Longfellow National Historic Site is an outstanding example of a historic site representing the themes of arts and literature. For almost half a century (1837-1882) this was the home of one of the world's foremost poets, scholars and educators, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. Longfellow House is also significant in America's colonial history. General George Washington, Commander-in-Chief of the newly-formed Continental Army, headquartered and planned the Seige of Boston here between July, 1775 and April, 1776. In 1962, Longfellow House was designated a National Historic Landmark and became a unit of the National Park System a decade later.
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow enjoyed enormous popularity during his lifetime and continues to influence our cultural and historical perceptions. He and his immediate and extended family and friends played a central role in the intellectual and artistic life of nineteenth century America and are credited with shaping a distinctly American identity and culture. Longfellow House was a favorite gathering place for many prominent philosophers and artists including Ralph Waldo Emerson, Nathaniel Hawthorne, Julia Ward Howe, and Charles Sumner.
Extensive museum collections, most dating from Longfellow's occupancy, include an array of American and European decorative arts from the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries; a fine arts collection representing a broad range of important nineteenth century painters and sculptors including Gilbert Stuart and Albert Bierstadt; Longfellow's personal library and family papers dating from the seventeenth to the twentieth centuries; and an estimated 700,000 items in manuscript/archives collections that include letters from George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Ralph Waldo Emerson, Charles Dickens, and Abraham Lincoln. These collections possess exceptional research and aesthetic value and provide an exquisite index to nineteenth century American culture.
Longfellow House and its collections possess a high degree of integrity and intrinsic value unequaled in most other historic house museums. The house itself is an outstanding example of mid-Georgian architecture. Longfellow and his wife, Fanny, were cognizant of the extraordinary past of the house and meticulously preserved the character and style of the building. After Longfellow's death in 1882, his family continued to carefully preserve the property for ninety years until it was transferred to the National Park Service in 1972. As a result, virtually all of the furnishings are original to the house, most dating from Henry Longfellow's occupancy.
VISITATION:
Highest in April-October; lowest in November-March.
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LOCATION:
Cambridge, Massachusetts
ADDRESS:
Longfellow National Historic Site
105 Brattle Street
Cambridge, MA 02138
Spring, summer, and fall seasons are temperate. Winter season may be harsh with periodic snow and cold.
DIRECTIONS:
From Downtown Boston by MBTA/Subway:
Take Red Line (Alewife) train outbound. Exit at Harvard Square and follow signs out of station for Church Street. At intersection of Church and Brattle Streets, turn right onto Brattle and walk for 7-10 minutes. Longfellow NHS is on right hand side of Brattle at #105.
From I-90/Massachusetts Turnpike:
Take the Allston/Cambridge exit towards Cambridge. Cross over bridge and turn left onto Memorial Drive. Follow Memorial Drive past major intersection with John F. Kennedy Street and bear right onto Hawthorne Street. Take next left onto Mt. Auburn Street and next right onto Willard Street. Turn right onto Brattle Street at next intersection. Longfellow NHS will be on immediate left at #105.
From Points North/Rt. 128:
Take Route 2 exit towards Boston/Cambridge. Follow Fresh Pond Parkway and turn left onto Mt. Auburn Street. Turn left onto Willard Street and right onto Brattle Street. Longfellow NHS will be on immediate left at #105.
A host of parks, museums, and visitor attractions are located within a few miles of the park. Nearby areas administered by the National Park Service include:
John F. Kennedy National Historic Site, 83 Beals Street, Brookline, MA (617) 566-7937. Birthplace and boyhood home of the 35th President of the United States
Frederick Law Olmsted National Historic Site, 99 Warren Street, Brookline, MA (617) 566-1689. Home and office of the founder of American landscape architecture.
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:
For general information on Longfellow National Historic Site, call (617) 876-4491, write to the above address or send e-mail to FRLA_Longfellow_NHS@nps.gov.
For information regarding the rehabilitation project contact the park headquarters at (617)566-1689 x203.
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Last Modified: 10/22/98 URL: www.nps.gov/long/index.htm