Massachusetts
Recent Articles
The Concord School of Philosophy
Beside Orchard House stands a small wooden building that preserves another chapter of the Alcott family’s history. Known as Hillside Chapel, it was built for the Concord School of Philosophy, a gathering devoted to the discussion of ideas. While Orchard House is closely associated with Louisa May Alcott’s writing, the school reflects the educational ambitions […]
The Breeches Buoy
A life ring with a pair of canvas trousers attached may seem an unlikely means of escaping a shipwreck. Yet the breeches buoy offered a way to bring people safely ashore when a stranded vessel was within reach of land and the surf made launching a rescue boat too dangerous. The exhibit in Chatham preserves […]
Historic Deerfield
Our visit to Historic Deerfield brought us into a village where preserved houses and household objects help tell the history of New England. Walking among these buildings offered an opportunity to consider how people lived, what they valued, and how their homes changed over time. The tour also introduced us to the conflicts that shaped […]
Fenway Park
We were not a baseball family, but that did not keep us from enjoying an occasional game at Fenway Park. It certainly did not stop us from taking a tour of this historic ballpark. Living in the Boston area, we knew Fenway as a familiar name and a gathering place for generations of fans. Touring […]
The Lyman and Merrie Wood Museum
Springfield has a remarkable number of stories to tell about things made here. Motorcycles, automobiles, dictionaries, games, and precision machinery all came from a city whose workers and inventors shaped life far beyond western Massachusetts. When we visited the Lyman and Merrie Wood Museum of Springfield History, we found a place built to bring those […]
Marconi-RCA Wireless Museum
Long before messages could be sent instantly by telephone, satellite or the internet, Chatham served as an important link between ships at sea and the rest of the world. The Marconi-RCA Wireless Museum preserves the story of the people and technology that made those connections possible. Italian inventor Guglielmo Marconi helped transform communication through his […]
Chatham Railroad Museum
For much of the nineteenth century, Chatham’s location at the southeastern end of Cape Cod made travel and commerce difficult. Residents depended upon coastal vessels, horse-drawn transportation and long overland journeys to reach other communities. Although railroads began serving other parts of Cape Cod earlier in the century, Chatham waited decades for a direct connection. […]
Norman Rockwell Museum
I love returning to the Norman Rockwell Museum in Stockbridge. The museum holds the world’s largest collection of Rockwell’s work, along with changing exhibitions that examine American illustration and the artists who used pictures to tell stories. Because the special exhibitions change, each visit offers something different, even when the familiar paintings remain the reason […]
Atwood Museum
Joseph Sears Atwood was born in Eastham in 1720 and first went to sea at the age of ten. Like many young boys beginning a maritime career, he started as a cook aboard fishing vessels sailing to Nova Scotia and the Grand Banks. He gradually advanced through the ranks, becoming a seaman, mate, chief mate […]
John F. Kennedy Museum
I grew up in a family that greatly admired the Kennedys. My mother kept a bust of President John F. Kennedy on our mantel, and there was little we did not know about the family and its many branches. Over the years, I visited numerous places associated with the Kennedys, so traveling to Hyannis and […]
The Museum of Russian Icons
Erin and I headed out together to explore the Museum of Russian Icons in Clinton. This is one of those fascinating discoveries found in the middle of Massachusetts: a museum of international importance tucked inside a restored brick building in a former New England mill town. The museum was founded by Massachusetts industrialist Gordon B. […]
The Man Behind Dr. Seuss
Upstairs in The Amazing World of Dr. Seuss Museum, the colorful characters and interactive exhibits give way to something more personal. Here, rooms from Theodor Geisel’s California home and studio have been recreated using his actual furniture, artwork, books, drawing materials, and personal possessions. These are not the original rooms moved intact from California but […]
