Louisa May Alcott was born on November 29, 1832 to Amos Bronson Alcott and his wife, Abigail May. Her father was the son of a flax farmer and ended up teaching himself to read and writer. Amos Alcott was an educator and a leader of the transcendentalists. He taught in Connecticut, Pennsylvania and Massachusetts and was instrumental in bringing art, music, nature studies and physical education to the schools where he taught. However, this move was appreciated by the parents, who removed their children from his class forcing his to relocate to another town.
In 1849, when the Alcott family faced financial problems, the family moved to Boston where Louisa started reading to an elderly man and his invalid sister to make money. However, this job paid very little so along with her sister Anna, Louisa started teaching children, and mending and washing clothes.
In 1852, Louisa published her first poem titled Sunlight under a pen name Flora Fairfield. Although the publication did not pay too much money, Louisa had started walking the path which would eventually bring her a lot of fame and name.
In 1855, her first book titled Flower Fables was published. At that time, her family moved to New Hampshire but Louisa stayed on in Boston for the sake of her career. In 1856, her sister Elizabeth contracted scarlet fever and died of it two years later in 1858. Her other sister Anna got married in 1857 and moved away from home. Thus, Abigail Alcott was inconsolable with the loss of her daughters -- one to marriage and the other to sickness. This prompted Louisa to move to Concord to help her mother.
During this time the Civil War was going on and Louisa got the urge to help out as the war. She wrote many letters home describing the poor sanitation and horrible conditions at the hospital and the indifference of the doctors and nurses. These letters formed the basis of her book Hospital Sketches, which was published 1863.
In 1864, her publisher asked her to write a book for young girls and Louisa came up with Little Women, a story of her life and what it was growing up with her three sisters. The book was published in 1868 and became an immediate success that her publisher requested her to write a sequel, which was published in 1869.
Thereafter, Louisa Alcott gained a fan following comprising mostly of young readers and she wrote several more books like Old Fashioned Girl, Little Men, Work, Eight Cousins and Rose in Bloom. She also joined the suffrage movement and wrote Woman's Journal to get women to vote. In 1879, Louisa became the first woman in Concord to register to vote.
In 1849, when the Alcott family faced financial problems, the family moved to Boston where Louisa started reading to an elderly man and his invalid sister to make money. However, this job paid very little so along with her sister Anna, Louisa started teaching children, and mending and washing clothes.
In 1852, Louisa published her first poem titled Sunlight under a pen name Flora Fairfield. Although the publication did not pay too much money, Louisa had started walking the path which would eventually bring her a lot of fame and name.
In 1855, her first book titled Flower Fables was published. At that time, her family moved to New Hampshire but Louisa stayed on in Boston for the sake of her career. In 1856, her sister Elizabeth contracted scarlet fever and died of it two years later in 1858. Her other sister Anna got married in 1857 and moved away from home. Thus, Abigail Alcott was inconsolable with the loss of her daughters -- one to marriage and the other to sickness. This prompted Louisa to move to Concord to help her mother.
During this time the Civil War was going on and Louisa got the urge to help out as the war. She wrote many letters home describing the poor sanitation and horrible conditions at the hospital and the indifference of the doctors and nurses. These letters formed the basis of her book Hospital Sketches, which was published 1863.
In 1864, her publisher asked her to write a book for young girls and Louisa came up with Little Women, a story of her life and what it was growing up with her three sisters. The book was published in 1868 and became an immediate success that her publisher requested her to write a sequel, which was published in 1869.
Thereafter, Louisa Alcott gained a fan following comprising mostly of young readers and she wrote several more books like Old Fashioned Girl, Little Men, Work, Eight Cousins and Rose in Bloom. She also joined the suffrage movement and wrote Woman's Journal to get women to vote. In 1879, Louisa became the first woman in Concord to register to vote.