Boston: Underground Railroad History Tour of Beacon Hill
- Explore hidden history on Beacon Hill's Black Heritage Trail
- Learn stories from America's "Second Revolution" prior to the U.S. Civil War
- Discover the gripping story of local Bostonians finding their voices and much more
- Enjoy a small group experience with a professional, local historian
Options
Standard
Inclusions
Professional guide
Exclusions
Tips and gratuities
Additional Info
Free for children aged 0-5
This tour involves a considerable amount of walking and stairs. Please make sure you are fit enough to participate
This activity is not stroller and wheelchair-accessible
What's included in Boston: Underground Railroad History Tour of Beacon Hill
(Subject to Option Inclusions)- [Departure] 10:30, meet up at Soldiers & Sailors Monument, Boston Common, Boston, MA. The tour gathers on Boston Common at the Soldiers & Sailors Monument, just behind the address 139 Tremont St., Boston, MA 02108..Please arrive at the location 15 mins before the departure time
- [Attraction/experience] Boston Common, Oldest public land in the Americas and Boston's communal grazing pasture (1634)
- [Attraction/experience] Acorn Street, Narrow cobblestone alleyways wind throughout historic Beacon Hill
- [Attraction/experience] Louisburg Square, Elegant neighborhood square from elite world of 19th-century "Boston Brahmins"
- [Attraction/experience] Phillips School, Built as a whites-only school in 1824, but among the first schools to integrate in Boston by 1855
- [Attraction/experience] John J Smith House, Home of leading abolitionist, state legislator, and former barber
- [Attraction/experience] Charles Street Meeting House, Historic meeting house (1807) and site of contentious debate over racial integration
- [Attraction/experience] John Coburn House, Home of African-American community activist and abolitionist
- [Attraction/experience] Lewis & Harriet Hayden House, Underground Railroad safe house owned by the Haydens, staunch abolitionists who were formerly enslaved
- [Attraction/experience] Otis House, 1796 residence of Harrison Gray Otis, Boston mayor and nephew of revolutionary James Otis, Jr.
- [Attraction/experience] Old West Church, Historic 1806 church designed by noted architect Asher Benjamin
- [Attraction/experience] Charles Sumner House, Home of outspoken abolitionist and U.S. Senator beaten unconscious in the Capitol over the issue of slavery in 1856.
- [Attraction/experience] Smith Court Residences, Homes of several African-American abolitionists, including historian William Cooper Nell
- [Attraction/experience] Abiel Smith School, Founded in 1835 as segregated school for Boston's African-American children
- [Attraction/experience] African Meeting House, Cultural center of Boston's African-American community and oldest extant black church building in the U.S. (1806)
- [Attraction/experience] George Middleton House, Oldest extant house in Beacon Hill (1787) was home to African-American Revolutionary War veteran
- [Attraction/experience] Massachusetts State House, Massachusetts state capitol and "Hub of the Solar System" (1798)
- [Return] 13:00, at Robert Gould Shaw and the 54th Regiment Memorial, Our tour concludes beside the Robert Gould Shaw and the 54th Regiment Memorial opposite 24 Beacon Street.
Our Favourites
Boston's role in the fight to end legalized slavery is linked by the Black Heritage Trail in historic Beacon Hill. Your 2.5-hour small group tour travels from Boston Common to visit Underground Railroad sites, elite homes of "Boston Brahmins," and abolitionist landmarks such as the African Meeting House.
Our small-group walking tour delves deeply into the years 1833 to 1863, the tumultuous years leading toward Civil War. We walk in the footsteps of 19th-century Bostonians, all of whom grappled with the "peculiar institution" of racial enslavement in the U.S. As we travel past landmarks from Civil War Boston, your guide shares the gripping story of local Bostonians finding their voices and demanding an end to injustice across their young nation during America's "Second Revolution."
- Top 1% of Things to Do Worldwide (Viator, 2024)
- Boston's Best of the Best (Boston Globe, 2024)
- Top 20 Tour in the USA (Tripadvisor, 2023, 2024)
Meet
Venues
- Boston
