Houses and mansions in Boston
This tour visits places the Register records as dwellings, among them single houses, rowhouses and mansions. Many are private homes and the stops are meant to be seen from the sidewalk. More of the Boston register is houses than any other kind of building, 43 listings of it in all.
The stops that carry a construction date run from 1713 to 1909. 15 stops, 1.7 miles end to end. Of the stops, 12 are National Historic Landmarks.
Distances are straight lines between the coordinates in the National Park Service Register data, so the walk on the street will be longer. Nobody has walked or checked this as a route, and a listing does not mean a place is open to visitors. Stops last changed Oct 16, 2026.
Map
Coordinates come from the National Park Service National Register spatial data, or from Wikidata where the spatial data has no point. The solid line joins the stops in walking order and is not a street route. Listings with a restricted address in the Register are never mapped and never become stops. Data refreshed October 17, 2026.
Walking order
- 1Otis, (First) Harrison Gray, HouseNHL141 Cambridge St.Building · built 1795 · listed 1970start
- 2Charles Sumner HouseNHL20 Hancock St.Building · listed 19730.1 mi from stop 1
- 3William C. Nell HouseNHL3 Smith Ct.Building · listed 19760.2 mi from stop 2
- 4Nathan Appleton ResidenceNHL39-40 Beacon St.Building · built 1821 · listed 1977503 ft from stop 3
- 5David Sears HouseNHL42 Beacon St.Building · built 1816 · listed 1970131 ft from stop 4
- 6Samuel Gridley Howe and Julia Ward HouseNHL13 Chestnut St.Building · listed 1974330 ft from stop 5
- 7Otis, (Second) Harrison Gray, House85 Mt. Vernon St.Building · built 1802 · listed 1973235 ft from stop 6
- 8Headquarters HouseNHL55 Beacon St.Building · built 1808 · listed 19660.1 mi from stop 7
- 9Francis Parkman HouseNHL50 Chestnut St.Building · built 1824 · listed 1966285 ft from stop 8
- 10Chester Harding HouseNHL16 Beacon St.Building · built 1808 · listed 19660.3 mi from stop 9
- 11R. H. Stearns House140 Tremont St.Building · built 1909 · listed 19800.2 mi from stop 10
- 12Parker House56--62 School St. and 60--68 Tremont St.Building438 ft from stop 11
- 13Old South Meeting HouseNHLMilk and Washington Sts.Building · listed 19660.1 mi from stop 12
- 14Old State HouseNHLWashington and State Sts.Building · built 1713 · listed 19660.1 mi from stop 13
- 15Union Oyster HouseNHL41-43 Union StreetBuilding · built 1826 · listed 20030.2 mi from stop 14
1.7 straight-line miles over 14 legs.
Taking it along
- Download the route as GPXFor a handheld GPS or a phone app
- Open all 15 stops in Google MapsSet the mode to walking once it opens
- Open the first stop in Apple MapsThe Apple Maps web link carries one destination, so this is stop 1 only
Other walks in Boston
- Federal houses in Boston13 stops · 1.7 milesFederal architecture is a restrained classical manner with flat wall surfaces, fanlights over the door and delicate ornament around openings and mantels. The Boston examples on this route went up between 1795 and 1816.
- Churches and temples in Boston10 stops · 2.0 milesThe route links churches built between 1749 and 1877. Congregations still use many of them and access depends on the hours they keep.
Local history books for Boston
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Guidebooks to historic places and travel in Massachusetts
Titles come from Open Library's catalog, matched by subject heading or by title.