Facing Facts: Henry David Thoreau (1817–1862).
Thoreau recorded his observations, thoughts, and revelations in dozens of notebooks, strong in the belief that a closely examined life would yield infinite riches.
Amazing Grace: John Newton (1725–1807). Once a slave trafficker, John Newton felt called to the ministry and wrote the most enduring hymn of all time—"Amazing Grace." He kept a copious diary of his spiritual progress.
Final Years of a Full Life: Sir Walter Scott (1771–1832). Sir Walter Scott spent the last years of his life furiously writing himself out of debt and resisting the "cold sinkings of the heart" that periodically dogged him.
Dear Diary, Dear Beloved: Frances Eliza Grenfell (1814–1891). Forbidden to correspond with Charles Kingsley, the man she adored, Fanny Grenfell kept a diary in the form of unsent love letters instead.
Sex, Drugs, and Ennui: Tennessee Williams (1911–1983). At the height of his literary success, dramatist Tennessee Williams was full of anxiety and dependent on drugs and alcohol. His diary revealed his inner anguish.
Newlyweds: Sophia (1809-1871) and Nathaniel Hawthorne (1804-1864)
After their marriage in 1842, Sophia and Nathaniel Hawthorne kept a diary together, reading each other's words and building a record of their intimacy.
World War II Internment: Fanny Twemlow (1881-1989)
Confined to a civilian internment camp in France during the Second World War, Fanny Twemlow kept an illustrated record of her captivity.
Niagara Honeymoon: Mary Ann and Septimus Palairet (1800s). A newly married couple from England traveled through America during the 1840s and recorded their impressions in words and pictures.
Fighting for Mental Health: John Ruskin (1819–1900). After recovering from a psychotic break, English critic John Ruskin was determined to remain stable and continue to work. He tracked his health in his diary.
Writing The Grapes of Wrath: John Steinbeck (1902–1968). While composing a new novel about the struggles of American migrant workers, Steinbeck kept a diary of his writing days.
Spinning and Sausage-making: Elizabeth Eastman Morgan (b. 1795). Elizabeth Morgan tracked the rhythms of small-town life—from pig-butchering to candle-making—in early nineteenth-century Massachusetts.
Pride and Piracy: Bartholomew Sharpe (ca. 1650–1690). As he terrorized Spanish towns and ships in the Americas, English pirate Bartholomew Sharpe kept a diary of his voyage and his exploits.
A Dark and Stormy Night: Charlotte Brontë (1816–1855). Fed up with teaching young girls their lessons, future novelist Charlotte Brontë began a diary entry that grew into a fictional fantasy.
Time, Space, and Sake: Albert Einstein (1879–1955). Fresh from winning the Nobel Prize in Physics, Einstein traveled to Japan and kept a diary that incorporated both words and equations.
The programs of The Morgan Library & Museum are made possible with public funds from the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs in partnership with the City Council, and by the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of Governor Andrew Cuomo and the New York State Legislature.
