16 Best Sights in Massachusetts, USA

Although it once was, Castle Island is no longer, well, an island. Capping the South Boston neighborhood, Castle Island is accessible by car and by foot from Day Boulevard. Its centerpiece is Fort Independence, built in 1801 (although there have been battlements on-site since 1644), open for free tours on summer weekend afternoons. Castle Island is a popular spot to walk dogs, jog, or cycle, whether just around the island itself or along the water-set Pleasure Bay Loop. There's also a nice playground for kids. Stop by Castle Island institution Sullivan's for a hot dog, fried seafood dinner, or ice cream. Views of the harbor and its outlying islands are expansive.

Faneuil Hall (pronounced Fan-yoo'uhl or Fan-yuhl) was erected in 1742, the gift of wealthy merchant Peter Faneuil, who wanted the hall to serve as both a place for town meetings and a public market. It burned in 1761 and was immediately reconstructed according to the original plan of its designer, the Scottish portrait painter John Smibert (who lies in the Granary Burying Ground). In 1763 the political leader James Otis helped inaugurate the era that culminated in American independence when he dedicated the rebuilt hall to the cause of liberty.

In 1772, Samuel Adams stood here and first suggested that Massachusetts and the other colonies organize a Committee of Correspondence to maintain semiclandestine lines of communication in the face of hardening British repression. In later years the hall again lived up to Otis's dedication when the abolitionists Wendell Phillips and Charles Sumner pleaded for support from its podium. The tradition continues to this day: in presidential-election years the hall is the site of debates between contenders in the Massachusetts primary.

Faneuil Hall was substantially enlarged and remodeled in 1805 according to a Greek Revival design of the noted architect Charles Bulfinch; this is the building you see today. Its purposes remain the same: the balconied Great Hall is available to citizens' groups on presentation of a request signed by a required number of responsible parties; it also plays host to regular concerts.

Inside Faneuil Hall are dozens of paintings of famous Americans, including the mural Webster's Reply to Hayne and Gilbert Stuart's portrait of Washington at Dorchester Heights. Park rangers give informational talks about the history and importance of Faneuil Hall every half hour. There are interactive displays about Boston sights, and National Park Service rangers at the visitor center on the first floor can provide maps and other information.

On the building's top floors are the headquarters and museum and library of the Ancient and Honorable Artillery Company of Massachusetts, which is free to visit (but a donation is welcome). Founded in 1638, it's the oldest militia in the Western Hemisphere, and the third-oldest in the world, after the Swiss Guard and the Honourable Artillery Company of London. The museum is open Wednesday through Friday from 11 am to 3 pm.

When such men as Andrew Jackson and Daniel Webster debated the future of the Republic here, the fragrances of bacon and snuff—sold by merchants in Quincy Market across the road—greeted their noses. Today the aroma of coffee wafts through the hall from a snack bar. The shops at ground level sell New England bric-a-brac. This is Freedom Trail stop 11.

This association maintains an assortment of venerable properties in town. A $25 pass gets you into all of the association's sites, including the glorious Whaling Museum and Hadwen House: historic properties including the Oldest House, Old Mill, Old Gaol, Greater Light are free for all visitors. Reserve in advance for the 60-minute Historic Downtown walking tour ( $25), which departs Monday through Saturday, late May–early September.

At one end of the Paul Revere Mall is a church famous not only for being the oldest standing church building in Boston (built in 1723) but also for housing the two lanterns that glimmered from its steeple on the night of April 18, 1775, and celebrating the 250th anniversary of this famed lighting. This is Christ (or Old North) Church, where Paul Revere and the young sexton Robert Newman managed that night to signal the departure by water of the British regulars to Lexington and Concord. Newman, carrying the lanterns, ascended the steeple, while Revere began his clandestine trip by boat across the Charles.

Although William Price designed the structure after studying Christopher Wren's London churches, Old North—which still has an active Episcopal congregation (including descendants of the Reveres)—is an impressive building in its own right. Inside, note the gallery and the graceful arrangement of pews; the bust of George Washington, pronounced by the Marquis de Lafayette to be the truest likeness of the general he ever saw; the brass chandeliers, made in Amsterdam in 1700 and installed here in 1724; and the clock, the oldest still running in an American public building. 

Try to visit when changes are rung on the bells, after the 11 am Sunday service; they bear the inscription, "We are the first ring of bells cast for the British Empire in North America." The steeple itself is not the original—the tower was destroyed in a hurricane in 1804 and was replaced in 1954. 

On the Sunday closest to April 18, descendants of the patriots reenact the raising of the lanterns in the church belfry during a special ticketed evening service, which also includes readings of Longfellow’s renowned poem, “Paul Revere’s Ride,” and Revere’s first-person account of that fateful night. Visitors are welcome to drop in for a self-guided tour (with an immersive audio tour for an extra fee) or guided tours with additional explorations of the bell-ringing chamber, sanctuary gallery (where Black and Indigenous congregants once sat), and recently restored crypt. On the North Church campus, you’ll also find newly redesigned outdoor green spaces, including two large courtyards, two formal gardens, and a war memorial to soldiers fallen in Iraq and Afghanistan, the first of its kind built in the City of Boston.  This is Freedom Trail stop 13.

While waiting for the arrival of the British on the morning of April 19, 1775, the minutemen gathered at this 1690 tavern. A half-hour self-guided tour takes in the tavern's seven rooms, which have been restored to the way they looked in the 1770s. Among the items on display is an old front door with a hole made by a British musket ball.

Tiny, but well worth the 15 minutes you'll spend here if you're already in the neighborhood, this operating theater is open to the public because of its historical significance. In fact, it served as Mass General Hospital's first operating room, in use from 1821 to 1867, and it was here where the world witnessed the first public demonstration of surgical anesthesia, in 1846. Today, the room contains two 19th-century operating chairs complete with red velvet to mask patients' blood, early surgical tools, a teaching skeleton, and, interestingly, an authentic Egyptian mummy.

More than a route of historic sites, the Freedom Trail is a 2½-mile walk into history, bringing to life the events that exploded on the world around the time of the American Revolution. It's 16 stops, which include the Massachusetts State House, Faneuil Hall, and Bunker Hill Monument (the trail's final stop), allow you to reach out and touch the very wellsprings of U.S. civilization—keep an eye on the sidewalk for the painted red-stripe or redbrick line that marks the trail. The Boston Visitor Information Center (technically the trail's first stop) has maps and a ton of information about the city and the trail.  For a detailed tour, check out the Freedom Trail Walking Tour in the Travel Smart chapter.

On April 18, 1775, Paul Revere came here to warn patriots John Hancock and Sam Adams (who were staying at the house while attending the Provincial Congress in nearby Concord) of the advance of British troops. Hancock and Adams, on whose heads the British king had put a price, fled to avoid capture. The house, a parsonage built in 1698, is a 10-minute walk from Lexington Common. Inside is the Treasures of the Revolution exhibit, and outside, a Colonial herb garden. Guided tours take place on the hour.

Both somber and dramatic, King's Chapel looms large. In 1688, the first chapel on this site was erected as an Anglican place of worship, but that no longer stands. Today's interior remains essentially as it looked in 1754 and is a masterpiece of proportion; unfortunately, the building is not open to the public. Its acoustics make the use of a microphone unnecessary for Sunday sermons. Among other fun facts, the pulpit, built in 1717, is the oldest pulpit in continuous use on the same site in the United States, and a special pew to the right of the main entrance was once reserved for condemned prisoners about to be hanged on the Common. The chapel's bell is Paul Revere's largest and, in his own judgment, his sweetest sounding.  This is Freedom Trail stop 5.

Long Wharf starts east of Atlantic Avenue, and it serves as the launching point for many of the city's water tours, sails, and whale-watch cruises. At its far end, it's also a departure point for Boston Duck Tours, Old Town Trolley, and CityView Trolley Tours. Halfway down the wharf, you can have dinner at Chart House seafood restaurant, but note that the historic building it houses was once John Hancock's counting house. The New England Aquarium sits next door, at Central Wharf.

On the Atlantic side of the Cape is the site of the first transatlantic wireless station erected on the U.S. mainland. It was from here on January 18, 1903, that Italian radio and wireless-telegraphy pioneer Guglielmo Marconi sent the first American wireless message to Europe: "most cordial greetings and good wishes" from President Theodore Roosevelt to King Edward VII of England. There's a lookout deck that offers a vantage point of both the Atlantic and Cape Cod Bay. Off the parking lot, a 1½-mile trail and boardwalk lead through the Atlantic White Cedar Swamp, one of the most beautiful trails on the seashore; free maps and guides are available at the trailhead. Marconi Beach, south of the Marconi Station on Marconi Beach Road, is one of the National Seashore's lovely ocean beaches.

This seaworthy replica of the 1620 Mayflower was built in England through research and a bit of guesswork, then sailed across the Atlantic in 1957. As you explore the interior and exterior of the ship, which was extensively refurbished in time for Plymouth's 400th anniversary in 2020, sailors in modern dress answer your questions about both the reproduction and the original ship, while costumed guides provide a 17th-century perspective. This attraction is part of the Plimoth Patuxet Museums system. Plymouth Rock is also nearby.

As April 19, 1775, dragged on, British forces met fierce resistance in Concord. Dazed and demoralized after the battle at Concord's Old North Bridge, the British backtracked and regrouped at this 1695 tavern 1 mile east of Lexington Common, while the Munroe family hid in nearby woods. The troops then retreated through what is now the town of Arlington. After a bloody battle there, they returned to Boston.

If this Congregationalist church at the corner of Tremont and Park streets could sing, you'd hear Samuel Smith's iconic hymn "America," which was first sung here in 1831. But that's only one fun fact about this historic site. It was designed by Peter Banner and erected in 1810. The Handel and Haydn Society was founded here in 1815. William Lloyd Garrison began his long public campaign for the abolition of slavery here in 1829. Just outside the church is Brimstone Corner, and whether the name refers to the fervent thunder of the church's preachers, the gunpowder that was once stored in the church's crypt, or the burning sulfur that preachers once scattered on the pavement to attract potential churchgoers, we'll never know—historians simply can't agree. This Freedom Trail site is not open for tours, only services. This is Freedom Trail stop 3.

This landmark rock, just a few dozen yards from the Mayflower II, is popularly believed to have been the Pilgrims' stepping-stone when they left the ship. Given the stone's unimpressive appearance—it's little more than a boulder—and dubious authenticity (as explained on a nearby plaque), the grand canopy overhead seems a trifle ostentatious. Still, more than a million people a year come to visit this world-famous symbol of courage and faith. The views of Plymouth Harbor alone are worth the visit.

Near Derby Wharf, this 9¼-acre site focuses on Salem's heritage as a major seaport with a thriving overseas trade. It includes the 1762 home of Elias Derby, America's first millionaire; the 1819 Custom House, made famous in Nathaniel Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter; and a replica of the Friendship, a 171-foot, three-masted 1797 merchant vessel. There's also an active lighthouse dating from 1871, as well as the nation's last surviving 18th-century wharves. The 1770 Pedrick Store House was moved from nearby Marblehead and reassembled right on Derby Wharf; the two-story structure once played a vital role in the lucrative merchant seaside trade. The grounds are open 24/7, but buildings open on a seasonal schedule.