85th Thoreau Society Annual Gathering

“Nature is but another name for health,” Thoreau wrote in “Huckleberries,” an essay he left unpublished at his death at age 44 from tuberculosis. Thoreau celebrated health even as he battled his final illness. He found ways to flourish in spite of a body, and a society, that was anything but well. In our own time, when civic and natural ailments are both chronic and acute, what can Thoreau, and his time, show us about the conditions that promote flourishing—physical, mental, spiritual, social, ecological—as well as the conditions that hinder or prevent it? How can we be well in a troubled world? How can we live well in troubled times? For the 2026 Annual Gathering, we will explore some of the many aspects of health in Thoreau’s world and ours.

REGISTRATION

Registration includes all in-person sessions except where otherwise noted. Register Online OR Download the Mail-In Form

One-Day Registration is walk-in only and $90/person. NOTE: Saturday’s programs are all free.

We welcome all family, friends, and colleagues interested in a single presentation. Guests must check-in at the registration desk and make a donation of any size in support of the program.

Registration for Virtual Access includes only the panels and talks at Trinity Episcopal Church.

The Thoreau Alliance does not exclude anyone because of the inability to pay. Please contact rebecca@thoreaualliance.org to request reduced rates. If you’d like to help keep this event financially accessible to all, please consider making a donation to support attendance for others. Donate Here.