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Exploring Stone Walls: A Field Guide to New England's Stone Walls
The only field guide to stone walls in the Northeast. "Every stone wall is unique and every stone tells a story," says Robert M. Thorson, the author of the first field guide to historic New England stone walls-- one that helps you identify and appreciate those in your yard, neighborhood, and throughout the Northeast. Exploring Stone Walls is like being in Thorson's geology classroom, as he presents the many clues that allow you to determine any wall's history, age, and purpose. Thorson highlights forty-five places to see interesting and noteworthy walls, many of which are in public parks and preserves, from Acadia National Park in Maine to the South Fork of Long Island. Visit the tallest stone wall (Cliff Walk in Newport, Rhode Island), the most famous (Robert Frost's mending wall in Derry, New Hampshire), and many more. This field guide will broaden your horizons and deepen your appreciation of New England's rural history.
208 pages, Paperback
First published February 1, 2005
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
February 27, 2022
Incredibly detailed - almost too detailed if you're merely a little bit curious. But if you want specifics about the geology of individual stones and of entire regions, as well a sweeping historical, cultural and even economic survey of stone walls, this is the book for you. In the end, you will discover that for some, stone wall-watching is a profoundly engrossing (and very serious) hobby – like bird watching is for many. Thorson even includes a "life list" where you can check off the location and date of your discovery for each key wall type.
November 12, 2021
I love that wall watching can be made into a science. I don't have a good background in geology so I don't think I fully appreciated all the content, but it was still an interesting read. A lot of great pictures, though I wish they were in color.
November 19, 2025
Geologist Robert M. Thorson is pleasantly analytical in his approach to stone walls. He begins with the most elemental components and then proceeds chapter by chapter toward a synthesis of those components: the stone wall.
The first chapter is devoted to the life forms associated with old walls that wind across the New England landscape. Then, in three short chapters, he gives the novice a primer on geology. Explaining any science to a non-scientist is difficult because you want to include enough in the way of terminology and concepts to make it hang together but not so much as to make it overwhelming. Thorson does pretty well, although some of his shortcuts might lead to confusion if a reader decided to do some more reading. He does not explain metamorphism in any detail, probably because the transformation of solids is such a weird thing anyway.
Oddly, once he gets the science behind him and wades into the history of the walls, he seems more comfortable. It seems easier for him to write about his advocation than his vocation. One of the most useful aspects of this book is Thorson's systematic way of classifying walls. He takes you through the many factors that contribute toward the form of a particular wall. There is more to it than this, but basically you have to think about the kind of rocks the wall builder had to work with (what and where), what the builder's purpose was for the wall (why), and at what point in the history of settlement the wall was constructed (when).
From these criteria (and more) Thorson constructs a taxonomy that allows the stone-wall enthusiasts to go out into the field and identify what they find in some detail. At the very least, he gives you a vocabulary to use when you are trying to describe what you are looking to another person.
This brief guide is a mere introduction to stone-wall history. I have seen some complicated arrangements of stone walls that will require further inquiry into the fine points of sheep-raising than Thorson goes into here. But he gives his readers four pages of additional sources to answer further questions or at least get you started.
Prof. Thorson's writing style is not academic in the least. He seems to have a lot of practice addressing lay audiences. At the same time he does not try to be excessively folksy, which grates after a short time. Instead, you feel like you are sitting through an illustrated series of talks that you might hear at a local public library or historical society. There are photographs of stone walls on nearly every page of this book. The contrast in the reproduction could occasionally be better, but that is really down to the publisher/designer not the author.
The first chapter is devoted to the life forms associated with old walls that wind across the New England landscape. Then, in three short chapters, he gives the novice a primer on geology. Explaining any science to a non-scientist is difficult because you want to include enough in the way of terminology and concepts to make it hang together but not so much as to make it overwhelming. Thorson does pretty well, although some of his shortcuts might lead to confusion if a reader decided to do some more reading. He does not explain metamorphism in any detail, probably because the transformation of solids is such a weird thing anyway.
Oddly, once he gets the science behind him and wades into the history of the walls, he seems more comfortable. It seems easier for him to write about his advocation than his vocation. One of the most useful aspects of this book is Thorson's systematic way of classifying walls. He takes you through the many factors that contribute toward the form of a particular wall. There is more to it than this, but basically you have to think about the kind of rocks the wall builder had to work with (what and where), what the builder's purpose was for the wall (why), and at what point in the history of settlement the wall was constructed (when).
From these criteria (and more) Thorson constructs a taxonomy that allows the stone-wall enthusiasts to go out into the field and identify what they find in some detail. At the very least, he gives you a vocabulary to use when you are trying to describe what you are looking to another person.
This brief guide is a mere introduction to stone-wall history. I have seen some complicated arrangements of stone walls that will require further inquiry into the fine points of sheep-raising than Thorson goes into here. But he gives his readers four pages of additional sources to answer further questions or at least get you started.
Prof. Thorson's writing style is not academic in the least. He seems to have a lot of practice addressing lay audiences. At the same time he does not try to be excessively folksy, which grates after a short time. Instead, you feel like you are sitting through an illustrated series of talks that you might hear at a local public library or historical society. There are photographs of stone walls on nearly every page of this book. The contrast in the reproduction could occasionally be better, but that is really down to the publisher/designer not the author.
August 17, 2019
It is very detailed with many interesting details about different kinds of stones and their raison d'etre. the author also incorporates these facts into various chronological stone walls which have been built by whom and their purpose.
November 2, 2016
Though probably most useful in southern New England, an excellent source to better understanding historic cultural impact on a hike or walk. With many photographs.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews