The South Shore region has a wonderful variety of fine museums & galleries.

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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

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.

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.

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

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

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

Open: Seasonally, by appointment only; call ahead

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.

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.
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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.

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

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

Mann Farmhouse and Historical Museum

Greenfield Lane Scituate, MA 02066 Phone: 781-545-1083

Open: Open seasonally; call for hours of operation

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

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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

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.

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.

R-Z top of listings

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.

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.
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