We try to keep this list of historic house museums for Massachusetts current, but it is best to check directly with the museums for their hours and other information.

If you know of a historic house museum not in our list, please submit it.

If you are the director of a museum in our listings and you would like to claim your listing so you are able to maintain your listing yourself, please email us at info@vpa.org and we will set you up.

Reset Filters
Abigail Adams Birthplace

    The birthplace of Abigail Smith Adams was built in 1685 for the Reverend Samuel Torrey, minister of The First Church in Weymouth. The original location was at the corner of North and East Streets, three hundred feet to the southeast of its present location. Read More

    Adams Birthplace

      Adams National Historical Park was the home of two American presidents and subsequent generations of their descendants from 1720 to 1927. The family's experience represented, shaped, and mirrored significant events in the social, cultural, political, and intellectual history of the nation. Read More

      Alden House

        Some interesting features of this 1653 building are the powdered clam and oyster shell ceiling in the "great" room, the cambered panels in the "best" room and the gunstock beams found in the chambers. Read More

        Amherst History Museum

          Housed in the circa 1750 Strong House, the Amherst History Museum offers guided tours detailing the vibrant history of the Town of Amherst and the residents who have lived in the Strong House. Read More

          Arrowhead

          Arrowhead

          0.0

            In 1851, Herman Melville completed "Moby Dick" while living in the house. Read More

            Atwood

              Your journey begins with a tour of the historical dwelling built circa 1752 by Chatham sea captain Joseph Atwood, and occupied by his descendants for some five generations. Since 1927, this Cape Cod style home has been carefully preserved as an historical house museumoffering the rare opportunity to experience Cape Cod life, art, and culture of the 18th and… Read More

              Balch House

                The 1636 frame house was occupied by the Balch family until 1914 and is furnished in period. Read More

                Beauport

                  Beauport, Sleeper-McCann House, was the summer home of one of America’s first professional interior designers, Henry Davis Sleeper. Perched on a rock ledge overlooking Gloucester Harbor, Beauport became Sleeper’s retreat, backdrop for entertaining, professional showcase, and an inspiration to all who visited. After Sleeper’s death, Beauport was purchased by Mr. and Mrs. Charles McCann, who left most of Sleeper’s… Read More

                  Benjamin Bye Homestead & Museum

                    The Benjamin Nye Homestead & Museum is a home built by Benjamin Nye in 1678. A docent will guide you through seven rooms, each reflecting a different era. Read More

                    Bidwell

                      The Bidwell House Museum, set in the Berkshire hills of Western Massachusetts, is an elegant Georgian saltbox originally built circa 1750 as a parsonage. Authentically restored, filled with antiques and surrounded by 192 acres of beautiful grounds and hiking trails, the museum tells the story of the early settlement of the Berkshires. Read More

                      Blanchard's

                        Blanchard' s Tavern in Avon dates back to the Revolutionary War. It served as a tavern and general store through much of the nineteenth century . In 1937 it became the Avon Town Hall and in 1975 was restored as a colonial tavern offering drinks, snacks, and entertainment of the period . There is also he Captain Samuel Robbins… Read More

                        Cape Ann Museum

                          The White-Ellery House, located at 245 Washington Street in Gloucester at the Route 128 Grant Circle Rotary, was built in 1710 and is one of just a handful of First Period houses in Eastern Massachusetts that survives to this day. The Captain Elias Davis House, built in 1804 by one of Gloucester's most successful sea captains, houses much of… Read More

                          Wilson House

                            Built by David Nichols and purchased soon thereafter by Captain John Wilson, the house remained in the Wilson family until 1912. Through the years the house became a marine supply store, tea room and gift shop, photographer's studio, candy store until it was given to the Historical Society by William McGaw in 1936 for ithe Society's first headquarters and… Read More

                            Castle Hill

                              In the decades following Richard T. Crane, Jr.’s purchase of the property in 1910, Castle Hill came to exemplify the American Country Place Era with its farm and estate buildings, designed grounds and gardens, and diverse natural areas. The Cranes hired some of the century’s most notable architects and landscape architects. The first house built atop Castle Hill, an… Read More

                              Centerville Historical Museum

                                The Centerville Historical Museum, founded in 1952, is dedicated to preserving and sharing the history of Centerville and Cape Cod. The fourteen-room museum includes an 1840 house and contains an outstanding collection of historic costumes, maritime and military artifacts, quilts, Crowell birds, 18th and 19th century decorative arts, paintings, tools, and children's toys and dolls. Read More

                                Chesterwood

                                  Chesterwood, a National Trust Historic Site, is the country home, studio and gardens of America’s foremost sculptor of public monuments, Daniel Chester French (1850-1931), creator of the Minute Man and Abraham Lincoln for the Lincoln Memorial. Read More

                                  Clara Barton Birthplace

                                    Clarissa Harlowe "Clara" Barton was born in a small North Oxford farmhouse on Christmas day 1821. She was raised in the Universalist tradition and attended the Oxford Universalist Church founded by the Rev. Hosea Ballou. A timid, bashful child, Clara grew into a courageous, compassionate leader known the world over for her work as a Civil War battlefield nurse… Read More

                                    Codman Estate

                                      In the 1790s, John Codman carried out extensive improvements to the original Georgian house and surrounding grounds. Sixty years later, his grandson updated the house in keeping with Victorian taste and filled the house with the finest New York furnishings. Today, the interiors are richly furnished with portraits, memorabilia, and art works collected in Europe, showing the decorative schemes… Read More

                                      Coffin House

                                        Coffin House was occupied by the Coffin family over three centuries, and provides fascinating insight into domestic life in rural New England. The structure, which contains the family's furnishings, began as a simple dwelling built in the post-medieval style. Tristram Coffin and his family lived, cooked, and slept in two or possibly three rooms; their possessions were few. Read More

                                        Cogswell's Grant

                                          A mecca for lovers of American folk art, Cogswell’s Grant was the summer home of renowned collectors Bertram K. and Nina Fletcher Little. The colonial-era farmhouse on the property serves as a rich backdrop for their celebrated collection, assembled over a period of nearly sixty years. Though known for their meticulous research, the Littles decorated with an eye for… Read More

                                          Count Rumford Birthplace

                                            The Benjamin Thompson House (also known as the Count Rumford Birthplace) is a historic house museum and National Historic Landmark at 90 Elm Street, in the North Woburn area of Woburn, Massachusetts. It is significant as the birthplace of scientist and inventor Benjamin Thompson (1753–1814), who became Count Rumford of the Holy Roman Empire as well as Sir Benjamin… Read More

                                            Cudworth House, Barn And Cattle Pound

                                              The Cudworth House sits on land granted to Richard Garrett before 1646. In 1728 Jael Garrett sold the dwelling house and land to James Cudworth. Ownership passed to his grandson, Zephaniah, who built the present house in 1797 around the chimney of the original structure on the site. In 1851 Israel Thorndike purchased the property from the Cudworths, and… Read More

                                              Cyrus Dallin Art Museum

                                                The restored 1832 home of Jefferson Cutter features displays the art of sculptor Cyrus E. Dallin. Read More

                                                Eleanor Cabot Bradley Estate

                                                  Dr. Arthur Tracy Cabot inherited the family property in the late 1800s. In 1902, Cabot retained noted architect Charles Platt, who specialized in designing impressive country homes in natural surroundings. Arthur Cabot died in 1912, and his wife, Susan, retained ownership for another three decades; in 1945, his niece, Eleanor Cabot Bradley, and her husband, Ralph Bradley, acquired the… Read More

                                                  Ralph Waldo Emerson House

                                                    Home of Ralph Waldo Emerson from 1835 until his death in 1882. The house contains some original furnishings. Read More

                                                    Fairbanks House

                                                      The Fairbanks House is believed to be the oldest surviving timber frame house in North America. It was built for a family of Puritan immigrants from Yorkshire in England, Jonathan and Grace Fairebanke and their six children. Dendrochonology (tree ring dating) has confirmed a construction date of the late 1630s-early 1640s. The house was passed down to succeeding generations… Read More

                                                      Wicks House

                                                        Falmouth Museums on the Green contain a treasure trove of stories and artifacts that tell the story of the town of Falmouth, Massachusetts. The museums overlook the Village Green where members of the Colonial militia practiced in the 1700s and sea captains built their homes. Two 18th-century houses display period furniture, fine art, textiles and temporary exhibits that provide… Read More

                                                        Forbes House

                                                          Long considered the Jewel of Milton, the Forbes House Museum chronicles the history of an entrepreneurial American family. The majestic Greek Revival mansion, built in 1833 for Margaret Perkins Forbes, was commissioned by her sons, China Trade merchants Captain Robert Bennet Forbes (1804–89) and John Murray Forbes (1813–98). Today, the Museum contains the treasures of four generations of the… Read More

                                                          Francis Wyman House

                                                            The Francis Wyman house is a historic house in Burlington, MA. The original part of the house was built in 1666 with a major addition around 1730. Read More

                                                            Frederick Law Olmsted

                                                              The designer of New York City's Central Park, (as well as San Jose's downtown park, although FLO's design has been lost) worked and lived in this house from 1883 until he retired a decade later. The 2 acre estate reflects his design principle that nature and buildings can exist in harmony. Read More

                                                              Bradford House

                                                                Built in 1808 by shipmaster Gershom Bradford, the house belonged to four generations of seafaring Bradfords before the last generation gave it to the Society in 1968. Captain Bradford commanded more than 10 vessels before retiring in 1826 to lead an active life ashore Read More

                                                                Gibson House Museum

                                                                  Built in 1859-60, the Gibson House stands as the historic house museum of the Back Bay. In 2001, the National Park Service declared the Gibson House a National Historic Landmark. It is unique as an unspoiled single-family residence that retains its kitchen, scullery, butler’s pantry and water closets, as well as formal rooms and private family quarters, filled with… Read More

                                                                  Gore Place

                                                                  Gore Place

                                                                  0.0 $$$$

                                                                    Gore Place, the Federal period, historic house and estate of Massachusetts Governor Christopher Gore, includes a small farm with sheep, goats and poultry. The elegantly furnished mansion has been called “the Monticello of the North” and architectural historians consider it to be the most significant Federal period mansion in New England. Read More

                                                                    Greenwood Farm

                                                                      The reservation takes its name from Thomas S. Greenwood who built the 19th-century white farmhouse. To its rear, the Paine House (1694), a yellow clapboard saltbox, is a remarkable example of First Period (1620–1725) architecture. Three generations of the Paine family made their home here, including Robert Paine, foreman of the Salem witch trial jury in 1692. From 1916,… Read More

                                                                      Hammond Castle

                                                                        John Hays Hammond, Jr. built his medieval-style castle between the years 1926 and 1929 to serve both as his home and as a backdrop for his collection of Roman, medieval, and Renaissance artifacts. The castle was constructed as a wedding present for his wife Irene Fenton Hammond to prove how much he cared for her. In addition, the building… Read More

                                                                        Harlow House

                                                                          Built in 1677, the gambrel-roofed Harlow Old Fort House is one of the few remaining 17th century buildings in the oldest established town in the Commonwealth. It was originally the family residence of settler William Harlow, a farmer, cooper and town official, who also served as sergeant of the local militia and participated in King Philip's War. In 1676,… Read More

                                                                          Hedge House

                                                                            The 1809 Hedge House is one of Plymouth's finest examples of Federal period architecture, featuring octagonal rooms in the mainblock, and a rare, intact carriage house. Built by sea captain William Hammatt, the house was originally located on Court St., where Memorial Hall is today. In 1830, merchant Thomas Hedge purchased the house and added a three-story ell to… Read More

                                                                            Highfield Hall

                                                                              Highfield Hall is an 1878 Cape Cod summer mansion that has undergone a multi-million restoration and is now being used as a community cultural center. Read More

                                                                              Frary House

                                                                                Historic Deerfield Inc., founded in 1952, is an outdoor history museum that focuses on the history and culture of the Connecticut River Valley and early New England. It has a dual mission of educating the public about the lifestyles of the diverse people who lived here long ago and of preserving antique buildings and collections of regional furniture, silver,… Read More

                                                                                Ipswitch Museum

                                                                                  The museum maintains two historic homes, the 1677 Wipple House and the 1800 Heard House. Both properties are filled with original architectural detail, furnishings, and artifacts that give visitors an intimate glimpse into the lives of early Ipswich residents. Read More

                                                                                  Jabel Howland House

                                                                                    The Jabez Howland House is the only existing house in Plymouth where Pilgrims actually lived. The original 17th century two-story timber framed house consisted of the porch, hall and hall chamber. John Howland and his wife, Elizabeth Tilley Howland spent their winters here with their son Jabez and his family. After John’s death at age 80, and the fire… Read More

                                                                                    Jackson Homestead

                                                                                      The Jackson Homestead was built by Timothy Jackson in 1809 in what became known as the Federal style of architecture. Read More

                                                                                      Jeremiah Lee Mansion

                                                                                        The Jeremiah Lee Mansion is a magnificent colonial Georgian home built by American craftsmen in 1768 when Lee was the wealthiest merchant and ship owner in Massachusetts. Preserved in its nearly original state, the house stands as a tribute to both colonial America's strong ties to England and its independent commercial success. Read More

                                                                                        JFK's House

                                                                                          John F. Kennedy NHS preserves the birthplace of America's 35th president. In 1967, the president's mother returned to Brookline, where Kennedy spent his boyhood, and restored the house to her recollection of its 1917 appearance. Each year, thousands of visitors join NPS staff to share Mrs. Kennedy's memories in a tour of the house and neighborhood that, in her… Read More

                                                                                          John Wittier House

                                                                                            The author and abolitionist lived in the home 1836-92. The house remains almost unchanged and contains original furnishings. Read More

                                                                                            Johnson Cottage

                                                                                              A popular form of vernacular architecture, this two room cottage was expanded by the next owner, Samuel Johnson sometime after 1796 and now consists of three rooms: a chamber, expanded kitchen or great room and a formal parlor. Johnson Cottage is a rare survival of this house form and exhibits many earlier Georgian design qualities. Due to the economic… Read More

                                                                                              Josiah Day House Museum

                                                                                                The oldest known brick salt-box style home in the United States. Owned by four generations of the Josiah Day family until sold to the Ramapogue Historical Society in 1903. All furnishings and artifacts are appropriate to the time period (pre-1902), including many original Day family items. Read More

                                                                                                Keep Homestead Museum

                                                                                                  The Keep Homestead Museum is a beautifully preserved and restored 19th century farm house. The homestead, consisting of the land, a barn and the house with sixteen rooms, three attics and three cellars was donated to the Town of Monson when Myra Keep Moulton died in 1988. The farm had been in her family since 1854. With a superb… Read More

                                                                                                  King Caesar House

                                                                                                    This Federal mansion was built in 1809 for Ezra Weston II, known as “King Caesar” for his worldwide preeminence as a shipbuilder and merchant. Weston’s enterprise dominated Duxbury in the early 19th century with a large portion of the population employed in the Weston shipyards, farms, wharves, mill, ropewalk, or aboard Weston’s fishing schooners and merchant fleet. Ezra Weston’s… Read More

                                                                                                    Hooper Mansion

                                                                                                      The King Hooper Mansion, home of the Marble­head Arts Associ­ation since 1938 was built by Greenfield Hooper, a candle maker, in 1728. His son, Robert Hooper, a wealthy shipping merchant, added the front section of the house in 1745. He was given the affectionate title of “King” by local seamen because of his reputation for geniality and fairness. Read More

                                                                                                      Longhill

                                                                                                      Long Hill

                                                                                                      0.0

                                                                                                        In 1916, Atlantic Monthly editor/publisher Ellery Sedgwick bought a working farm on a Beverly hillside, where he built a grand summer retreat for his family. Under the expert guidance of his wife, Mabel Cabot Sedgwick, and Marjorie Russell Sedgwick (who married Ellery Sedgwick after the death of his first wife), the Long Hill gardens gained an international reputation. Read More

                                                                                                        Longfellow House

                                                                                                          Longfellow House - Washington's Headquarters National Historic Site preserves the home of Henry W. Longfellow, one of the world’s foremost 19th century poets. The house also served as headquarters for General George Washington during the Siege of Boston, July 1775 - April 1776. In addition to its rich history, the site offers unique opportunities to explore 19th century literature… Read More

                                                                                                          Loring-Greenough House

                                                                                                            The Loring-Greenough House was constructed in 1760 by Commodore Loring and owned by the Greenough family from 1783 until 1924. The Jamaica Plain Tuesday Club purchased the house in 1924 and has been steward ever since then. Read More

                                                                                                            Mann House

                                                                                                              Three generations of the Mann family lived at the Mann Farmhouse at the corner of Stockbridge Road and Greenfield Lane, direct descendants of early settler Richard Mann who lived on North Scituate’s Mann Hill overlooking Mushquashcut Pond where he met his death in 1655/6. Read More

                                                                                                              Martin Farm

                                                                                                                The Martin House Farm is a rare example of an 18th and early 19th century farm which still retains the character of its original setting. It consists of the house, two barns and cultivated fields surrounded by dry stone walls and woodlands. The home was lived in continuously by members of the Martin family for over 200 years. Read More

                                                                                                                Merwin House

                                                                                                                  William and Elizabeth Doane purchased this handsome house in 1875 as their summer retreat. They named it "Tranquility," as it overlooks a peaceful bend in the Housatonic River. During this period, the town of Stockbridge, in the heart of the Berkshires, was becoming a popular summer destination for New Yorkers like the Doanes. Read More

                                                                                                                  Hadwen House

                                                                                                                    The association maintains 11 properties. Separate admissions are charged, but a combination pass is available. Read More

                                                                                                                    Winsor House

                                                                                                                      Acquired by the Society in 1997 through a community fundraising effort, the Nathaniel Winsor, Jr. House is perhaps the most architecturally significant building in Duxbury. Its construction, on a grand scale uncommon in houses of the area, was based on designs by Bulfinch and Asher Benjamin. Read More

                                                                                                                      Naumkeag

                                                                                                                      Naumkeag

                                                                                                                      0.0

                                                                                                                        This architectural masterpiece is, at its heart, a family home. Joseph Choate, a leading 19th-century attorney, hired the architectural firm of McKim, Mead, & White to design the 44-room “cottage,” Naumkeag, which would serve as a summer retreat for three generations of Choates. Read More

                                                                                                                        Nichols House Museum

                                                                                                                          The Nichols House Museum occupies an impressive four-story town house, one of the earliest Beacon Hill structures, constructed in 1804. In 1885, Dr. Arthur Nichols purchased the house for his wife and daughters. Their eldest daughter Rose Standish Nichols, noted landscape architect, writer and suffragist, inherited the house. Miss Nichols owned and cared for the house from 1935 until… Read More

                                                                                                                          Old Castle

                                                                                                                            The exact year when the "Old Castle" was built is unknown at this time. It is however, believed to have been built in 1712. Its first owner was Jethro Wheeler, a cordwainer(shoemaker) from Rowley, who came here with his wife and nine children in 1713, and whose family lived in the house for six generations. Since the oldest of… Read More

                                                                                                                            Old Sturbridge Village

                                                                                                                              Old Sturbridge Village is a living, breathing, vibrant village depicting life in New England from 1790-1840. Visitors can meet historians in costume and tour 40 antique buildings, including a country store, school, and water-powered mills. Read More

                                                                                                                              Louisa May Alcott House

                                                                                                                                After moving twenty-two times in nearly thirty years, the Alcotts finally found their most permanent home at Orchard House, where they lived from 1858 to 1877. The house is most noted for being where Louisa May Alcott wrote and set her beloved classic, Little Women, in 1868 at a "shelf desk" her father built especially for her. Read More

                                                                                                                                Otis House

                                                                                                                                  Otis House is the last surviving mansion in Bowdoin Square in Boston's West End neighborhood. Charles Bulfinch designed the house for Harrison Gray Otis, a lawyer who was instrumental in developing nearby Beacon Hill, served in Congress, and was a mayor of Boston. Read More

                                                                                                                                  Parson-Barnhard House

                                                                                                                                    The Parson Barnard House (1715) is located at 179 Osgood Street and retains many of its original features, based on a documented history of this significant Eighteenth Century building. The first owners and inhabitants of the house were ministers of the North Parish Church of North Andover, including Rev. Thomas Barnard, Rev. John Barnard and Rev. William Symmes. Towards… Read More

                                                                                                                                    Parson Capen House

                                                                                                                                      The Parson Capen House is one of the finest surviving example of Elizabethan architecture in America. The house is situated on a knoll overlooking the Common, originally on a twelve acre lot of land granted Reverend Capen by the Town in 1682. Parson Capen served the Church in Topsfield for 44 years until his death. Read More

                                                                                                                                      Porter-Phelps-Huntington House

                                                                                                                                        The House was built in 1752 by Moses and Elizabeth Porter on a tract of land known as “Forty Acres and its skirts.” These acres had been owned in common by the householders in the northeast quarter of the stockaded town of Hadley when it was laid out in 1659. After the Porter's only child, Elizabeth, married Charles Phelps… Read More

                                                                                                                                        Quincy Homestead

                                                                                                                                          A National Historic Landmark, the Quincy Homestead is significant for its role in early American history, for its architecture, and for its Quincy family association. The property, located at the corner of Hancock Street and Butler Road, is part of the original land that Edmund Quincy acquired for a farm in the 1630s. The present house, dating from 1686,… Read More

                                                                                                                                          Quincy House

                                                                                                                                            This country estate overlooking Quincy Bay transports visitors to the Revolutionary War era and tells the story of a woman’s work to preserve her family’s history more than a hundred years later. Revolutionary leader Josiah Quincy built the house in 1770. Quincy and his family played key roles in the social and political life of Massachusetts for generations, producing… Read More

                                                                                                                                            RJD House

                                                                                                                                              Built by shipwrights in 1834 for whaling merchant William Rotch Jr., the Rotch-Jones-Duff (RJD) House and Garden Museum epitomizes the “brave houses and flowery gardens” described by Herman Melville in Moby-Dick. Greek Revival in style, it was designed by architect Richard Upjohn, a founder and first president of the American Institute or Architects. Read More

                                                                                                                                              Royal House

                                                                                                                                                In the eighteenth century, the Royall House and Slave Quarters was home to the largest slaveholding family in Massachusetts and the enslaved Africans who made their lavish way of life possible. Today, the Royall House and Slave Quarters is a museum whose architecture, household items, archaeological artifacts, and programs bear witness to intertwined stories of wealth and bondage, set… Read More

                                                                                                                                                Santarella

                                                                                                                                                  The studio of sculptor Sir Henry Kitson features a roof that is an 80 ton sculpture of a thatched roof. Read More

                                                                                                                                                  Sargent House

                                                                                                                                                    Visitors to the Sargent House Museum learn about the early history of Gloucester from its beginnings as a farming and lumbering outpost to its evolution into the country's premier seaport. Visitors will also see a collection of original works by the great portrait painter John Singer Sargent (1856-1925) descendant of the Sargent family, who loved the house and its… Read More

                                                                                                                                                    Saugus Iron Works

                                                                                                                                                      The Iron Works House dates from the 17th century and contains early American furnishings and exhibits. Read More

                                                                                                                                                      Sewall Scripture House

                                                                                                                                                        The house displays a variety of historical artifacts from the Rockport area. Read More

                                                                                                                                                        Shirley Eustis House

                                                                                                                                                          The 1747 Palladian house was built for governor William Shirley, and at the turn of the 19th century it was remodelled in the Federal style for former governor William Eustis. Some furnishings are original. Read More

                                                                                                                                                          Spencer-Pierce-Little Farm

                                                                                                                                                            Spencer-Peirce-Little Farm is a family-friendly site with activities for visitors of all ages. The 230-acre site includes a late seventeenth-century manor house that served as the country seat of wealthy Newburyport merchants and an attached farmhouse that was home to a Lithuanian farm family for most of the twentieth century. The site also fosters farm animals in partnership with… Read More

                                                                                                                                                            Spooner House

                                                                                                                                                              Built circa 1749 for the widow Hannah Jackson, the Spooner House is one of the oldest structures on Plymouth's picturesque North Street. It was home to one Plymouth family, the Spooners, for over two hundred years. The first Spooner to occupy the house was Deacon Ephraim Spooner, a successful local merchant and patriot during the American Revolution. Read More

                                                                                                                                                              Potter Mansion

                                                                                                                                                                Storrowton Village Museum is an authentic, recreated village of nine 18th and 19th century buildings from Massachusetts and New Hampshire, assembled around a traditional town green. Read More

                                                                                                                                                                Suffolk Resolves House

                                                                                                                                                                  The Suffolk Resolves House is the headquarters of the Milton Historical Society; in its parlor a precursor to the Declaration of Independence was signed in 1774. Read More

                                                                                                                                                                  Susan B. Anthony

                                                                                                                                                                    The newly restored Susan B. Anthony Birthplace Museum is the childhood home of the legendary human rights leader. This rural, Federal-style home, containing a portrait gallery, legacy room, and birthing room, depicts family and work life in the early 1800s, authentic period pieces, ephemera, and a detailed timeline. Read More

                                                                                                                                                                    Buttonwoods

                                                                                                                                                                      The museum features the 1710 John Ward House, the 1815 Duncan House, and the 1850 Daniel Hunkin shoe shop. Read More

                                                                                                                                                                      Emily Dickinson Homestead

                                                                                                                                                                        The Emily Dickinson Museum includes The Homestead, where poet Emily Dickinson was born and lived most of her life, and The Evergreens, home of the poet’s brother and his family. The two houses share three acres of the original Dickinson property in the center of Amherst, Massachusetts. Read More

                                                                                                                                                                        House of the 7 Gables

                                                                                                                                                                          The House of the Seven Gables was built by a Salem sea captain and merchant named John Turner in 1668 and occupied by three generations of the Turner family before being sold to Captain Samuel Ingersoll in 1782. An active captain during the Great Age of Sail, Ingersoll died at sea leaving the property to his daughter Susanna, a… Read More

                                                                                                                                                                          Winslow House

                                                                                                                                                                            The Isaac Winslow House was built circa 1699 for the Hon. Isaac Winslow (1671–1738) at the place named "Careswell" after their family home "Kerswell" in Worcestershire, England. This was the third house built on land granted to Gov. Edward Winslow (1595–1655) in the 1630s who erected the first homestead. Read More

                                                                                                                                                                            Jason Russel House

                                                                                                                                                                              The Jason Russell House, built in 1740, still bears bullet holes as the site of bloody fighting on the first day of the American Revolution. British soldiers, in retreat from Lexington and Concord, shot and bayoneted Jason Russell on his own doorstep. Eleven other area Minute Men, who had gathered in Arlington, due to its strategic location, also lost… Read More

                                                                                                                                                                              The John Cabot House

                                                                                                                                                                                The John Cabot House is a Georgian style mansion built in 1781 during the Revolutionary War, and it was the first brick mansion built in Beverly. The wealth of the Cabot family is reflected in the architecture of the house, the beautifully carved paneling, and decorations such as the Dutch tiles surrounding the fireplace. It would have been furnished… Read More

                                                                                                                                                                                Mission House

                                                                                                                                                                                  In the mid-1730s, the Mohicans living in western Massachusetts gave permission for a young minister to live among them. The Rev. John Sergeant lived in a simple cabin until he married Abigail Williams in 1739 and built the Mission House c.1742. Read More

                                                                                                                                                                                  Edith Wharton's The Mount

                                                                                                                                                                                  The Mount

                                                                                                                                                                                  0.0

                                                                                                                                                                                    The Mount is a turn-of-the-century home that Edith Wharton designed and built based on the precepts outlined in her 1897 book The Decoration of Houses, co-authored with architect Ogden Codman, Jr. A perfect example of the newly dawned American Renaissance, the classical revival house and its formal gardens represent the only full expression of Wharton’s architectural and landscape architectural… Read More

                                                                                                                                                                                    The Old Manse

                                                                                                                                                                                      Built in 1770 for patriot minister William Emerson, The Old Manse, a National Historic Landmark, became the center of Concord’s political, literary, and social revolutions over the course of the next century. In the mid-19th-century, leading Transcendentalists such as Bronson Alcott, Henry David Thoreau, and Margaret Fuller discussed the issues of the day here, with the Hawthorne and Ripley… Read More

                                                                                                                                                                                      Paul Revere House

                                                                                                                                                                                        On the night of April 18, 1775, silversmith Paul Revere left his small wooden home in Boston's North End and set out on a journey that would make him into a legend. Today that home is still standing at 19 North Square and has become a national historic landmark. It is downtown Boston's oldest building and one of the… Read More

                                                                                                                                                                                        Hale Farm

                                                                                                                                                                                          The oldest part of the house, two rooms up and two rooms down, was built for Reverend Hale in 1694. In 1745, Colonel Robert Hale, Jr. (John Hale's grandson), added the front section of the house with the gambrel roof. He excavated a cellar (where evidence of a buttery has been found), added the present staircases, and built an… Read More

                                                                                                                                                                                          Stevens-Coolidge Place

                                                                                                                                                                                            The Stevens-Coolidge Place is a wonderful example of “the country place,” when rural retreats were designed as places that integrated indoor and outdoor spaces – and that were meant to be lived in as well as admired. Formerly known as Ashdale Farm, it served as the summer home of John Gardner Coolidge – a diplomat who was descended from… Read More

                                                                                                                                                                                            Ventfort

                                                                                                                                                                                              Ventfort Hall was the summer cottage of George and Sarah Morgan, sister of J.P. Morgan. It was constructed between 1891 and 1893.It is a Jacobean Revival style mansion. Designed by the architects Rotch & Tilden, it is located in Lenox, Massachusetts. The house has 28,000 square feet of living space in it, about 50 rooms. Read More

                                                                                                                                                                                              Wenham Museum

                                                                                                                                                                                                The 1660 Claflin-Richards house is furnished in period and is noteworthy for its late Elizabethan construction. Displays include costumes, quilts, dolls, dollhouses and toys. Read More

                                                                                                                                                                                                Whistler House

                                                                                                                                                                                                  Artwork from the Museum's permanent collection is on display in the galleries of the historic house. The focus of the collection is late nineteenth century and early twentieth century American representational art, with special emphasis on the artists of New England. Among the artists represented are Frank Weston Benson, Thomas B. Lawson, William Morris Hunt, William M. Paxton, David… Read More

                                                                                                                                                                                                  John Whittier Birthplace

                                                                                                                                                                                                    The Whittier Birthplace is an outstanding example of an old New England farm, and located on its original site, is substantially the same as when the Poet lived there in 1807 until 1836. The Birthplace is the setting of his most famous and beloved poem Snow-Bound. Many settings from his poems are recognizable to those who have read them. Read More

                                                                                                                                                                                                    Willard House

                                                                                                                                                                                                      Nestled in the rolling hills of Central Massachusetts, Willard House is Grafton's oldest building, constructed in 1718 by Joseph Willard in what was then known as the Indian settlement of Hassanamisco. Four of Joseph's grandsons - Benjamin, Simon, Ephraim and Aaron Willard - would become America's preeminent 19th century clockmakers, making their first clocks in 1766 in their small… Read More

                                                                                                                                                                                                      Bryant Homestead

                                                                                                                                                                                                        From 1865 until his death in 1878, Bryant summered here at his boyhood home, today a National Historic Landmark. He converted the two-story farmhouse into a rambling three-story Victorian cottage and expanded the sprawling red barn to store apples and pears from his orchards. Inside the house you’ll discover colonial and Victorian pieces from the poet’s family, as well… Read More

                                                                                                                                                                                                        Wing House

                                                                                                                                                                                                          Built in 1641, the house was occupied continuously by members of the Wing family until it became a museum in 1942. Seven rooms have original 17th century antiques. Read More

                                                                                                                                                                                                          1 2