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Friday 11am - 4pm Saturday 11am - 4pm Sunday 11am - 4pm

Historic New England's Otis House

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Historic New England's Otis House

Otis House is open for the season with guided tours available Friday, Saturday and Sunday. Visit HistoricNewEngland.org for more information.

Otis House is the last surviving mansion in Bowdoin Square in Boston's West End neighborhood. Charles Bulfinch designed the house for Harrison Gray Otis, a lawyer who was instrumental in developing nearby Beacon Hill, served in Congress, and was a mayor of Boston. In 1796, Harrison Gray Otis and his wife, Sally, lived and entertained lavishly in this elegantly furnished home. Visitors learn about

the Otises, their young family, domestic staff, and the people who lived here after them. The house portrays both high-style living in the Federal era and the cycles of change in a dynamic urban neighborhood.

*The museum is currently closed for the season and will reopen again in the spring.*

Historic New England Members Tour Free

09/07/2026

Have you walked our new tour on Beacon's Hill medical history? Discover how residents navigated medical care, local alternative treatment options, and trailblazing physicians.

Join us next Sunday, September 13th at 10:00 a.m. or Saturday, October 10.

09/04/2026

Dining room or exhibition space? This room has been both!

Before the period rooms we see today, Otis House served as office, storage, and exhibition space as the headquarters of Historic New England.

09/01/2026

Although these prints didn't belong to the Otis family, they were collected by their friends (and family in-laws) the Lymans. They were owned by Theodore Lyman Jr., possibly purchased on his European travels after graduating from Harvard in 1810. Among numerous family connections, Theodore Jr. and Harrison Gray Otis both served as Mayor of Boston.

This series of prints after Raphael's Vatican papal apartment frescos currently hang in the parlor. This one depicts the biblical scene of Heliodorus being driven out after attempting to steal treasure in the Temple in Jerusalem. Seated high at the far left is Raphael's patron, Julius II, carried by friend and engraver Marcantonio Raimondi and Raphael himself.

The Expulsion of Heliodorus from the Temple. Volpato, Giovanni (1740-1803) after Raphael (1483-1520). Italy, 1768-1799.

08/22/2026

Historic New England purchased Otis House in 1916. Around that year, architectural photographer Frank Cousins (1851-1925) documented the house. Here is the front entrance then, before it was restored to its Federal period design, and now.

Archival photograph from the Boston Public Library.

08/10/2026

“What I can recall… is, my going up the short outer steps to the front of the Harrison Grey Otis, the walk across the broad spread of spruce to the front door, the ascent of the broad stairs that lead to the second floor, turning to the right and the entrance to my aunt’s spacious room."

During the boardinghouse period in the mid-19th century, George and Williamine (Poole) Punchard occupied the drawing room suite. Their niece visited them and later wrote this description.

This photograph is from much later (1916) but depicts the entryway before alterations brought it back to its Otis era design.

*Learn more at our specialty tour*
A Tale of Two Eras
Sunday, August 23, 10:00 a.m.

Photo courtesy of Boston Public Library.

08/05/2026

Just to the right of Otis House, Lynde Street was a through street in the West End. That is, until the 1950s "urban renewal" project that forever altered the neighborhood. Now it is the dead-end street you walk up to visit us for a tour.

07/17/2026

There are only 7 weekends left to enjoy the current Otis House experience. Grab your tickets!

www.HistoricNewEngland.org/Property/Otis-House

This summer is your last opportunity to experience the interiors of Otis House before Historic New England embarks on an exciting multi-year restoration and visitor enhancement project. Be sure to visit before August 30, when the house temporarily closes for this transformative work.

07/15/2026

This wallpaper helped us bring the boarding house period to life! It was used to help recreate Francis Merrick's room that visitors tour on the 2nd floor today. But, it was found in a 3rd floor bedroom where most of the other single, male boarders resided at the time.

Learn more about this fascinating period of the house on Sunday, July 19th at 10:00 a.m on our tour: A Tale of Two Eras.

07/06/2026

Last chance to take our 100 Years in 4 Objects tour!
Join us this Saturday, July 11 at 10:30 a.m.

my.HistoricNewEngland.org/27269/100-years-4-july

07/02/2026

Otis House will be closed on Saturday, July 4.

We look forward to welcoming you for tours on Friday and Sunday this holiday weekend. Plan your visit and experience the last season to tour Otis House before its restoration and visitor enhancement project begins!

Plan your visit! → https://www.historicnewengland.org/property/otis-house/

Address

141 Cambridge Street
Boston, MA
02114

Opening Hours

Friday	11am - 4pm
Saturday	11am - 4pm
Sunday	11am - 4pm

Telephone

+16179945920

Website

http://www.historicnewengland.org/

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