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North of Boston/Merrimack Valley welcome guests to historic homes

Massachusetts > North of Boston > Indoor Activities > Historic Homes and Sites
Historic Lexington - Greater Merrimack Valley MA
Greater Merrimack Valley

61 Market Street, Unit 1C Lowell, MA, 01852 Phone: 978-459-6150

Step through the doorways of these Lexington and Concord homes and walk into history

When you step into historic homes in the Greater Merrimack Valley, you are doing more than learning about the nation’s past: You are walking in the steps of its giants. The houses offered for tours by the Lexington Historical Society include the Buckman Tavern, where the colonial military gathered the morning of April 19, 1775, before confronting the British; the parsonage where John Hancock and Sam Adams were staying when they were awakened by Paul Revere that morning; and the Monroe Tavern, where George Washington dined in 1789. In Concord, the Orchard House was the home of Louisa May Alcott and her family. Visitors who take the guided tour through the home, built in 1650, feel they are walking through the pages of “Little Women.”
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Women of Concord, MA Tour - Photo Credit Ed Feather Photography
Visit Concord MA

Concord, MA is rich with history and literary legacy

Concord, MA is a treasure trove for history lovers, offering a deep dive into America's past through its historic homes and sites. A visit to The Old Manse reveals the former home of both Ralph Waldo Emerson and Nathaniel Hawthorne, steeped in literary significance. The Orchard House, home of Louisa May Alcott, invites fans of Little Women to step inside the rooms where the novel was written and set. Minute Man National Historical Park and Old North Bridge commemorate the first battles of the American Revolution, and don’t forget Sleepy Hollow Cemetery, Thoreau Farm, and more. Whether you take a guided walking tour or choose to explore Concord’s many historical and literary landmarks on your own, VisitConcord.org will help you make the most of your trip.
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Center of Revolution - Concord Museum - Concord, MA
Concord Museum

35 Cambridge Turnpike at Lexington Road Concord, MA, 01742 Phone: 978-369-9763

Historic town’s museum reflects life from Indigenous people to Revolution to 19th-century literary scene

In the town where the “shot heard round the world” was fired, beginning the American Revolution, history is a part of the fabric of life. At the Concord Museum, objects from its extensive collections reflect life from the people of Musketaquid, whose continuing culture began 12,000 years ago, to the lives of the great authors and thinkers of the 19th century. There’s the humble desk owned by Henry Thoreau, which he brought with him to Walden Pond; the kettle used by Louisa May Alcott while serving as a Union Army nurse in the Civil War. There’s a bust by Daniel French of Ralph Waldo Emerson and a silk pelisse owned by Emerson’s wife, Lydia. In the popular April 19, 1775 gallery, pride of place belongs to the Paul Revere lantern.
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D-Day Exhibit - American Heritage Museum - Hudson, MA
American Heritage Museum

568 Main Street Hudson, MA, 01749 Phone: 978-562-9182

Museum exhibits honor the sacrifices made by veterans in the nation’s battles

The museum is now open! Wednesdays-Sundays from 10am-5pm. Advance ticketing is preferred - Please call or visit our website.

Some of America’s greatest wartime battles and sites are re-created and honored at the American Heritage Museum, where he mission is to provide visitors with an immersive experience in history. The World War I trench experience is told through a local nurse who treated wounded at a front-line field hospital; a Higgins Boat landing craft is part of the D-Day exhibit; a Sherman Jumbo tank is part of the Battle of the Bulge exhibit; a structure from the World Trade Center pays homage to the War on Terror. Vintage aircraft and autos including touring cars and roadsters are also part of the museum, which also offers (make arrangements in advance) rides aboard tanks. Check the website for special events like tank demonstrations and aviation weekends.
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Garden Path Sunset - House of the Seven Gables - Salem, MA
The House of the Seven Gables

225 Derby Street Salem, MA, 01970 Phone: 978-774-0991

Homes on the waterfront celebrate the rich literary and maritime history of Salem

The maritime and literary history of Salem, MA are celebrated in the homes that make up the property of The House of the Seven Gables. The Gables, now called the Turner-Ingersoll Mansion, is one of America’s most beloved historic homes, built in 1668 by merchant and shipowner John Turner. Its most famous guest was Nathaniel Hawthorne, who was inspired to write his popular story based on the home. Original editions of his work, as well as collections of items about the house, the author and Salem, are showcased in the museum. Other 17th-century houses on the waterfront site include the Hooper-Hathaway House and the Retire Beckett House. Children can learn about the area’s maritime history with hands-on activities at Kids Cove in the Counting House.
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Fort Sewall

Front Street, Route 114 Marblehead, MA Phone:

This historic fort offers a scenic view of Marblehead Harbor. The headland, which is a public parkland, hosts annual Revolutionary War re-enactment encampments and other public programs.
Hours: Year-round, daily, sunrise to sunset/
Information: http://essexheritage.org/sites/fort_sewall.shtml.
Minute-Man-National-Historical-Park
Minute Man National Historical Park

210 North Great Road Lincoln, MA, 01773 Phone: 508-369-6993

The starting point for the American Revolution happened here. Visitors will enjoy tours, exhibits and talks. Sites include the Minute Man statue and the North Bridge, site of the first shot fired in the Revolution.
Hours: The park itself and Hartwell Tavern are open year-round, sunrise to sunset. Visitor Centers are open early May thru the end of October, 9am - 5pm.
Mary Baker Eddy House

23 Paradise Road Swampscott, MA Phone: 781-599-1853

Home where Mary Baker Eddy formulated her ideas, which later led to the founding of the Christian Science Church.
Hours: May 1-October 31; Wednesday-Saturday, 10 a.m.-4 p.m.; Sunday 1-4 p.m.
Admission: Suggested donation of $5; children under age 12 admitted for free.
Information: http://bit.ly/MIeD8H
Rocky Hill Meetinghouse

4 Old Portsmouth Road Amesbury, MA, 01913 Phone: 978-462-2634

This property preserves an excellent example of an 18th-century meeting house, particularly its interior. Rocky Hill Meeting House was located along the only road that crossed the Powow River (via ferry) and led to the Salisbury Point and thereafter to Portsmouth. George Washington stopped here for a meet-and-greet on a journey in 1789. A Historic New England property.
Hours: Open only a few days every year; call of check website for open dates.
Admission: Free.
Information: http://bit.ly/VnNesi
Seamen's Bethel

15 Johnny Cake Hill New Bedford, MA Phone: 508-992-3295

This location was built in 1830 and is supposed to have been described in Herman Melville's Moby Dick.
Hours: Memorial Day through Columbus Day, daily, 10 a.m.-4 p.m.
Admission: Free.
Information: portsociety.org
Stonehurst, The Robert Treat Paine Estate

100 Robert Treat Paine Drive Waltham, MA, 02452 Phone: 781-314-3290

Designed by Henry Hobson Richardson and Frederick Law Olmsted, Stonehurst is the only museum devoted to these two pioneering figures in American architectural and landscape history. In addition to early modern interiors that presage those of Frank Lloyd Wright, visitors can enjoy the Olmsted-designed grounds and woodland trails.
Hours: Grounds open year-round sunrise to sunset.
Admission: General admission, $3; guided tours: adults, $7; seniors and students, $5; children, free.
Information: www.stonehurstwaltham.org.
Saugus Iron Works National Historic Site

244 Central Street Saugus, MA Phone: 617-233-0050

Founded in 1646, the site features the original blacksmith's shop and ironworker's home. The blast furnace and forge are reconstructed to be historically accurate.
Hours: April 1-October 31, daily, 9 a.m.-5 p.m.; November-March 31, closed.
Admission: Free.
Information: www.nps.gov/sair/
Coffin House (1678)

14 High Road Newburyport, MA, 01951 Phone: 978-462-2634

The Coffin family lived in this house for more than 300 years; the dwelling is a marvelous display of home life in rural New England. The building originated as a simple residence in the post-medieval style. Tristram Coffin and his family lived in three rooms, and their few possessions and furnishings are on display here.
Hours: June 1-October 15, first and third Saturdays, 11 a.m.-5 p.m.
Admission: $2.50-$5.
Information: http://bit.ly/VWrnJB
Buckman Tavern

1 Bedford Street Lexington, MA Phone: 781–862–5598

In this old lodging, built 1710, minutemen gathered early on April 19, 1775, preparing to fight an approching British expedition in Lexington. This headquarters of the minutemen also was one of Lexington’s busiest 18th-century taverns. Tours are available seasonally. Property includes Buckman Tavern, Hancock-Clarke House, and Munroe Tavern.
Hours: Open daily April through Thanksgiving weekend, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Admission: For all houses on the property, adults, $12; youth age 5-16, $8; for one house, adults, $7; children, $5.
Information: http://lhsoc.weebly.com/buckman-tavern.html
Witch House

310 1/2 Essex Street Salem, MA Phone: 508-744-8815

This historic house was the home of a judge who presided over the witchcraft trials.
Hours: Open seasonally. Call ahead or check website for hours.
Admission: Self guided house tours, Adult, $8.25; seniors, $6.25; children age 6-14, $4.25. Prices are $2 higher for guided tours.
Information: www.witchhouse.info.
Louisa May Alcott's Orchard House - Concord, MA
Orchard House - Home of Louisa May Alcott

399 Lexington Road Concord, MA, 01742 Phone: 978-369-4118

Amos Bronson Alcott purchased two houses on 12 acres on the Lexington Road in 1857. He moved joined the smaller tenant farmhouse to the rear of the larger manor house. The grounds included an apple orchard. The house is noted as the place where Bronson's daughter, Louisa May Alcott, wrote and set her classic, "Little Women," in 1868 at a shelf desk her father built especially for her.
Hours: A reservation is currently required. Please reserve your tickets on the website.
Admission: Adults $12; Seniors 62+ & College Students with ID $10, Ages 6-17 $5. Family and Military rates available.
Jeremiah Lee Mansion

161 Washington Street Marblehead, MA, 01945 Phone: 617-631-1069

Beauty and history

This 1768 Colonial Georgian mansion was built for a wealthy merchant and ship owner, and it exists now exactly as it did then. The house has a good assortment of early American furniture, including examples by Boston, Salem and Marblehead cabinet makers. Decorative arts from the 18th and 19th centuries include ceramics, silver, mirrors, clocks, and textiles. The site also features exhibits of military and maritime items, antique children’s toys and furnishings.
Hours: June through October, Tuesday-Saturday, 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Fee charged.
Information: marbleheadmuseum.org/LeeMansion.htm
Phillips House (1821)

34 Chestnut Street Salem, MA, 01970 Phone: 508-744-0440

In 1821, construction of this Federal-style mansion began on Salem's fashionable Chestnut Street as the home of Captain Nathaniel West. The housse contains a family collection that spans five generations and blossomed during Salem's Great Age of Sail. Property of Historic New England.
Hours: June-October, Tuesday-Sunday; November-May, Saturday and Sunday, 11 a.m.-5 p.m. Tours every half hour. Closed most major holidays. Visit the Carriage House for a self-guided tour, available late April through mid-November.
Admission: Adults, $5; seniors, $4; student, $2.50.
Information: http://bit.ly/l59m93
Lawrence Heritage State Park - Lawrence, MA
Lawrence Heritage State Park

1 Jackson Street Lawrence, MA, 01840 Phone: 978-794-1655

At this living history site, visitors can see the mills and boarding houses of one of the country's first planned industrial cities. Interactive exhibits in a genuine and a restored mill workers’ boarding house describe lives of generations of immigrant mill workers, along with the story of the Great Strike of 1912, a major piece of this country’s labor history. The Bread and Roses Festival on Labor Day is an annual highlight. Guided tours are offered.
Munroe Tavern

1332 Massachusetts Avenue Lexington, MA Phone: 617-674-9238

On April 19, 1775 -- the day the American Revolution began, this tavern was the headquarters for General Earl Percy. Tours are conducted. Property includes Buckman Tavern, Hancock-Clarke House, and Munroe Tavern.
Hours: Open daily, Memorial day-October 28; open weekends March 31 through Memorial Day; noon-4 p.m. with tours hourly.
Admission: For all houses on the property, adults, $12; youth age 5-16, $8; for one house, adults, $7; children, $5.
Information: http://lhsoc.weebly.com/munroe-tavern.html.
The Wayside

455 Lexington Road Concord, MA Phone: 978-369-6993

Built in the 19th century this home had some famous residents: The Alcotts, Nathaniel Hawthorne and Margaret Sidney. The house is part of the Minute Man National Historic Park.
Hours: The Wayside will remain closed through 2013 for repairs.
Information: http://1.usa.gov/sTLycW
Gore Place, Waltham MA
Gore Place

52 Gore Street Waltham, MA, 02453 Phone: 781-894-2798

Gore Place is the early 1800s estate of Massachusetts Governor Christopher Gore. The 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. The mansion is available for guided tours year-round. A calendar of events includes the April Sheepshearing Festival and the summer music series, Concerts in the Carriage House.
Hours: The mansion is shown by guided tour only, Monday, Wednesday & Friday at 10am, 11am, Noon and 1pm. Admission $16 for Adults, $11 for ages 6-16.
Gropius House (1938)

68 Baker Bridge Road Lincoln, MA, 01773 Phone: 781-259-8098

Walter Gropius, founder of the German design the Bauhaus, was among the most influential architects of the 20th century. He also taught architecture at Harvard University in Cambridge. Modest in scale, the house was a revolutionary design. It combined traditional New England wood, brick, and fieldstone with materials rarely used in building homes, including glass block, acoustical plaster and chrome. The house and its surrounding landscape were planned for maximum efficiency and simplicity of design. Property of Historic New England.
Hours: June 1 - October 15, Wednesday-Sunday; October 16 - May 31, Saturday and Sunday, 11 a.m.-5 p.m. Tours on the hour. Admission is charged.
Admission: Adults, $15; seniors, $12; students, $8.
Information: www.historicnewengland.org
John Whipple House and Garden

53 South Main Street Ipswich, MA, 01938 Phone: 978-356-2811

The house was built in the 1650s and moved to its present site in the 1920s. With more than 60 authentic Colonial flowers and herbs, the garden in front of the Whipple House represents a traditional housewife’s garden of the 17th century. The plantings are made up mostly of herbs that would be used in cooking and for medicinal purposes.
Consult Ipswich Museum for visiting opportunities.
Abbott Hall (Marblehead City Hall)

188 Washington Street Marblehead, MA Phone: 781-631-0000

This Victorian town hall is the setting for one of the most recognized paintings in America: The Spirit of '76.
Hours: Normal business hours.
Information: www.marblehead.org/
Sleepy Hollow Cemetery

Bedford Street (Route 62) near Monument Street Concord, MA Phone: 978-318-3233

A beautiful garden cemetery. Buried here are the Alcott sisters, Ralph Waldo Emerson, artist Daniel Chester French, Nathaniel Hawthorne and William David Thoreau.
Hours: Daylight hours.
Admission: Free.
Information: http://bit.ly/10vCCYH
Spencer-Peirce-Little Farm (1690)

5 Little’s Lane Newbury, MA, 01951 Phone: 978-462-2634

Spencer-Peirce-Little Farm welcomes kids and families and offers fun and educational activities for everyone. The site has a 17th-century manor house that offered a country home for wealthy Newburyport businessmen. Also on the site are nature trails and a picnic spot in maple groves. Nature walks, family events, and lectures are presented year-round. Museum shop. A National Historic Landmark.
Hours: June 1 to October 15, Thursday-Sunday, 11 a.m.-5 p.m. Grounds open year round, sunrise to sunset.
Admission: $4-$5.
Information: http://bit.ly/mOJyOW.
Cogswell's Grant (1728)

60 Spring Street Essex, MA Phone: 978-768-3632

This 18th-century farmhouse, summer home of collectors Bertram and Nina Fletcher Little, houses their celebrated collection of American folk art, which they assembled over a period of nearly 60 years. Paintings, dressers full of redware, painted furniture, scrimshaw, wood carvings, decoys, sculptures, hooked rugs and other textiles are showcased throughout. Museum shop. A National Historic Landmark. Property of Historic New England.
Hours: Open June 1-October 15, Wednesday-Sunday,11 a.m.-5 p.m.
Admission: Fee charged. Consult website or call ahead.
Information: http://bit.ly/VjTnJC.
Old Manse - Concord, MA
Old Manse

269 Monument Street Concord, MA, 01742 Phone: 978-369-3909

Overlooking the North Bridge, this National Historic Landmark was built in 1770 by the Rev. William Emerson. His grandson, Ralph Waldo Emerson, drafted his essay "Nature" while living here. Nathaniel and Sophia Hawthorne lived here from 1842 to 1845. The house contains 200 years of family furnishings.
Hours: House tours are Weds-Mon, 11am - 5pm. Last tour starts at 4pm. The grounds are open for free, daily & year-round, sunrise to sunset. Closed Tuesdays.
Admission: Adults $12, Seniors 65+ and Students $10, Children 6-14 $6, Members and Children under 6 Free.
Lowell National Historical Park

246 Market Street Lowell, MA Phone: 508-970-5000

In the 19th century, the city of Lowell was a thriving center of the industrial revolution. This park allows visitors to experience this history, complete with a restored mill, multi-media exhibits, walking tours and summertime barge and trolley rides in the canal. Park properties include the Visitor Center, 246 Market Street; the Mill Girls and Immigrants Exhibit, 40 French Street; the Boott Cotton Mills Museum, 115 John Street (admission is charged); the Moody Street Feeder Gatehouse, Merrimack and Dutton streets; and the Norther Canal Walkway, adjacent to 175 Aiken St. and/or Mammoth Road/School Street Bridge.
Hours: Hours vary by location and by season. Check museum website for hours of operation.
Admission to Boott Cotton Mills Museum: Adults, $6; youth age 6-16 and students, $3; senior discount; children age 5 and younger, free.
Codman Estate (1740)

34 Codman Road Lincoln, MA, 01773 Phone: 617-994-6690

Tis country seat was a powerful force in the lives of five generations of the Codman family. Today, the interiors are richly furnished with portraits, memorabilia, and art works collected in Europe, showing the decorative schemes of every era, including those of interior designer Ogden Codman Jr. The grounds feature a hidden turn-of-the-century Italian garden with perennial beds, statuary, and a reflecting pool. Property of Historic New England.
Hours: June 1-October 15, second and fourth Saturdays, 11 a.m.-5 p.m.
Admission: $2.50-$5.
Information: http://bit.ly/UV0hBk.
Stevens-Coolidge Place

139 Andover Street North Andover, MA, 01845 Phone: 978-682-3580

The house’s collections include Chinese porcelain and other Asian artifacts, American furniture, and American and European decorative arts. Landscape includes a perennial garden, a kitchen and cut flower garden, a rose garden, a French potager garden with a unique brick serpentine wall, and a greenhouse complex.
Hours: Gardens are open year-round, daily, 8 a/m/ to sunset. Gardens are most vibrant mid-June though September. House tours are currently not available.
Admission: Free.
Information: http://bit.ly/2WBhL.
Castle Hill on the Crane Estate - Ipswich, MA
Castle Hill on the Crane Estate

290 Argilla Road Ipswich, MA, 01938 Phone: 978-356-4351

Grand summer estate of Richard T. Crane Jr., this Stuart style mansion is now a National Historic Landmark. It is set atop the mile-long rolling lawn with a spectacular view of the Atlantic Ocean. Castle Hill hosts tours of the Great House, a July 4th celebration, concerts, and nature programs.
Hours: Grounds open year-round, Daily 9am - 5pm. Extended hours on Wednesdays in the summer. Early closing at 4pm November-January.
Admission: Non-member Adults $10, Ages 6-14 $5, Under 5 Free. Please check website for other discounts.