Category Archives: In-Person

Bird Walk at Minute Man National Historical Park

Join the Friends of Minute Man National Park for a spring bird walk! May brings many migrating birds to Minute Man National Historical Park, including thrushes, vireos, and bird-watchers’ favorite... the warblers in their jewel-colored plumage.

Some species, like Baltimore Orioles and Indigo Buntings, will stay to nest and others will continue their journey to nest in cooler climes. Join us for a one-mile stroll through the park with Kathy Dia to see and hear some of these beautiful visitors as they court and fuel up for their journey north.

Kathy Stark Dia leads bird programs for Mass Audubon, the Brookline Bird Club, and Minute Man National Historical Park. She is a volunteer monitor for Northeast Temperate Network’s breeding bird survey at the park.

Date: Thursday, May 13th, 2021

Time: 8:00-9:30 AM

Location: Location will be sent to registered participants.

Weather Policy: Rain date of May 20, 2021. Registered participants will receive an email on May 12th if we decide to reschedule due to rain.

Parking Instructions: Parking information will be sent to registered participants.

Space is limited to 12

Reservations Required

Hosted By

Tour Original 1857 One-room Schoolhouse with Outhouses

Come tour the original 1857 Schoolhouse and outhouse in its original location. Schoolhouse #2 since 1949 has been preserved by three generations of the Robinson family who bought it at auction from the Town.

It may have been the last public one-room schoolhouse in the state when the Town sold it. It stands on 1/3 of an acre and has twin outhouses, side by side behind it. From the beginning, Schoolhouse #2 has been kept open to the public and to local elementary schools. Come see the original blackboards, many original desks and chairs, the Teacher’s desk, and many other early school artifacts. See the old pot-bellied stove that was the sole source of heat in the winter. Wear the Dunce’s hat, and learn about the Rules for Teachers in those days. It’s quite an education!

Date: Sunday, May 16th, 2021

Time: 2:00 - 4:00 pm

Location: Schoolhouse #2, 339 Picnic Street, Boxborough, MA

Driving Directions: Rt. 495, take Exit 94 (Old Exit 39), Taylor Road-Littleton-Boxborough. Go Right, uphill for about ¾ mile. Take first Right onto Hill Road. In about 1 mile, Picnic Street intersects at a small triangle. Go Left and see Schoolhouse immediately on Left.

Parking Instructions: Angle park on Common across from Schoolhouse.

Special Instructions: Due to Covid-19, visitors will be ushered in, per rules and regulations. Docent will guide you and respond to questions.

Family-Friendly

Restrooms available on site

Hosted By

and the Robinson Family, owners of Schoolhouse #2

Brewster and the Birds: Walking Tour

A young William Brewster and his childhood friend Daniel Chester French explored the rivers and forests of Concord and observed birds - an ornithological interest which later manifested in both of their careers.

An early conservationist, Brewster knew that protecting birds meant protecting their habitats, and in 1890, he purchased land along the Concord River to protect old trees from developers. Brewster’s Concord home, October Farm, became the center of his noted ornithological work. Brewster and his assistant, constant companion, and the first African American landscape photographer Robert Gilbert carved trails through the woods around October Farm, explored the river, and created extensive documentation of Concord’s ornithology and ecology. Follow Brewster, French, and Gilbert’s trails through Concord’s human and ecologic history with a Concord Museum guide. 1-mile walk, mostly flat terrain, rain or shine.

Date: Saturday, May 1st, 2021

Time: 8:30 am - 10:00 am

Location: October Farm, Ball's Hill Road, Concord, MA

Weather Policy: The tour will run rain or shine unless otherwise communicated by the Museum.

Parking Instructions: Access with parking for five vehicles is at the end of Ball’s Hill Road off Monument Street. Please park only in the designated area and not on Ball’s Hill Road.

Space is limited to 12.

Family-Friendly

Reservations Required

Hosted By

Celebrate May Basket Day at The Wayside Inn!

This May Day, families are invited to The Wayside Inn to learn about the 19th and 20th century May basket tradition, listen to a read-aloud about Henry David Thoreau, and take a short, guided walk around our garden and Josephine’s Pond. Supplies to make one take-home May basket and a nature journal will be provided to children participants.

Date: Saturday, May 1, 2021

Time: 10:00 – 10:45 a.m. OR 11:00 – 11:45 a.m.    

Location: The Wayside Inn, 72 Wayside Inn Rd, Sudbury, MA

Weather Policy: In the event of rain, the walking/touring portions of the program will be cancelled. Take-home activities will continue in a covered area at our site.

Parking: General parking is available in one of two lots across from Longfellow's Wayside Inn.

Special Instructions: For children ages 5 and up with accompanying caregivers. Please note that this is not a drop-off program.

Space is limited to 15 children per session. Accompanying caregivers are limited to 4 caregivers per registration

Family-Friendly, Restrooms available on site

Reservations required

Mrs. Coolidge gets a basket of flowers and a kiss (1927).

Source: Library of Congress, National Photo Company Collection

Hosted By