Join us this October at Minute Man National Historical Park for a spooktacularly good time! We have events for all ages, including Halloween at the Wayside and Hartwell Halloween. The Friends of Minute Man are proud to support these and other events at the park.

Saturday, October 21, 2023

The Wayside Home of Authors

6:00 p.m. - 9:00 pm

Free

From dark and twisted tales to romantic fortune-telling, modern Halloween owes much to the late Victorian era. Join us for an evening of spooky history at The Wayside: Home of Authors. Learn about the superstitions of Hallowe’en in the late 19th century or enjoy the haunting words of selected Nathaniel Hawthorn short stories. This not-so-spooky event is suitable for all ages.

For more information and a schedule of events, click on the button below.

Saturday, October 28

Hartwell Tavern

5:30 pm - 9:00 pm

Free

Do you believe in ghosts? Do you like history? Jack o’ Lanterns? Then come visit us at Hartwell Tavern for this family-friendly event for all ages! Walk down a path lighted by dozens of jack-o-lanterns. Talk with rangers and volunteers about ghostly folklore and how the people of Colonial New England protected themselves from evil spirits and witches. Join the Husking Frolic with music and cider in the Hartwell Barn. The Friends of Minute Man will offer individually wrapped candy so don your costumes and come trick-or-treating at an 18th-century Tavern!

For more information about Hartwell Halloween and a full schedule of events, click on the button below.

Thank you for becoming a member or renewing your membership during our annual membership drive this fall, we appreciate your support. Your membership matters and supports events, education, and preservation at the park.

It's never too late to become a member. We are delighted to accept new members all year long. You’ll receive a membership card that entitles you to 15% of at Minute Man National Historical Park stores.

Saturday, Nov. 4, 2023

9:00 am - 11:30 am or 1:00 pm - 3:30 pm

Meet at Hartwell Tavern Parking Lot

Free, registration required

Park Day is an annual event where participants help to preserve one of our nation’s most iconic and historic battlefields. Volunteers may take part in removing invasive plants, seeding native plants, caring for orchards, caring for stone walls, maintaining trails, removing trash from the landscape, and more while learning about the park’s history and ecology from cultural and natural resource team leaders.

Volunteers can register for a morning slot from 9:00 am to 11:30 am or an afternoon slot from 1:00 pm to 3:30 pm or both! The meeting location for both sessions is the Hartwell Tavern Parking Lot at 112 North Great Road, Lincoln, MA. Thank you in advance for pre-registering; we look forward to seeing you!

For more information or to register, please click on the button below.

Written by Nina Olsen, Buttrick Gardens Horticultural Intern, Summer 2023.

Each area of the Buttrick Gardens has its own unique beauty. The West Slope Garden lies to the west across the path that leads to North Bridge. While slightly removed from the other sections of the gardens, the West Slope is worth a visit. It has a unique curved path, exposed boulders, a hidden bench, and a collection of pollinator plantings not present in the other gardens. As a summer horticultural intern at the Buttrick Gardens, funded by the Friends of Minute Man National Park, I discovered that the West Slope Garden is an important part of the garden’s history. . . Read more to learn about the West Slope and greenhouse!

Image: West Slope Garden, National Geographic Magazine, May 1959. The greenhouse roof is visible in the background.

To read more and view historical photographs of the greenhouse, click on the button below.

Freedom's Way Revolutionary Stories Podcast: Jason Russell House

Did you know the Jason Russell House in Menotomy (now Arlington, Massachusetts) is where the bloodiest fighting occurred on the first day of the American Revolution? Learn how recent high-tech forensics and ongoing research have shed light on what happened here on April 19th, 1775. Click here to listen.

Paul Revere House Lecture Series: "Old England in New England: Contradictions in the History of Boston's Old North Church"

This lecture explores the Church of England's interventions in the Puritan North End with Old North's founding in 1723. Prof. Jaimie D. Crumley will also discuss the previously less well-known role of people of color in the Old North Church community during its early days. Click here to watch online.

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