My first visit of 2021 was to The House of Seven Gables in Salem, MA. Salem is obviously well-known as the home of the Salem Witch trials, but I’ve learned so much since starting this project about the importance of the Salem Harbor and just how much wealth came to the state of Massachusetts because…
Category: History
The Mount: Mansion & Grounds that Inspired Edith Wharton
As part of our recent weekend away to the Berkshires in Massachusetts, my husband & I stayed at the Seven Hills Inn which was right next door to The Mount. I found the two locations separately, but was thrilled to see that they were literally next door to each other! Not only did we thoroughly…
Framingham History Top 10 Exhibit: How much do you know about your hometown?
One of the biggest takeaways from this project is just how embarrassingly little I know about the town I live in. Thanks to public schools, I know a tad more about the town I actually grew up in, but I know not a darn thing about the historic homes, churches or buildings that I drive past…
The Phillips House: Chestnut Street Mansion in Salem, Ma
For many, images of witches and Halloween are the first things to come to mind when Salem, Massachusetts is brought up and I can’t say I’m any different – with the addition of the adorable house from one of my favorite fall movies, Hocus Pocus. And while the history of the Salem Witch trials and overall…
Sarah Orne Jewett House: Female American Novelist in Southern Maine
I took advantage of a sunny Saturday in March, and visited my fifth out of thirty-seven Historic New England homes – still so many to visit! I had zero knowledge of Sarah Orne Jewett prior to my visit – I usually try to read up a little bit on the home beforhand, but ran out…
Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum: Venetian Mansion in the Heart of Boston
The Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum has been on my list of places to visit in Boston for years, but until now I had never been. I am lucky to have supportive friends & family that are interested in visiting these places with me, and this blog is a good excuse to do so. I can’t…
The Lyman Estate: 1793 Boston Suburb Country Estate
In 1793, Theodore Lyman, a wealthy ship merchant who lived in Boston’s elite Beacon Hill neighborhood, wanted to build a country estate that his family could escape to in the summer. He wanted to ensure the family could travel back and forth between the homes easily and all within one day, so he started to…
The Lyman Estate: Greenhouse & Grounds
The late fall & winter have put a damper on my quest to visit all thirty-eight properties owned by Historic New England in a one year time frame, as many of the homes close in October and don’t open again until the spring. So, I’ve been stalking their website to plan out when specific homes…
The Mark Twain House: Birthplace of Many Great American Novels
Images of a steamboat chugging down the muddy brown water of the Mississippi River is the first image that comes to mind when I hear “Mark Twain”, followed by his infamous all white suit, thick eyebrows and mustache. Hartford, Connecticut however does not come to mind. I was so very surprised to find out that…
The Pierce House: Seventeenth-Century Architecture in Boston
The Pierce House is located in Dorchester, a suburb of Boston. Until my visit to The Pierce House, I don’t think I have ever purposely gone to Dorchester, nor do I remember ever being in that town unless I inadvertently traveled thru it on my way somewhere else. So I was very curious to find…
The Historic New England Project 