogenes LaërtiusThe Lives and Opinions of Eminent Philosophers (Yonge trans.)London, 1853Houghton, Harvard
    EpictetusHis Morals (4th edition, trans. Stanhope)London, 1721Houghton, Harvard
    Evelyn, JohnKalendarium Hortense (9th edition)London: George Huddleston, 1699Houghton, Harvard
    Fénelon, François de Salignac de la MotheDialogues of the DeadBerwick, 1770Houghton, Harvard
    Fénelon, François de Salignac de la MotheDissertation on Pure Love (3rd edition)London, 1750Houghton, Harvard
    Fénelon, François de Salignac de la MotheLes Aventures de TélémaqueStrasbourg, 1818Houghton, Harvard
    Fénelon, François de Salignac de la MotheThe Lives and Most Remarkable Maxims of the Ancient PhilosophersLondon, 1726Houghton, Harvard
    Fletcher, PhineasThe Purple Island (with Christ's Victory by Giles Fletcher)London, 1783Houghton, Harvard
    Francke, August HermannPietas HallensisLondon, 1705Houghton, Harvard
    Grabern, Johann GeorgEine kurze Eröffnung und Unterweisung der dreien Principien und WeltenBerlin, 1779Houghton, Harvard
    Green, Joseph HenryVital DynamicsLondon: William Pickering, 1840Fruitlands Museum
    Guyon, Jeanne MarieDie heilige Liebe GottesMeulheim am Rhein, 1787Houghton, Harvard
    Guyon, Jeanne MariePoems (trans. William Cowper)Philadelphia, 1804Houghton, Harvard
    Helmont, Franciscus Mercurius vanThe Paradoxal DiscoursesLondon, 1685Houghton, HarvardFL. ABA. Wing H1393. Inscribed: J.P. [Pierpont] to J.P.G. [Greaves] 1822.
    Hermes TrismegistusThe Divine Pymander (trans. Doctor Everard)London, 1650Houghton, Harvard
    HesiodThe Works (2nd edition, trans. Cooke)London, 1740Houghton, Harvard
    HippocratesThe Aphorisms of Hippocrates, and the Sentences of CelsusLondon, 1708Houghton, Harvard
    Holloway, BenjaminOriginals Physical and TheologicalOxford, 1751Houghton, Harvard
    Hufeland, Christopher WilliamThe Art of Prolonging Human LifeLondon, 1829Houghton, Harvard
    Hugo, HermanPia Desideria (editio postrema)London, 1677Houghton, Harvard
    IamblichusLife of Pythagoras (trans. Thomas Taylor)[London], 1818Houghton, Harvard
    Julian of NorwichXVI Revelations of Divine Love[N.p.], 1670Houghton, Harvard
    Jung-Stilling, Johann HeinrichHeinrich StillingLondon, 1835Houghton, Harvard
    Krummacher, Friedrich AdolfParabelnEssen, 1840Houghton, Harvard
    Lacy, JohnThe General Delusion of ChristiansLondon, 1713Houghton, Harvard
    Lao-tzŭThe Speculations on Metaphysics, Polity, and Morality (trans. John Chalmers)London, 1868Houghton, Harvard
    Law, WilliamA Serious Call (20th edition)Romsey, 1816Houghton, Harvard
    Law, WilliamAn Appeal to All Who Doubt, or Disbelieve the Truths of the Gospel (2nd edition)London: W. Innys and J. Richardson, 1756Fruitlands Museum
    Law, WilliamThe Christian's ManualLondon, 1829Houghton, Harvard
    Law, WilliamThe Spirit of Prayer (3rd edition)London: W. Innys and J. Richardson, 1752Fruitlands Museum
    Malebranche, NicolasChristian ConferencesLondon, 1695Houghton, Harvard
    Malebranche, NicolasSearch After Truth (v. 2 only)London, 1695Houghton, Harvard
    Marcus AureliusThe Commentaries of the Emperor Marcus Antoninus (Thomson trans.)London, 1747Houghton, Harvard
    Menestrier, Claude-FrançoisPhilosophia ImaginumAmstelodami & Gedani, 1695Houghton, Harvard
    Midgley, RobertA New Treatise of Natural PhilosophyLondon, 1687Houghton, Harvard
    More, HenryA Collection of Several Philosophical WritingsLondon, 1712Houghton, Harvard
    More, HenryPlatonicaCambridge, 1642Houghton, Harvard
    Muncker, ThomasMythographi LatiniAmsterdam: Joannis Somerer, 1681Fruitlands Museum
    Newton, John FrankThe Return to Nature (Part the First)London, 1811Houghton, Harvard
    Norris, JohnA Collection of Miscellanies (2nd edition corrected)London, 1692Houghton, Harvard
    Norris, JohnThe Theory and Regulation of Love (7th edition)London, 1723Houghton, Harvard
    Ocellus Lucanus (Taylor, trans.)On the Nature of the Universe. Taurus. Julius Firmicus Maternus. Proclus.London, 1831Houghton, Harvard
    ParacelsusParacelsus His Archidoxis (Englished by J.H. Oxon)London, 1663Houghton, Harvard
    Peabody, Elizabeth PalmerAesthetic PapersBoston, 1849Houghton, Harvard
    Peabody, Elizabeth PalmerRecord of a SchoolBoston, 1835Houghton, Harvard
    Pestalozzi, Johann HeinrichLetters of Pestalozzi on the Education of Infancy, Addressed to MothersBoston: Carter and Hendee, 1830Fruitlands Museum
    PindarPindar and Anacreon (trans. Wheelwright and Bourne)New York, 1837Houghton, Harvard
    Pinnock, WilliamIconology, or Emblematic Figures ExplainedLondon, 1830Houghton, Harvard
    PlatoThe Republic (4th edition, Davies and Vaughan)Cambridge, 1868Houghton, Harvard
    PlatoThe Works (6 volumes, Cary/Davis/Barges trans.)London, 1848–1854Houghton, Harvard
    PlutarchPlutarch's Lives (Langhorne trans.)London, 1821Houghton, Harvard
    PlutarchPlutarch's Morals (5 volumes)London, 1694Houghton, Harvard
    Pordage, SamuelMundorum ExplicatioLondon, 1661Houghton, Harvard
    PorphyrySelect Works (trans. Thomas Taylor)London, 1823Houghton, Harvard
    Quarles, FrancisThe School of the Heart / Emblems, Divine and MoralLondon, 1845Houghton, Harvard
    Ramsay, Andrew MichaelThe Philosophical PrinciplesGlasgow, 1748–1749Houghton, Harvard
    Redelius, Augustinus CasimirusAnnus SymbolicusAugustae: Antonii Nepperschmidii, 1695Houghton, Harvard
    Redelius, Augustinus CasimirusApophtegmata SymbolicaAugustae Vindelicorum, 1695Houghton, Harvard
    SaadiThe Gulistan, or Rose Garden; with a preface by R. W. EmersonBoston, 1865Houghton, Harvard
    Scot, ReginaldThe Discovery of Witchcraft (3rd edition)London, 1665Houghton, Harvard
    Scriptores Rei RusticaeRei Rusticae AuctoresHeidelberg: Commelini, 1595Houghton, Harvard
    Seneca, Lucius AnnaeusMorals (4th edition, trans. L'Estrange)London, 1688Houghton, Harvard
    Shaw, SamuelImmanvelLondon, 1669Houghton, Harvard
    Sibly, EbenezerA Key to Physic, and The Occult SciencesLondon, 1800sHoughton, Harvard
    Stanley, ThomasThe History of Philosophy (3rd edition)London, 1701Houghton, Harvard
    Starkey, GeorgePyrotechnyLondon, 1658Houghton, Harvard
    Swedenborg, EmanuelDelights of Wisdom Concerning Conjugial LoveBoston, 1852Houghton, Harvard
    Swedenborg, EmanuelThe Generative Organs...London, 1852Houghton, Harvard
    Taylor, ThomasMiscellaniesLondon, 1805Houghton, Harvard
    Thomas à KempisOf the Imitation of Jesus ChristLondon, 1828Houghton, Harvard
    Tryon, ThomasLetters, Domestick and ForeignLondon, 1700Houghton, Harvard
    Tryon, ThomasPythagoras His Mystick Philosophy Reviv'dLondon, 1691Houghton, Harvard
    Tryon, ThomasThe Good House-wife Made a Doctor (2nd edition)London, 1692Houghton, Harvard
    Tryon, ThomasThe Knowledge of a Man's SelfLondon, 1703Houghton, Harvard
    Tryon, ThomasThe Way to Health (by Philotheos Physiologus)London, 1683Houghton, Harvard
    Tusser, ThomasFive Hundred Points of HusbandryLondon, 1744Houghton, Harvard
    UnknownA Spiritual Journey of a Young Man Towards the Land of PeaceLondon, 1659Houghton, Harvard
    Vaughan, HenryThe Sacred PoemsBoston, 1856Houghton, Harvard
    Vaughn, Robert AlfredHours with the MysticsLondon, 1856Houghton, Harvard
    Verstegan, R.A Restitution of Decayed IntelligenceLondon: John Norton, 1634Fruitlands Museum
    Wilmot, Robert ArisLives of Sacred PoetsLondon, 1834Houghton, Harvard
    Xenophon (Fielding, trans.)Memoirs of Socrates (3rd edition)London, 1788Houghton, Harvard

    Sources

    "Books from the Library of Amos Bronson Alcott, 1579–1893" (Guide AC85.Al191.Zz). Houghton Library, Harvard University. HOLLIS.

    Myerson, Joel. "A Catalogue of Transcendentalist Materials in the Fruitlands Museums." Studies in the American Renaissance (1995): 1–60. JSTOR.

    Preferred citation: Books from the Library of Amos Bronson Alcott, 1579–1893 (*AC85.Al191.Zz). Houghton Library, Harvard University.