Events Calendar — 282 events
Introduction to the Birds at Cogswell's Grant, May 21
Tuesday, May 21, 5:00 - 7:00 p.m.
Cogswell's Grant, 60 Spring Street, Essex, Mass.
$10 Historic New England and Mass Audubon members, $14 nonmembers
With 165 acres of grasslands, salt marshes, and woodlands, Cogswell’s Grant is a treasure trove for birders. Join Bill Gette, sanctuary director at Mass Audubon’s Joppa Flats Education Center, for an introduction to the wide variety of species and habitats on the farm. During a relaxing walk, explore the many aids to field identification, identify birds by their vocalizations, and discuss breeding behavior. Please bring binoculars. Coffee and refreshments will be served, and the house will be open for a brief tour.
Registration is required. Please call 978-768-3632 for more information. Purchase tickets now
Discovering African American Stories at Historic New England
Wednesday, May 22, 6:00 - 7:30 p.m.
Otis House, 141 Cambridge Street, Boston, Mass.
Free to Historic New England members, $5 nonmembers
The lives of African Americans have long been hidden in histories of the northern United States. However, the labor and contributions of African Americans, enslaved and free, are a part of many Historic New England sites. Join museum historian Jennifer Pustz as she explores the African American experience across New England from the eighteenth to the early twentieth centuries through the lens of our historic properties. Light refreshments to follow the lecture.
Co-sponsored with the Boston African American National Historic Site.
Registration is recommended. Please call 617-994-5920 for more information. Purchase tickets now
History Hike, May 22
Wednesday, May 22, 1:00 – 3:00 p.m.
Arnold House, 487 Great Road, Lincoln, R.I.
Free to Historic New England members, $5 Lincoln residents, $10 nonmembers
Join Historic New England for a walk through the beautiful, rolling trails of Lincoln, Rhode Island, and learn about the history-filled landscape from the seventeenth century to today. Tour begins at Arnold House and travel through Gateway Park to Chase Farm Park and back again. History Hike tour includes admission to Arnold House.
To register in advance Lincoln residents must call. Registration is recommended. Please call 401-728-9696 for more information. Purchase tickets now
Modern Architecture Walking Tour of Cambridge
Saturday, May 25, 9:00 a.m. - 3:00 p.m.
Cambridge, Mass.
$45 Historic New England and Cambridge Historical Society members, $55 nonmembers
Tour twenty distinctive Modern structures on the Harvard and MIT main campuses as well as "Architects Corner" on Brattle Street in Cambridge. Explore mid-century Modernism from 1947 to 1976 in the work of Walter Gropius, Eero Saarinen, Alvar Aalto, I.M. Pei, Josep Lluis Sert, and others. Includes a one-hour intermission to allow for participants to break for lunch. Tour begins at the Harvard Graduate School of Design.
Space is limited. Registration is required. Please call 781-259-8098 for more information. Purchase tickets now
Beacon Hill Walking Tour, May 25
Saturday, May 25, 11:00 a.m. - 1:00 p.m.
Otis House, 141 Cambridge Street, Boston, Mass.
$6 Historic New England members, $12 nonmembers
Go beyond the brick sidewalks and charming gardens and learn about Beacon Hill’s development in the Federal era. The fortunes, ambitions, and struggles of Beacon Hill’s early residents, both wealthy and working class, shaped the streets, architecture, and character of the hill. The program starts with a tour of the Otis House, the earliest intact mansion in the neighborhood, and continues on Beacon Hill’s historic streets. Private group tours available by appointment.
Registration is recommended. Please call 617-994-5920 for more information. Purchase tickets now
Artists' Plein Air Day
Saturday, May 25, 9:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.
Cogswell’s Grant, 60 Spring Street, Essex, Mass.
Free
Artists and painters are invited to Cogswell's Grant for a day of plein air painting. Join fellow artists from all over the North Shore to paint beautiful vistas including the Essex River and the Great Marsh, farm fields and landscapes, and our eighteenth-century historic house and barns. Free beverages and snacks will be available during the day. Artists can tour the museum, which features one of the country's most celebrated collections of American folk art.
Please call 978-768-3632 for more information.
Coastal Growers' Market
Saturdays, May 18 through October 26, 9:00 a.m. - noon
Casey Farm, 2325 Boston Neck Road, Saunderstown, R.I.
Free
The Coastal Growers’ Market held at Historic New England’s Casey Farm is a wonderful farmers’ market experience. Rhode Islanders and visitors share a great opportunity to support local farmers and to purchase a variety of specialty products including organic produce, pasture-fed meats, locally raised shellfish, baked goods, sweeteners, flowers, and more. Bring the whole family for a unique shopping experience and some of the finest produce in Rhode Island. Named "one of the five best farmers’ markets in New England" by Yankee Magazine in 2011.
Please call 401-295-1030 for more information.
Weeding Wednesdays at the Lyman Estate
Every Wednesday, April 3 to October 2, 9:00 a.m. - noon
Lyman Estate, 185 Lyman Street, Waltham, Mass.
Call for volunteers!
Join Historic New England's landscape staff to assist in the overall care of the gardens at the historic Lyman Estate. Work side by side with the landscape staff and other volunteers to care for and learn about the gardens and landscape. Seasonally appropriate tasks include weeding the gardens, dividing plants, planting new material, removing invasives, and other cleanup activities. Meet each week at the peach wall garden in front of the center garden structure at 9:00 a.m.
No advance registration is required. Please call 617-994-6320 for more information.
Thorny Thursdays at the Codman Estate
Every Thursday, April 4 to October 3, 9:00 a.m. - noon
Codman Estate, 34 Codman Road, Lincoln, Mass.
Call for volunteers!
Join Historic New England's landscape staff to assist in the overall care of the gardens at the historic Codman Estate. Work side by side with staff and volunteers to care for and learn about the gardens and landscape. Work includes seasonally appropriate tasks such as weeding the gardens, dividing plants, planting new material, removing invasives, and other cleanup activities. Meet each week in the Italian Garden at 9:00 a.m.
No advance registration is required. Please call 617-994-6320 for more information.
Walk with Washington, May 31
Friday, May 31, 11:00 a.m. - 12:30 p.m. and 2:00 - 3:30 p.m.
Governor John Langdon House, 143 Pleasant Street, Portsmouth, N.H.
$6 Historic New England members, $12 nonmembers
Explore the streets of Portsmouth in the footsteps of George Washington when he visited the city in 1789. See where he took tea with his secretary’s mother, Mrs. Lear; attended services at St. John’s Church; and was feted at a reception at Governor John Langdon House. The tour returns to Langdon House, which Washington thought "may be esteemed the first in Portsmouth," where you can use your ticket for a tour of the house at half price.
Registration is required. Please call 603-436-3205 for more information. Purchase tickets now
