Who is J. Gibbs?
The Massachusetts Historical Society recently received a donation of William Gray Brooks family papers, primarily correspondence on genealogical subjects. It’s a terrific collection of letters ...
Searchable transcriptions of the Secretary of State years, September 1817 to February 1821. Read.
O'Reilly writes to Congressman and fellow poet to set the record straight about his politics, while reaffirming his personal loyalty. Read more
67 portraits include George Washington, Paul Revere, and loyalists Charles Paxton and Thomas Hutchinson. 48 Artifacts provide a tangible connection to the individuals who witnessed the era. View
Explore 175 years of the Irish in Boston from the founding of the Charitable Irish Society in 1737, through famine relief efforts, to a mass migration movement, decades of community building, and a rise in political power.
Details
Robert Gould Shaw’s sword, whereabouts unknown since his death at the Assault on Fort Wagner, is among Civil War items recently donated to the MHS. Full story.
View the sword at the MHS beginning Tuesday, July 18th 
A collection of 14 thought-provoking essays, opinion pieces by national leaders in the fields of academic and public history. Details and eBook
As the nation’s first historical society, the MHS strives to enhance the understanding of our nation’s past and its connection to the present, demonstrating that history is not just a series of events that happened to individuals long ago but is integral to the fabric of our daily lives. More about the MHS
Join us as we celebrate the 250th anniversary of John Quincy Adams’s birth! JQA was active in public affairs for more than sixty years. His letters and diary shed ...
Any city is composed of many layers, including superseded and could-have-been versions of itself: lost cities. This essay is drawn from Rotella’s current book ...
Disability emerged in the Early Republic as a meaningful bureaucratic, legal, institutional, and cultural category. It was rooted in ideas about work, social worth, and ...
View a selection of our favorite items from the MHS collection.
Browse a list of our digital collections or limit your search by topic, format, or time period.
The Adams Family Papers consist of the writings of two presidents—John Adams and John Quincy Adams—and their families. View documents and transcriptions, biographies, a timeline, and more.
The Coolidge Collection of Thomas Jefferson Manuscripts, containing almost 9,000 pages of correspondence, personal manuscript volumes, and more than 400 architectural drawings, is the largest gathering of the personal papers of our third president.
Comprised of manuscripts, photographs, books, pamphlets, broadsides, maps, graphics, newspapers, works of art, and artifacts, MHS collections are unparalleled in their importance for the study of American history.
The Massachusetts Historical Society recently received a donation of William Gray Brooks family papers, primarily correspondence on genealogical subjects. It’s a terrific collection of letters ...
When President John Quincy Adams delivered his first annual message to Congress on December 6, 1825, he noted that “the want of a naval school of instruction, corresponding with the Military ...
