Born on the fourth of July in 1804, Nathaniel Hawthorne, a member of the Class of 1825, would go on to become one of America’s most illustrious novelists and short story writers, publishing many classics, including The Scarlet Letter and The House of Seven Gables.

On this Independence Day, it would also be apropos to point out that among Hawthorne’s published works is a biography of his friend – and fellow Bowdoin alumnus (Class of 1824) – Franklin Pierce, the 14th President of the United States.