Henry David Thoreau

Henry David Thoreau (1817-1862) was an essayist and poet whose life and ideas had a significant influence on the anarchist, environmentalist, and simple living movements. He once spent two years living alone in a tiny cabin in the middle of the woods, a time he documented in his book Walden, which became his most famous work. Shortly after returning to civilization, he grew a wonderful neckbeard:

This photo is important to me because it was what inspired me to grow my own neckbeard. I had never seen a beard quite like this before. Unfortunately, Thoreau did not keep the neckbeard permanently; this photo was taken in 1856, and a picture of him made a few years later shows him with a full beard.

Although I have been unable to find the original source for this quote, I have read elsewhere that Thoreau claimed to wear the neckbeard as a means of warding off "throat colds". Of course, a lesser man would have simply used a scarf.