HCT Speaker Series: Harvard’s Stone Wall Mysteries Solved

Join Geologist and New England’s expert on stone walls, Dr. Robert Thorson, as he decodes mysteries from the thousands of stones that make up stone walls laid by colonists, Native Americans & enslaved people. Thorson writes “[Stone walls are] a visceral connection to the past. They are just as surely a remnant of a former civilization as a ruin in the Amazon rain forest.” Professor Thorson reveals why New England is uniquely situated to be the quintessential landscape for stone walls and the work that communities are doing to preserve them.

Have questions about Harvard’s old stone walls? Professor Thorson will join us on September 28, 2021 at 7:00 pm for an interactive Zoom presentation. During the second half of his presentation, he will examine several evocative images from Harvard, showing what local “wall-watchers” might see that “bird-watchers” might not. A question and answer session will be offered at the end of the presentation.

Click here to register for Harvard’s Stone Wall Mysteries. This is a free event, but you must register by September 25 to attend. You will receive an online invitation with Zoom login details two days prior to the event.

About Professor Robert M. Thorson
Dr. Robert M. Thorson is a Professor of Geology at the University of Connecticut, the author of seven books including Beyond Walden: The Hidden History of America’s Kettle Lakes and Ponds; The Guide to Walden Pond, Walden’s Shore: Henry David Thoreau and Nineteenth-Century Science, Exploring Stone Walls, and Stone by Stone: The Fascinating History in New England’s Stone Walls, and the coordinator of the Stone Wall Initiative, New England’s premiere resource for historic stone walls.