Historic Sites in Boston, MA
There are 17 historic sites in and around Boston. Each card below shows what it costs, when it opens and which ages it suits.
Sorted by distance from the middle of Boston, nearest first. Those are straight-line miles, so every drive is longer than the number on the card.
A historic house museum in Boston that explores British colonial rule and early American history. Families can take guided tours of the mansion and grounds, which…
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Medford Historical Society & Museum promotes an inclusive understanding of Medford’s history and endeavor to build a shared sense of the city’s history and rich…
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The Cyrus Dallin Art Museum seeks to promote new insights into our shared history by exploring the life, work, and values of a celebrated sculptor. The Museum is…
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About the Museum The Jackson Homestead and Museum displays rotating and permanent exhibits about the history of Newton, Massachusetts, and the Underground…
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Gore Place is a 50-acre country estate in the city, a grand mansion steeped in history, a working farm, and an invaluable community asset. Our mission is to…
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Explore a rare surviving example of late nineteenth-century architecture and design. Designed by renowned Boston architect W. Ralph Emerson and built in 1878, the…
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The Lexington Historical Society operates three house museums in Lexington, Massachusetts, each of which were involved with in the Battle of Lexington, the first…
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The Turner-Ingersoll Mansion, known as the House of the Seven Gables, was built in 1668 for Salem sea captain John Turner. In 1910, philanthropist and…
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The mission of Historic Beverly is to share Beverly history with everyone. In addition to a collection of nearly a million objects and documents related to Beverly…
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North Andover Historical Society is a museum in North Andover, MA that preserves and shares the town's history through collections, exhibits, and programming…
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The Westford Museum is located near the historic town Common at 2 Boston Road in Westford, Massachusetts and exists to engage the public and foster its connection…
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The Downtown Campus at 27 Pleasant Street is currently undergoing renovations, but the Museum has transitioned operations to the CAM Green and is open year-round…
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You Never Know What Duxbury’s History is Going to Do Next… The Duxbury Rural and Historical Society is a non-profit organization seeking to foster a better…
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Fruitlands Museum, founded in 1914 by Clara Endicott Sears, takes its name from an experimental utopian community led by Bronson Alcott and Charles Lane which took…
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The Nashua Historical Society maintains two museums devoted to local history. Families can visit the Florence H. Speare Memorial Museum and the Abbot-Spalding…
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Where a card says no price or no hours listed, the venue does not publish it. We would rather leave the gap than fill it with a guess. Prices come from each venue's own website, and we publish one only when the figure appears on the page we took it from. Tell us if we are missing one you know.
Which one, by age
Two children three years apart do not have to be a compromise. The age line on every card shows what that venue serves.
Trustees | Fruitlands
Best here for six to nine, 30 miles out, listed ages 6–16 and admission $9.
The Shirley-Eustis House Museum
Best here for ten and up, 3 miles out, listed ages 6–16 and admission $5.
Free historic sites in Boston
One place on this page gets you in free. That makes a short trip easy to justify on a day when nobody is sure how long they will last.
Boxborough Museum
Free to get in and 26 miles out.
By town
Most of these are not in Boston proper, and the town is usually what decides whether a place is worth the trip. 1 more towns are represented in the list above.
Historic Sites in Westford
2 of them: Westford Historical Society and Musem and Westford Museum of the Westford Historical Society, Inc, the closest 25 miles from the middle of Boston and 1 with a published admission price.
Planning a visit
These run from 3 to 35 miles out from the middle of Boston. Hours move with the season and with school holidays, so check the listing before you set off. If you run one of the places on this page, you can claim it for free and keep its hours and prices right.
Before you go
Grip socks. Almost every venue requires them for children and several require them for adults. Most sell them at the door for a few dollars. Bringing your own is cheaper and means you are not buying a fourth pair.
Check whether adults pay. It runs from free to full price and it changes the cost of a visit by a lot when there are two of you.
Weekday mornings are the toddler rush. If you want space, aim for after two on a school day. Weekend mornings are the busiest hours of the week almost everywhere.
Ninety minutes is the realistic ceiling for most children under five. There is rarely a gradual wind down. Leaving with time left on the clock is not wasted money, it is a better afternoon.
Call ahead in school holidays. Several of these venues run camps and private events that close open play with no notice on the website.
Looking somewhere else in the metro? Browse every kid-friendly place in Boston.
Other things to do in Boston
Historic Sites in nearby cities
Common questions about historic sites in Boston
How many historic sites are there in Boston?
We list 17 historic sites within 36 miles of Boston, MA. Every one is a published listing with an address we checked.
Which historic sites in Boston publish their prices?
8 of the 17 here do, and each price was checked word for word against the venue's own page before we published it. The rest do not publish one, so their card says no price listed rather than carrying a guess.
Are any historic sites in Boston free?
Yes. One place gets you in free: Boxborough Museum.
How did Mini Navigators choose these historic sites?
We list every one we have within 36 miles of the center of Boston. Each is a published place with an address we geocoded and checked, and the business can claim its listing to keep the hours and prices current.
Do adults have to pay?
It varies more than you would expect, from free to full price, and it changes the cost of a visit by a lot when there are two of you. The price on each card is what it costs to get a child in. Where a venue publishes an adult price it is on the listing, and where it does not we have left it out rather than assume.
Do I need to book ahead?
Usually not for open play, but several venues cap capacity at weekends and during school holidays, and some close open play entirely for private events. Where a venue has its own booking page, the listing links straight to it.
What should I bring?
Grip socks, a water bottle, a change of clothes for anyone under four, and a plan for leaving before the meltdown rather than after it.
What else is there to do with kids in Boston?
Boston has 11 categories of kid-friendly places on Mini Navigators, from playgrounds and museums to splash pads and zoos. The Boston hub lists all of them.
Listings last checked August 21, 2026.