Fri, Sat, & Sun
11AM & 3PM
Daily Starting June 19
Beginning at the
Old State House
Includes all-day General Admission to both the Old State House and Old South Meeting House.
All public tours allow a maximum of 20 people.
The Flame of Independence sparked in Boston
On March 5, 1770, a confrontation between British soldiers and Bostonians just outside the Old State House left five dead and many more wounded. This confrontation, soon to become known and immortalized as the “Boston Massacre,” forever altered the history of Boston and the American colonies.
What circumstances and events led to this deadly incident? How did the people of Boston respond to it at the time? And, how have later generations of Bostonians remembered and used the history of the Boston Massacre?
The Massacre and Memory Tour is a guided walking tour that explores these questions and more. Uncover how patriot and loyalist factions in town attempted to control the narrative surrounding the event through dueling reports circulated throughout the colonies and abroad. Discover how later generations of Bostonians used the Massacre to argue against slavery and teach the American public about Crispus Attucks, one of the Massacre’s first victims. You will also learn how Bostonians in the 1970s used the legacy of the Massacre in very different ways while debating how to address racial segregation in public schools.
Led by a member of the Revolutionary Spaces Visitor Experience team, the Massacre and Memory Tour covers a half-mile, runs for approximately 75 minutes, and is capped at 20 attendees. The tour will visit and explore the histories of the following locations:
- Site of the Boston Massacre
- Long Wharf
- Faneuil Hall
- Old State House
- Site of Boston’s 18th century court and jail
- Site of the Gray’s ropewalk brawl (Post Office Square)
- Old South Meeting House
- And more!
Tickets to the Massacre and Memory Tour also include all-day general admission to the Old State House and Old South Meeting House. Tours depart from the front desk located inside the Old State House museum store.
For groups of 10 or more people, please contact booking@RevolutionarySpaces.org.
More About the Boston Massacre
- Framing Mass Killings
Exploring how the words we use to describe mass killings in American history affect whether and how we remember them.Read more → - The Boston Massacre and Modern Police Violence
The most famous incident of gun violence in American history is undoubtedly the Boston Massacre. But violence perpetrated by the state didn’t end with British rule; we are all too familiar with it in the 21st century.Read more → - Political Violence: From the Boston Massacre to Today
VIDEO: Hear from poets and storytellers who will speak to their personal experiences with the reverberations of violence by the state.Read more → - Gallery Talks
Join Revolutionary Spaces staff for brief gallery talks highlighting the key stories and themes in each of our gallery spaces.Read more → - Beyond the Revolution Tour
There’s so much more to our Revolutionary story. Learn about Boston’s most historic moments from its founding to the present.Read more → - Old State House: Seat of Power, Site of the Boston Massacre
The home of colonial government in Massachusetts in the 1700s, site of the Boston Massacre, and the point of origin for vital debates about self-government that continue today.Read more → - Massacre and Memory Tour
A half-mile guided walking tour that illuminates the circumstances and events that led to the Boston Massacre.Read more → - Blues: Harpsichord, or Boston Massacre
We think of the Boston Massacre as the start of the American Revolution. In Jeffers’s hands, it becomes a moment to call out the hypocrisy of white colonists in comfortable circumstances who protested their “enslavement” by the British even as they held Blacks in bondage.Read more → - VIDEO | Grief, Remembrance, Justice
An exploration of how our memories of the legendary Boston activist Melnea Cass can help us channel grief into a call for lasting change.Read more →
What’s On at Revolutionary Spaces
- Reflecting Attucks
A virtual exhibit that examines the memory of Crispus Attucks, a man of African & Native descent who was the first to die in the Boston Massacre.Read more → - Unfinished Business Film Series
A film series exploring the legacy of protest, representation, and revolution embodied in our historical sites.Read more → - Revolution is Brewing: Immersive Roleplaying Game
A 90-minute immersive experience for students grade 8 and up developed in partnership with the award-winning education game designers Gigantic Mechanic.Read more → - Essential Questions Discussion Series
In-person and virtual discussions that confront key issues that sit at the heart of the American experiment in self-government.Read more → - Colony to Commonwealth
Your first stop in Boston! See how Massachusetts and its residents played a pivotal role in the birth of America.Read more → - Voices of Protest
Discover compelling people who made a difference at Old South Meeting House and the history of protest and free speech that continues to this day.Read more → - Council Chamber
Once an exclusive space for the most powerful men in Massachusetts, now all are invited to connect to our nation’s history in this meticulously-restored 18th-century room.Read more → - The Humble Petitioner
In Colonial America, those without the right to vote were forced to pursue other avenues to have their voices heard.Read more → - Gallery TalksJoin Revolutionary Spaces staff for brief gallery talks highlighting the key stories and themes in each of our gallery spaces.Read more →