Born: 12 July 1817 · Died: 6 May 1862 · Age at death: 44
How old was Henry David Thoreau when he died?
Henry David Thoreau died aged 44. He was born on 12 July 1817 and died on 6 May 1862.
American writer who lived in a cabin by Walden Pond and wrote Walden and the essay Civil Disobedience
Did you know?He was arrested and jailed for one night after refusing to pay a poll tax in protest against slavery.
Quick facts
Date of birth12 July 1817
Date of death6 May 1862
Age at death44
Cause of deathTuberculosis
NationalityAmerican
BirthplaceWheeler-Minot Farmhouse, United States
Occupationpoet, philosopher, essayist
Editor's Take:
Thoreau showed that choosing a simple life could be a radical act. For two years he lived in a small cabin he built by Walden Pond, recording nature and his own thoughts. The resulting book became a founding text of environmental writing. His essay on civil disobedience argued that people must refuse to support unjust laws. Gandhi and Martin Luther King Jr. both drew on those ideas.
Key Milestones
1845: Walden Pond – moves to cabin
1846: Jail – refuses poll tax
1849: Civil Disobedience – essay
1854: Walden – published
Henry David Thoreau (born David Henry Thoreau; July 12, 1817 – May 6, 1862) was an American naturalist, essayist, poet, and philosopher.
Henry David Thoreau's birthday is July 12. He was born on July 12, 1817 in Wheeler-Minot Farmhouse, United States.
How old was Henry David Thoreau when he died?
Henry David Thoreau died on May 6, 1862, aged 44.
Who shares a birthday with Henry David Thoreau?
Famous people who share Henry David Thoreau's July 12 birthday include Malala Yousafzai, Pablo Neruda, Amedeo Modigliani, Buckminster Fuller and James Rodríguez.
