This year marks the 150th anniversary of Mark Twain’s timeless masterpiece, “The Adventures of Tom Sawyer”. To celebrate, the Mark Twain Birthplace State Historic Site in Florida, Missouri, invites the public to view its most prized artifact: the original, handwritten manuscript.
The manuscript went on display beginning Memorial Day weekend and will be available for viewing for a limited time. If you’re a fan of Mark Twain, this is a rare opportunity to see his work as he actually penned it.
Publishing drama
Described by Twain, whose real name was Samuel Langhorne Clemens, as “simply a hymn, put into prose form to give it a worldly air,” the novel had a tumultuous journey to print. To overcome international copyright piracy, Twain had his agent hand-deliver a manuscript to British publishers Chatto and Windus, who released the first, unillustrated edition June 9, 1876.
Delays pushed the American edition back to Dec. 8, 1876. In the interim, Canadian publishers pirated the English text, flooding the U.S. market with cheap copies, costing Twain an estimated $10,000 in lost royalties (the equivalent of about $311,000 today).
The manuscript’s journey to Missouri
The original British manuscript was tracked down by Kansas City book dealer Frank Glenn, who purchased it from the agent’s heirs in London in 1937. It was dedicated at the Missouri State Capitol in 1951 before transferring to its permanent home in Florida, Missouri, for the grand opening of Mark Twain Birthplace Memorial Shrine in June 1960.
Restored and digitized by the Missouri Secretary of State’s office in 2022, the highly light-sensitive manuscript requires strict preservation. It is kept in temperature-controlled darkness for 10 months of the year and is displayed at a low ambient light intensity of 50 lux or less for no more than two months annually.
150th anniversary highlights
Throughout the 150th anniversary year, park visitors can experience:
• Viewings of the manuscript showcasing the author’s distinctive thoughts frozen in time.
• Guided tours of the shrine and of the cabin where Samuel Clemens was born.
• Miles of hiking trails and scenic views of Mark Twain Lake, allowing modern adventurers to channel their inner Tom Sawyer.
While the book’s publishing is being celebrated statewide with community parades to academic seminars, Mark Twain Birthplace State Historic Site serves as the anchor for the festivities.
About the site
Mark Twain State Park and Birthplace State Historic Site honor the life, times and literature of Samuel Clemens. Located at 37352 Shrine Road in Florida, Missouri, the site blends outdoor recreation on Mark Twain Lake with world-class historic preservation, keeping the spirit of 19th century Missouri alive for future generations.
Mark Twain State Park offers basic and electric campsites which may be reserved up to 12 months in advance. Rates are very reasonable.
RELATED
- 11 Route 66 ghost towns in Missouri
- Thousand Hills State Park: Missouri’s first official Dark Sky haven
- Visiting Missouri’s Dogwood Canyon in the Ozarks
- Love’s expands Missouri network with additional RV hookup facilities
RVT1266
