Beacon Hill Underground Railroad Walking Tour in Boston

Explore Beacon Hill's Black Heritage Trail on a small-group walking tour led by a professional local historian. Delve into the years 1833–1863 to learn how Bostonians challenged racial enslavement and demanded change, against the backdrop of cobblestone alleys, elite residences, and abolitionist landmarks.

Itinerary

1. Meet at 10:30 at the Soldiers & Sailors Monument on Boston Common, just behind 139 Tremont Street, Boston, MA 02108, for your 2-hour 30-minute tour.
2. Explore Boston Common, which served as Boston's communal grazing pasture in 1634.
3. Discover Acorn Street and the narrow cobblestone alleyways of historic Beacon Hill.
4. See Louisburg Square, an elegant neighborhood square associated with the elite 19th-century "Boston Brahmins."
5. Learn about the Phillips School, built as a whites-only school in 1824 and among Boston's first schools to integrate by 1855.
6. See the John J. Smith House, home of an abolitionist, state legislator, and former barber.
7. Discover the Charles Street Meeting House, built in 1807 and the site of contentious debate over racial integration.
8. See the John Coburn House, home of an African-American community activist and abolitionist.
9. Learn about the Lewis & Harriet Hayden House, an Underground Railroad safe house owned by formerly enslaved abolitionists.
10. See the Otis House, the 1796 residence of Boston mayor Harrison Gray Otis, nephew of revolutionary James Otis, Jr.
11. Discover Old West Church, built in 1806 and designed by architect Asher Benjamin.
12. See the Charles Sumner House and learn about the abolitionist and U.S. senator who was beaten unconscious in the Capitol over slavery in 1856.
13. Explore the history of the Smith Court Residences, home to African-American abolitionists including historian William Cooper Nell.
14. Learn about the Abiel Smith School, founded in 1835 as a segregated school for Boston's African-American children.
15. Discover the African Meeting House, a cultural center of Boston's African-American community. Built in 1806, it is the oldest surviving Black church building in the USA.
16. See the George Middleton House, built in 1787 and the oldest surviving house in Beacon Hill. It was home to an African-American Revolutionary War veteran.
17. See the Massachusetts State House, the state capitol dating to 1798.
18. Finish at 13:00 beside the Robert Gould Shaw and the 54th Regiment Memorial, opposite 24 Beacon Street.

What's Included

• Professional guide

Tips and gratuities are not included.

Important details

• Children ages 0–5 join free
• Requires considerable walking and climbing stairs
• This tour is not wheelchair- or stroller-accessible
• Arrive 15 minutes before departure