Massachusetts - Museums and Galleries in South of Boston/Plymouth

Art Complex Museum at Duxbury
189 Alden Street
Duxbury, MA  02331
Phone: 781-934-6634

A place for viewing and learning about art in an intimate and comfortable setting

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The Art Complex Museum at Duxbury is situated on over 13 acres of woodland and open fields. It was founded as a center for regional arts and to host the impressive collection of the Carl A. Weyerhaeuser family. The museum is well known for its permanent collections of Shaker furniture, American paintings, which include some fine representations of each of the developmental stages of American landscape painting, Asian art and a print collection that spans from Europe and Asia to the United States. There is also a library of over 6,000 volumes which support the museum’s collections. Other offerings of the Art Complex include educational programs, special exhibits and Sunday afternoon concerts. Open: Wednesday-Sunday, 1-4 p.m. Admission is Free.

Brockton Historical Society Museums
216 North Pearl Street
Brockton, MA  02301
Phone: 617-583-1039

Open: September –June, first and third Sundays, 2-4 p.m.

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The history of the area is detailed in this museum, including Thomas Edison (an area resident), Rocky Marciano (boxer born in Brockton), plus exhibits on shoe-making and firefighting.

Captain John Wilson House
4 Elm Street
Cohasset, MA  02025
Phone: 781-383-1434

Open: June-September, Tuesday-Friday, 1:30-4:30 p.m.

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Modest but typical 1810 New England village house is preserved in its original condition and contains a rare collection of antique furniture and artifacts to recreate an Early American dwelling. Admission is free.

Children's Museum in Easton
The Old Fire Station, 9 Sullivan Avenue
North Easton, MA  02356
Phone: 508-230-3789

Open: Tuesday-Saturday, 10 a.m.-5 p.m.; Sunday, noon-5 p.m.; closed most Mondays; call ahead for holidays or school vacation hours

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Exhibits and activities for children features bubble tables, a moon room, Legos, the enchanted forest, and a performance area. Admission charge.

Mann Farmhouse and Historical Museum
Greenfield Lane
Scituate, MA  02066
Phone: 781-545-1083

Open: Open seasonally; call for hours of operation

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Built in the mid 18th century, the house now contains a museum of historical exhibits and a sail loft. The artifacts of the Mann family date from the 17th century and they include primitive Pilgrim furniture, carpenter and shoe making tools, military items, china, children's toys, early farming equipment and many valuable documents and books. Admission charge.

Marine Museum at Fall River
70 Water Street
Fall River, MA  02720
Phone: 508-674-3533

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Visitors will find the biggest exhibit in the nation concerning the HMS Titanic. The exhibit includes artifacts from the ship, memorabilia about survivors and victims, and a one-ton model of the ship. There is an admission fee.

Mattapoisett Museum and Carriage House
5 Church Street
Mattapoisett, MA  02739
Phone: 617-758-2844

Open: July and August, Wednesday-Saturday, 1-4 p.m.

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Visitors to this facility will see an 18th century meetinghouse, a blacksmith shop, a 19th century kitchen and a spinning room. Open seasonally. Free admission.

Mayflower Society Museum
4 Winslow Street
Plymouth, MA  02360
Phone: 508-746-2590

Open: July – mid-September, daily, 10 a.m. – 4 p.m.; Memorial Day weekend-June 30 and mid-September to mid-October, Friday – Sunday, 10 a.m. – 4 p.m.

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The headquarters of the General Society of Mayflower Descendents is located in this 1754 home built by Edward Winslow, a Pilgrim descendant. It features furnishings spanning three centuries, a flying staircase and formal gardens.
Hours: July-Labor Day, open daily; Memorial Day weekend-June and early September-October, Friday-Sunday. Fee charged.

Middleboro Historical Museum
18 Jackson St.
Middleboro, MA  02346
Phone: 508-947-1969

Open: July-september, Wednesday and Saturday, 1-4 p.m.

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This historic museum features the miniatures collected by General Tom Thumb and his wife. Thumb was a midget and a celebrity in Phineas T. Barnum's circus. Also six other buildings of 1800-early 1900's social and industrial life exhibits.

New Bedford Fire Museum
Old Station No. 4 at 51 Bedford Street
New Bedford, MA  02740
Phone: 508-992-2162

Open: Daily, 9 a.m.-4 p.m.

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Restored fire trucks and interactive exhibits highlight this museum of firefighting, firefighters and their tools.

New Bedford Whaling Museum
18 Johnny Cake Hill
New Bedford, MA  02740
Phone: 508-997-0046

Open: Open daily 9 a.m. - 5 p.m. and until 9 p.m. Thursdays in the summer. Closed Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year’s Day.

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The New Bedford Whaling Museum houses the world's most comprehensive collection of whaling and maritime artifacts. Climb aboard the world's largest ship model, the 89-foot bark Lagoda, and view the 66-foot skeleton of a rare blue whale. Admission charge.

Old Colony and Fall River Railroad Museum
Battleship Cove
Fall River, MA  02720
Phone: 508-674-9340

Open: May 5-June 30 and September 1-October 7, Saturday, noon-4 p.m. and Sunday, 10 a.m.-2 p.m.; July-August, Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, noon-5 p.m.; closed October 8-May 4.

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Exhibits in this museum center on the history of railroading in the Fall River area and Southern New England. Train cars filled with extensive collection of railroad memorabilia. Open seasonally. Admission charge.

Old Colony Historical Society
66 Church Green
Taunton, MA  02780
Phone: 508-822-1622

Open: year-round, Tuesday – Saturday, 10 a.m. – 4 p.m.

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Museum with exhibits of antique furniture, silverware and military memorabilia. There is an admission fee.

Pilgrim Hall Museum
75 Court Street
Plymouth, MA  02360
Phone: 508-746-1620

America’s Museum of Pilgrim Possessions

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Pilgrim Hall, built in 1824, is a gallery museum in the center of historic Plymouth, Massachusetts.  The nation’s oldest continuously–operating public museum, Pilgrim Hall houses an unmatched collection of Pilgrim possessions.  Among its treasures are William Bradford’s Bible, Myles Standish’s sword, the only portrait of a Pilgrim (Edward Winslow) painted from life, the cradle of New England’s first–born, Peregrine White, the great chair of William Brewster, and the earliest sampler made in America, embroidered by the teenage daughter of Myles Standish. Here you will also learn the story of the Wampanoag, the Native People who inhabited this area for 10,000 years before the arrival of the new settlers, and their relationship with colonial peoples. Featuring a vast collection of paintings and artifacts, Pilgrim Hall’s mission is to protect, foster, and educate about this important heritage.

Plimoth Plantation
137 Warren Avenue
Plymouth, MA  02360
Phone: 508-746-1622

Learning, and sharing what we learn, is the basis of our work and what we strive to achieve through our exhibits and living history sites.

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Additional to our major sites, The 1627 English Village, The Wampanoag Homesite, Mayflower II and The Crafts Center, Plimoth Plantation boasts three ongoing exhibits, which include: "Thanksgiving: Memory Myth & Meaning," at the Visitor Center; "13 Moons: A Seasonal Food Cycle," featured in the Crafts Center exhibit space and "Provisioning A Ship," located on the State Pier next to Mayflower II. We know you will find the information interesting and quite intriguing.

This year, we also have a special exhibit running from May 3rd to November 30th. "FlightPath: Plymouth Beach," a beautiful photography exhibit by renowned nature photographer Jim Fenton. Be sure to see it while it's here.

Rotch-Jones-Duff House and Garden Museum
936 County Street
New Bedford, MA  02740
Phone: 508-997-1401

Open: Monday-Saturday, 10 a.m.-4 p.m.; Sunday, noon-4 p.m.

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This 28-room Greek Revival mansion was built for whaling merchant William Rotch, Jr. in 1834. The house and formal gardens chronicle 150 years of economic, social and domestic life in New Bedford. The grounds encompass a full city block of gardens including a Wildflower Walk, a formal boxwood rose parterre garden, a cutting garden, a boxwood specimen garden and an historic wood lattice pergola. Fee charged.

Dighton Rock Museum
Bay View Road
Berkley, MA  02779
Phone: 508-822-7537

Open: Seasonally, by appointment only; call ahead

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The focus of this museum is a boulder with inscriptions attributed to Native Americans and Portuguese explorers. Admission is free.

Fall River Historical Society
451 Rock Street
Fall River, MA  02720
Phone: 508-679-1071

Open: April-early November, Tuesday – Friday, 9 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.; June-September, Saturday and Sunday, 1 - 5 p.m.

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Set in the mansion of a mill owner, this museum features both artwork and historic items. The exhibit related to Lizzie Borden, the infamous accused murderess, is of particular interest. Admission charge.

Hingham Historical Society Museum
21 Lincoln Street
Hingham, MA  02043
Phone: 781-749-7721

Open: June 14-September 3, Tuesday-Saturday, 1:30-4:30 p.m.

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The Old Ordinary, a 17th-century building that began as a home and eventually became a tavern, currently is a house museum owned and operated by the Hingham Historical Society. Admission charge.

Hull Lifesaving Museum
1117 Nantasket Avenue
Hull, MA  02045
Phone: 617-925-5433

Open: Open year-round; call for seasonal hours

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Nineteenth-century Life Saving Station facing Boston Light; working rescue apparatus; exhibits, shipwreck lore, and kid's loft. Admission charge.