
April 23, 2026
Fairmont Copley Plaza
138 St. James Ave. | Boston
6:00 PM Cocktail Reception
7:00 PM Dinner Program
Featuring
Ken Burns
Award-winning filmmaker
The Making History Gala is an unforgettable and festive evening of lively conversation, storytelling, dining, and more. The Gala celebrates the MHS’s commitment to collecting and sharing more than four centuries of American stories. Proceeds support the Society’s educational initiatives, including National History Day, the History Source, and civics education.
Ken Burns

Ken Burns has been making documentary films for almost fifty years. Since the Academy Award nominated Brooklyn Bridge in 1981, Ken has gone on to direct and produce some of the most acclaimed historical documentaries ever made, including The Civil War; Baseball; Jazz; The War; The National Parks: America’s Best Idea; Prohibition; The Roosevelts: An Intimate History; The Vietnam War; Country Music; The U.S. and the Holocaust; The American Buffalo; and, most recently, Leonardo da Vinci.
Future film projects include The American Revolution, Emancipation to Exodus, and LBJ & the Great Society, among others.
Ken’s films have been honored with dozens of major awards, including seventeen Emmy Awards, two Grammy Awards and two Oscar nominations. In September of 2008, at the News & Documentary Emmy Awards, Ken was honored by the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences with a Lifetime Achievement Award. In November of 2022, Ken was inducted into the Television Academy Hall of Fame.
Photo by Evan Barlow.
Sponsors
Premier
Rob and Jennifer Waldron
Signature
Benjamin C. and Jennifer B. Adams
Elizabeth Chang and Joseph Wallace
Michael and Laurie Ewald
G. Marshall and Nina Moriarty
Tom and Lynn Paine
Richard N. and Allene Pierson
Laura Selene Rockefeller
Paul and Mary Beth Sandman
Andy Sewer and Puiking Hui
Christopher Toomey
Benefactor
Susan and James F. Hunnewell, Jr.
Amanda Clark MacMullan and Russell MacMullan
Sharlyn and Robert Musslewhite
Lia G. and William J. Poorvu
Jim and Mimi Segel
Patron
Elizabeth and Oliver Ames, Jr.
Katherine Babson, Jr.
Gavin P. Jones
John O'Leary and Sarah Britton
Russell and Zibby Pyle
Robert G. Ripley
Matthew Scholder
Ann Spruill
Gala Committee
Co-Chairs
Rob and Jennifer Waldron
Committee Members
Oliver Ames
Levin H. Campbell, Jr.
Patricia and Stephen Chubb
Karilyn Crockett
Lawrence DiCara
Gregory Groover Sr.
Susan Hunnewell
Candace Jans
Gavin P. Jones
David Kirk
Sharlyn Musslewhite
Laura Selene Rockefeller
James Segel
Andrew Serwer
Christopher Toomey
Christian and Sophie Westra