Experiences
The park's main exhibits are at the Bunker Hill Museum. Located across the street from the Monument grounds, the exhibits are housed in the old Charlestown Branch building of the Boston Public Library.
Located in the heart of downtown on the market floor of the historic 1742 building, the Faneuil Hall Visitor Center is the main visitor center for Boston National Historical Park and Boston African American National Historic Site. Maps and information for the Freedom Trail® and Black Heritage Trail® are available here. Tours begin here seasonally.
Located in Building 5 of the Charlestown Navy Yard, this Visitor Center features exhibits and a short film about the work and workers of the Navy Yard who supported the United States Navy from 1800 to 1974. Please note that access to this building is through a security checkpoint.
Programming
Explore! Learn! Protect! Become a Junior Ranger at Boston African American National Historic Site. Activities for all ages (even adults) makes becoming a Junior Ranger an experience for the whole family.
Our Junior Ranger Activity Book introduces you to the sites along the Black Heritage Trail® here in Boston. Travel along the sites as you learn about the free Black community of the north slope of Beacon Hill and their fight for equal rights in the United States.
When you come to the park, visit the Faneuil Hall Visitor Center. A park ranger or volunteer can give you a copy of the Junior Ranger Handbook.
Or become a Junior Ranger virtually! Most activities in the Junior Ranger book can be completed by reading through the book and visiting the websites of our partners. You can also complete your Ranger guided program by coming along on a virtual tour of the Black Heritage Trail, listening to Ranger Shawn discuss the Maritime Underground Railroad, or learning about the story of Anthony Burns. Visit the Park's Junior Ranger page to get your virtual Junior Ranger badge and take the Junior Ranger oath.
Explore! Learn! Protect! Become a Junior Ranger at Boston Harbor Islands National and State Park. Opportunities for all ages (even adults) makes becoming a Junior Ranger an experience for the whole family.
Our Jr. Ranger booklets introduce you to the wildlife, geography, and history of the islands. Through activities, you can identify marine life, interview a ranger, and discover all that these islands have to offer!
You can download Jr. Ranger booklets on Spectacle Island, Georges Island, Peddocks Island, and the Camping Islands (Lovells, Grape, and Bumpkin Islands). Visit the Kids and Families page on the Boston Harbor Islands Partnership website to download Jr. Ranger Booklets available in Spanish, Chinese, Portuguese, Vietnamese, and Haitian Creole.
Explore! Learn! Protect! Become a Junior Ranger at Boston National Historical Park. Opportunities for all ages (even adults) makes becoming a Junior Ranger an experience for the whole family.
The "Liberty" Junior Ranger Activity Book introduces you to the sites along the Freedom Trail® here in Boston. Travel along the sites as you learn about the early stirrings of the American Revolution.
When you come to the park, visit the Faneuil Hall Visitor Center or the Charlestown Navy Yard Visitor Center. A park ranger or volunteer can give you a copy of the Junior Ranger Handbook.
Or visit virtually! Most activities in the Junior Ranger book can be completed by reading through the book and visiting the websites of our partners. You can also complete your Ranger guided program by coming along on a virtual tour of the Bunker Hill Monument or learn about the battle with Ranger Patrick. Visit the Park's Junior Ranger page to get your virtual Junior Ranger badge and take the Junior Ranger oath.
Dorchester Heights Remembrance Illumination
Friday, March 13, 6:00 p.m. - 8:00 p.m.
Dorchester Heights Monument and Grounds
Come together for an evening of remembrance at Dorchester Heights. This luminaria event invites visitors to pause, reflect, and connect with a turning point in the American Revolution. Two thousand luminaria will illuminate the fully restored national landmark to honor the legacy of Evacuation Day, which marks the end of the Siege of Boston.
As you walk through the grounds, consider the thousands of lives affected by the siege; from the Continental Army soldiers who fortified and held this hill for the cause liberty to the Boston residents who persevered under occupation and uncertainty.
Free and open to the public.
Interested in volunteering for this event? Please sign up online: Dorchester Heights Luminary Event Volunteer.
Join the National Parks of Boston and the Boston Public Library for a series of virtual talks.
The talk will examine the experience of the poor and ill forced out of Boston during the 1775-1776 siege. The refugees, known as donation people, bore the brunt of the American Revolutionary war in Boston, yet their treatment by the people of Massachusetts represented a spirit of welfare in the new nation.
Join the National Parks of Boston and the Boston Public Library for a series of virtual talks.
This talk will explore how the Bicentennial was celebrated in Boston. Learn how through protest, reenactments, and celebrations, Bostonians claimed the legacy of the Revolution for themselves 50 years ago.
Enjoy five days of Hands-On History fun at the Old South Meeting House! Join us from Monday, February 16 through Friday, February 20 for special winter crafts and activities, as well as coloring, our two-site scavenger hunt, 10-minute gallery talks, music, colonial dress-up, and more.
Activities take place from 10:30 AM to 2:30 PM and are included with museum admission. Revolutionary Spaces members and children ages 12 and under are FREE all day long.
Monday, February 16– The Heart of Boston
Community Quilt Craft, Quill-Making Craft, and Valentine's Craft
Tuesday, February 17 – Winter Lights
Lantern Sun Catcher Craft and Wintertime Sensory Table
Wednesday, February 18 – Tea Time & Tavern Days
Tea Painting and Tavern Games
Thursday, February 19 – Winter Wellness
Beeswax Candle Making and Winter Wellness Sensory Station
Friday, February 20 – Snow & Stories
Watercolor Snowflakes Craft, Make Your Own Bookmark, and Snowflake Sensory Station
Join the National Parks of Boston and the Boston Public Library for a series of virtual talks.
This talk will explore the Siege of Boston – its origins, impacts, and conclusion – and how the departure of the British Military from Boston would influence the pivotal year of 1776 and what became the Revolutionary War.
Join Rangers to learn more about the USS Cassin Young’s sound-powered telephones as well as other elements of the Fletcher-class destroyer.
Evacuation Day 250 at Dorchester Heights
Tuesday, March 17
Ceremony: 11 a.m. - 1:30 p.m.
Monument Open: 1:30 p.m. - 3 p.m.
Dorchester Heights Monument and Grounds
The 250th Commemoration of Evacuation Day at Dorchester Heights marks a turning point in the American story. On March 17, 1776, the departure of British soldiers from Boston signaled more than a military withdrawal—it restored hope to a people who had endured months of occupation and uncertainty, the end of the siege of Boston. From these heights, resolve replaced fear, and the idea of independence moved closer to reality.
Generations later, the local community created the Dorchester Heights Monument to honor this moment when colonists began to see themselves not as subjects, but as Americans. The monument marks the strategic victory of when General George Washington’s fortification of the Heights compelled the British evacuation of Boston.
The national rededication follows a multi-year effort to preserve the Dorchester Heights Monument so it may endure for generations to come. Through ceremonial tributes, historical reflection, and community gathering, we commemorate the courage, leadership, and perseverance that helped shape a nation. Together, we rededicate and recommit this landmark as a lasting symbol of liberty and remembrance for future generations.
This event is free to the public. Seating is first come, first served.
Evacuation Day Cruise - Revelry and Revolution
Saturday, March 7, 1:00 p.m. - 3:00 p.m.
Rain Date: Saturday, March 21
Departs from Long Wharf
Join us for a two-hour Evacuation Day Cruise through Boston Harbor to explore the story of the Siege of Boston from the water (June 1775 to March 1776). As we navigate the same channels used by the British fleet to evacuate the town, Park Rangers will provide historical narration highlighting the key events, people, landmarks, and moments that led to the evacuation.
Departing from Long Wharf, the cruise passes by the Charlestown Navy Yard with views of the Bunker Hill Monument, Fort Independence (known as Fortress William in 1776) and Dorchester Heights, as well as several harbor islands including Little Brewster, home to Boston Light. As the ship swings around Little Brewster back towards Boston, enjoy musical entertainment by the duo Tobias Tripp and Prudence Merriweather, returning to Long Wharf at 3:00 p.m.
Registration to come
Join Rangers to learn more about beeswax candle making and the importance of this trade during the colonial period of Boston.
Encampment & Monument Open
Saturday, March 14, 11:00 a.m. - 2:00 p.m.
Dorchester Heights Monument and Grounds
Step back in time at Dorchester Heights and experience an American Revolution era artillery encampment brought to life. See authentic cannons up close and learn about the British evacuation of Boston in 1776. This hands-on, family-friendly program offers a vivid look at the technology and teamwork that helped change the course of American history. Visitors will also have the opportunity to climb the newly restored Dorchester Heights Monument for sweeping views of the harbor and city skyline.
Free and open to the public.
Boston Massacre Anniversary
Thursday, March 5, 5:30 p.m.
Faneuil Hall
The morning of March 5, 1776, on the sixth anniversary of the Boston Massacre, British troops discovered that Patriot forces fortified Dorchester Heights overnight. The date had not been chosen by accident. Every anniversary of the Boston Massacre, Patriot leaders remembered the event with orations and public commemorations.
This year, for the two hundred and fifty sixth anniversary of the Boston Massacre, join us as we recreate a historic Faneuil Hall Town Meeting debating the fate of the British soldiers who fired into the crowd on King Street. Was it a plot to commit murder or self-defense? Should the people of Boston extract vengeance against the soldiers or call for law and order above all else?
Have your voice be heard in a Town Meeting debate and help decide: vengeance or justice?
Free and open to the public.
Join us for our first ever “bring-your-own-craft” afternoon. We’ll supply the space, crafting camaraderie, and entertainment in the form of information about 18th century craft practices. You bring yourself and any project you are currently working on. Our educators will also have an activity set up to mix and sew your own “headache bag” to take home if you arrive without a craft in hand!
Experiences
Event Programming
