MA250

The Road to Revolution: Massachusetts and the Independence Movement
2026-05-31 10:00 - 17:00, 2026-05-30 10:00 - 17:00, 2026-05-29 10:00 - 17:00, 2026-05-28 10:00 - 17:00, 2026-05-27 10:00 - 17:00, 2026-05-26 10:00 - 17:00, 2026-05-25 10:00 - 17:00, 2026-05-24 10:00 - 17:00 (America/New_York) and 2 more dates | Old State House, 206 Washington St, Boston, MA, 02109, United States
Explore major Massachusetts events in the first year of the American Revolution at the Old State House, where protest turned into action and the momentum for independence accelerated. Created through a partnership between Revolutionary Spaces and the Massachusetts Historical Society, The Road to Revolution: Massachusetts and the Independence Movement invites visitors to step into 1775 and 1776—a moment defined by uncertainty, debate, and decisions that would reshape the world.

AudaTours Stoneham Audio Tour: Timeless Tales of Historic Pride and Heritage
2026-05-30 12:00 - 14:00, 2026-05-29 12:00 - 14:00, 2026-05-28 12:00 - 14:00, 2026-05-27 12:00 - 14:00, 2026-05-26 12:00 - 14:00, 2026-05-25 12:00 - 14:00, 2026-05-24 12:00 - 14:00, 2026-05-23 12:00 - 14:00 and 1 more date | Nobility Hill Historic District, Stoneham, Massachusetts, 02180, United States
In Stoneham, the shadows of colonial fires and twentieth-century neon flicker side by side. Few realize how many secrets linger behind these iconic facades.
This self-guided audio tour leads straight through the city’s untold stories. Encounter corners and chapters that even locals walk past, and let carefully crafted tales reveal what hides beneath the ordinary.
Why did a quiet night at the Bernard Cogan House erupt into controversy that changed a neighborhood? Who vanished beneath the glowing beacon of Stoneham’s eerily beautiful gas station? What explains the perfectly preserved pencil marks under the Warren Sweetser House staircase?
Move between centuries as you cross storied main streets and hidden lanes. Each step peels back another layer of rebellion, ambition, and intrigue, letting Stoneham rise up around you as never before.
Tap play and see how deep Stoneham’s shadows can stretch. The secrets are waiting.

Calling All Kids, Patriots And Sailors: Revolutionary Summer Saturdays
2026-05-30 10:00 - 13:00, 2026-05-23 10:00 - 13:00 | Custom House Maritime Museum, Water Street 25, Newburyport, Massachusetts, 01950, United States
FREE outdoor and indoor activities for kids all summer long
Building on the success of the Road to Revolution partnership programs, each Saturday from now until the end of September, the museum will host children’s outdoor and indoor programming. The hugely successful Discovery Center experience will extend out onto the lawn with 15 new activity stations. Rolling River Printmakers of New England will partner this week with an activity station to make prints. A rideable dolphin and elephant, courtesy of local sculptor Jeff Briggs, along with a bouncy castle, pirate boat with water guns, plus water, sand and craft tables await.
This free program runs from 10 am to 1 pm thanks to generous sponsorship from the Institution for Savings and the Local Cultural Council.
Looking ahead, in September, the museum is pleased to partner with Imagine Studios on a fascinating project to burn and carve out of a pine log and shape into a 20 foot long mishoon (dugout canoe) using traditional methods. Led by Imagine Studios, Darius Coombs of the Mashpee Wampanoag and Jonathan Petty of the Aquinnah Wampanoag will carve over successive weekends. Sponsored by the New England Foundation for the Arts, and with in-kind support from New England Development, the goal is to launch on Indigenous Peoples Day on Oct. 11.
We hope you can join us.–James

1776: Declaring Independence
2026-05-30 09:30 - 16:00, 2026-05-29 09:30 - 16:00, 2026-05-28 09:30 - 16:00, 2026-05-27 09:30 - 16:00, 2026-05-26 09:30 - 16:00, 2026-05-22 09:30 - 16:00 | Massachusetts Historical Society, Boylston Street 1154, Boston, Massachusetts, 02215, United States
Featuring manuscripts, artifacts, and rarely seen treasures, this exhibition captures a monumental moment in American history.
In 1776, people grappled with ideas of liberty, loyalty, and the role of government in society. Private letters, intimate diaries, and newspaper accounts reveal how the Declaration of Independence grew from draft to founding document. 1776: Declaring Independence spotlights handwritten copies of the Declaration by John Adams and Thomas Jefferson as well as multiple early printings, including a rare Dunlap broadside. On and off the page, we explore how it echoed across the commonwealth and around the world, reshaping the colonists’ chances of launching a new nation. How did the Declaration change Americans’ quest for liberty, then and now? We invite visitors to trace the Declaration’s complex legacy as a national beacon for celebration and protest.
Check here for closures and more admission information: https://www.masshist.org/visit/hours-and-admission

Meet John Adams – A Lively and Revolutionary Conversation with America’s Second President
2026-05-28 18:00 - 20:00 | Captain Charles Leonard House, 663 Main Street, Agawam, 01001, United States
Annual Meeting of the Agawam Historical Association
featured presentation: Meet John Adams: A Lively and Revolutionary Conversation with America’s Second President
Following the election of officers & directors and a short business meeting, George Baker will transport audience members to the Revolutionary era with his engaging and entertaining portrayal of President John Adams. Wearing historically accurate clothing and performing songs from the period, Baker captures the Massachusetts native’s sharp wit, principled leadership, and deep commitment to the American experiment.
Baker has performed his one-man show of President Adams throughout the country, at venues such as the New York Historical Society, Harry S. Truman Presidential Library, Dwight D. Eisenhower Presidential Library, and George H. W. Bush Presidential Library, and was featured on National Public Radio’s weekend program, Studio 360.
A lawyer by profession, Baker brings clarity and credibility to Adams’s ideas through a blend of history, music, and storytelling, making Adams feel immediate and human, rather than distant and monumental. The program concludes with time for thoughtful audience questions and conversation.
This event is free and open to the public.
This program is supported in part by a grant from the Agawam Cultural Council, a local agency which is supported by the Mass Cultural Council, a state agency.

Daily Life in Menotomy: Aftermath of April 19, 1775
2026-05-26 19:30 - 20:30 | Arlington Historical Society, Jason Street 7, Arlington, MA, 02476, United States
Often have been told in detail the bloody events that took place in Menotomy (Arlington) on the first day of the American Revolution. But how did Menotomy, then a rural precinct of Cambridge, recover from the shocking episodes and carry on while war was still raging mere miles away in Boston?
Join the Arlington Historical Society as Arlington-based Historian, Richard Duffy, explores the culture and daily life of Menotomy in the wake of the Battle of Menotomy, revealing how this rural community endured, adapted, and moved forward while war continued just beyond its doorstep.

David Walker’s Declaration of Independence: Building Community and Fighting Racism in Antebellum African American Boston
2026-05-21 18:00 - 19:00 | Boston Public Library: Copley Square Branch, Boylston Street 700, Boston, Massachusetts, 02116, United States
Join the Boston Public Library’s Special Collections for a talk from scholar Dr. Leon Jackson entitled David Walker’s Declaration of Independence: Building Community and Fighting Racism in Antebellum African American Boston as part of the on-going commemorations of the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence. When it first appeared in Boston 1829, David Walker’s Appeal struck terror into the hearts of white Americans North and South. Using a wide variety previously unexamined manuscripts, this talk reexamines the composition, publication, and circulation of the Appeal, focusing on the Boston community that often supported but sometimes thwarted his work.
