City: Cambridge, MA

Category: Tours & Attractions

Telephone: (617) 876-4491

Address: 105 Brattle St.

Description: Set back on Brattle Street, this glorious yellow clapboard Georgian-style mansion sure has stories to tell. Henry Wadsworth Longfellow and his wife, Frances Appleton, were given the home in 1843 as a wedding gift from her father. Longfellow lived here until his death, writing his most famous verses, including Paul Revere’s Ride and The Song of Hiawatha from his study overlooking the Charles River. Longfellow wasn’t the home’s first illustrious resident. Taking command of the Continental army, George Washington made this house his headquarters during the Siege of Boston from July 1775 to March 1776. The home’s official name has only recently been changed to reflect Washington’s occupancy of the house. Longfellow, who in his 1845 poem “To a Child” wrote “Once, ah, once, within these walls, One whom memory oft recalls, The Father of his Country, dwelt,” likely would have approved. The grounds are open daily year-round, dawn to dusk. The home is open seasonally June through Oct, Wed through Sun, by guided tour only. Check website for exact times.