Peirce's Retreat to Milford: Introduction to the Milford Symposium

Abstract:In April 2019, a granite monument was erected at the Peirce gravesite in the Milford Cemetery in place of the small eroded tombstone which for many years had been thought to be inadequate as a sign of Peirce's enduring importance as a philosopher and man of science. A small symposium featuring six papers was held in conjunction with the dedication of the new monument. Those six papers, along with an account of the challenging campaign to replace the old tombstone, follow this introduction. Here the papers are encapsulated in an account of Peirce's life after the death of his father, his marriage to Juliette, and the loss of his position at Johns Hopkins. Peirce's move to Milford, Pennsylvania, in 1887, completed a transition from membership in the society of the scientific and intellectual elite to the ranks of the outsiders. From that time on, Peirce would be in perpetual conflict over the urgent need for income and his sense of duty to contribute to the advancement of knowledge. Many of the most troubled and distressing times of Peirce's life occurred during his Milford years and yet they also fostered much of his best and most creative thought. The following symposium papers provide illuminating accounts of important facets of Peirce's life and thought during these times providing new information and insights about the man whose ashes lie under the new monument but whose ideas continue to grow.