Celebrate Mark Twain’s Birthday

A trio of 175th birthday celebrations (almost) from coast to coast

Samuel Clemens was born in Hartford, Connecticu, near Hannibal, Missouri, on November 30, 1835.  He took on the pen name, Mark Twain, and became one of America’s most revered writers and humorists whose popular style masked his insightful thinking. I’ve always had an affinity for Twain, and not just because we were both born in Connecticut.

I wrote a high-school paper on “The Historical Romances of Mark Twain” and got an A. A few years later, I wrote a college paper on “Social Criticism in the Historical Romances of Mark Twain” and got an A again. Then, in my junior year, I took a graduate seminar on Mark Twain with Professor Edward Wagenknecht who, while not as generally known  a Twain authority as Bernard DeVoto, was respected as such in academic circles. Though neither an A-student nor an English major, I got an A- in the seminar. So I’m ready to honor the birth of the man who helped me raise my GPA.I know of at least three places around the country that are really celebrating on the 30th.

Hartford, Connecticut

Hartford Home

The Mark Twain House & Museum, which the celebrated author built in 1871, jumped the gun with a gala celebration last Saturday, but St. Joseph College hosts a day-long scholarly symposium called “Mark Twain at 175: An American Icon Reconsidered” on the real birthday. Twain scholar, Dr. Kerry Driscoll, the college’s highly regarded Twain scholar, and Robert Hirst, Chief Editor of the Mark Twain Papers and Project in Berkeley, California, will be the keynote speaker. Hirst has headed up the editing of Mark Twain’s autobiography, which Twain didn’t want published until he had been dead for a century.  Twain died in 1909, and the first volume of this massive work is due out in November. The symposium, which takes place at Mercy Hall, St. Joseph College, 1678 Asylum Avenue, West Hartford, is free, but seating is limited. To reserve or for more information, contact Dr. Driscoll at 860-231-5521.

Hannibal, Missouri

Boyhood home, Hannibal.

The Mark Twain Boyhood Home & Museum offers free admission all day on November 30, including a brief ceremony at 10:00 a.m. at the Museum Gallery and birthday cake.  The Museum will be releasing “Mark Twain: Words & Music,” a CD that tells the story of Samuel Clemens in spoken word and song with a private launch party.  The museum will also give away 10 CDs, and will hold a drawing to win two tickets to a special the exclusive CD launch party later in the evening.  The museum is at 120 North Main, Hannibal; 573-221-9010.

The not-for-profit Mark Twain Home Foundation, which has leased the City of Hannibal-owned properties and also has properties of its own, is responsible for overseeing the operation, maintenance and development of the properties comprising the entire Mark Twain Museum.

November 30 Addendum: The cabin where he was born is now located in namesake Mark Twain State Park. It has been designated by the state as the Mark Twain Birthplace State Historic Sites near the hamlet of Florida. A red granite monument in Florida marks the cabin’s original location.. A celebration was held there on November 27.

Incline Village, Nevada

McAvoy Layne as Mark Twain.

The new Mark Twain Cultural Center hosts Mark Twain’s Birthday Bash featuring McAvoy Layne, the award-winning performer who has impersonated Twain in more than 2,00 performances of the “Ghost of Mark Twain” over the last 20 years. He will hold forth on the balance of the autobiography that Twain asked be withheld for 100 years after his death. Call Layne the Hal Holbrooke of Nevada. The celebration, which honors one of Lake Tahoe’s most well-known writers and pioneers, takes place Tuesday, November 30, 7 p.m. at the new Mark Twain Cultural Center at 760 Mays Boulevard, Suite #10 in Incline Village, Nevada. General admission is $19.99 for adults, $9.99 for students. For more info, call 775-831-2820.