the gibson house museum
a time capsule of domestic life from the mid-nineteenth to early-twentieth centuries
The Gibson House Museum is a private, nonprofit house museum in Boston's historic Back Bay neighborhood. The home served as residence to three generations of Gibson family members and their household staff between 1859 and 1954. The Museum’s four floors of period rooms, including the original kitchen, are a time capsule of domestic life in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Visitors experience the house through guided tours that interpret class and culture through the stories and objects of the people who lived and worked there.
Welcome Back!
Take a house tour to learn about the Back Bay neighborhood, home life in late-nineteenth- and early- twentieth-century Boston, and the experiences of the Gibson family and their staff. We offer both “At Home with the Gibsons” and “Upstairs, Downstairs: Domestic Service at the Gibson House” on a regular basis
Tours Friday-Sunday at 1:00, 2:00, & 3:00 p.m.
Thursday Evening tours at 3:00, 4:00, & 5:00 p.m.
Proof of vaccination is required for all visitors when entering the museum in accordance with the City of Boston regulations. Visit their website for detailed requirements.
Take a house tour to learn about the Back Bay neighborhood, home life in late-nineteenth- and early- twentieth-century Boston, and the experiences of the Gibson family and their staff. We offer both “At Home with the Gibsons” and “Upstairs, Downstairs: Domestic Service at the Gibson House” on a regular basis
Tours Friday-Sunday at 1:00, 2:00, & 3:00 p.m.
Thursday Evening tours at 3:00, 4:00, & 5:00 p.m.
Proof of vaccination is required for all visitors when entering the museum in accordance with the City of Boston regulations. Visit their website for detailed requirements.
Detail of map by B. May y Ca, (1853). Mapa de la Isla de Cuba y plano de la Habana, 1853. Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library, Yale University, New Haven, CT. https://collections.library.yale.edu/catalog/15821933
New Virtual Event
Cuban Slavery and Northern Wealth: The Gibsons’ Time in Cuba
Tuesday, February 15, 7:00 p.m. via Zoom
In the 1830s, John Gardiner Gibson, the patriarch of the Gibson family, worked as a sugar trader for a major Cuban export company. At the time, Cuba was on the way to becoming the world’s leading sugar producer, depending heavily on enslaved labor to support the industry. In this important program, historian Stephen Chambers, author of No God but Gain: The Untold Story of Cuban Slavery, and Ph.D. candidate Maddie Webster, who recently uncovered new information about the Gibsons’ link with Cuba, will explore the economic relationship between Boston and Cuba in the early nineteenth century. Their conversation will focus on the experiences of the Gibsons and other Bostonians working in and traveling to Cuba. If you have wondered about Boston’s role in the triangular trade, or the links between the system of slavery and the wealth of Northern elites, this program is for you.
Tickets: $12 for General Public | $10 for Members (Become a Member)
Take the corresponding Specialty Tour: The Gibsons in a Global World, at the museum on February 6 or 19!
Cuban Slavery and Northern Wealth: The Gibsons’ Time in Cuba
Tuesday, February 15, 7:00 p.m. via Zoom
In the 1830s, John Gardiner Gibson, the patriarch of the Gibson family, worked as a sugar trader for a major Cuban export company. At the time, Cuba was on the way to becoming the world’s leading sugar producer, depending heavily on enslaved labor to support the industry. In this important program, historian Stephen Chambers, author of No God but Gain: The Untold Story of Cuban Slavery, and Ph.D. candidate Maddie Webster, who recently uncovered new information about the Gibsons’ link with Cuba, will explore the economic relationship between Boston and Cuba in the early nineteenth century. Their conversation will focus on the experiences of the Gibsons and other Bostonians working in and traveling to Cuba. If you have wondered about Boston’s role in the triangular trade, or the links between the system of slavery and the wealth of Northern elites, this program is for you.
Tickets: $12 for General Public | $10 for Members (Become a Member)
Take the corresponding Specialty Tour: The Gibsons in a Global World, at the museum on February 6 or 19!
Speciality Tour: The Gibsons in a Global World
Sunday, February 6, 11:00 a.m. or Saturday, February 19, 11:00 a.m. at the Gibson House Museum
When you enter 137 Beacon Street, you are immediately transported to nineteenth-century Boston. Yet a closer look at the furnishings and artwork reveals that the Gibson family, and other Bostonians of their class and time period, participated in a culture influenced by many places. This tour, led by Gibson House Museum curator Meghan Gelardi Holmes, will explore the connections between Boston and other parts of the world, including Cuba, France, Venice, Ireland, China, and Japan, through a close examination of the museum’s collections. We will consider the nineteenth-century context of these objects, as well as how we might view them differently through our contemporary transnational lens.
*Tour lasts 45 minutes and will go up and down three flights of stairs. Minimum 5 participants; maximum 10 participants.
Tickets $15 for General Admission and $10 for Members (Become a Member)
Attend the corresponding Virtual Event: Cuban Slavery and Northern Wealth: The Gibsons' Time in Cuba, February 15!
Charlie Gibson’s Queer Boston
Explore the Gibson House and the gay subculture of early-twentieth-century Boston through Charlie Gibson's eyes. The story of the Museum's founder is one of legacy and family history, of the fading grandeur of Victorian-era Boston, and of Boston's LGBTQ history. Read more about Charlie here.
This tour is offered on the first Thursday of every month at 6:00 p.m.
February 3rd, March 3rd
$15 General Admission | $10 Members (Join Here!) | $12 Students and Seniors
Register here!
Explore the Gibson House and the gay subculture of early-twentieth-century Boston through Charlie Gibson's eyes. The story of the Museum's founder is one of legacy and family history, of the fading grandeur of Victorian-era Boston, and of Boston's LGBTQ history. Read more about Charlie here.
This tour is offered on the first Thursday of every month at 6:00 p.m.
February 3rd, March 3rd
$15 General Admission | $10 Members (Join Here!) | $12 Students and Seniors
Register here!
Mary Ethel and Freeman at 40 Steps, Nahant, Gibson House Museum (1992.470.81)
Read our newest blog post:
In Sickness and In Health: Dr. Freeman Allen, Mary Ethel Gibson, and Mental Health and Addiction
thegibsonhousemuseum.blogspot.com
In Sickness and In Health: Dr. Freeman Allen, Mary Ethel Gibson, and Mental Health and Addiction
thegibsonhousemuseum.blogspot.com
Shop our Museum Store on Redbubble
Browse and buy tote bags, notebooks, pillows, and more featuring images from the Gibson House.
Browse and buy tote bags, notebooks, pillows, and more featuring images from the Gibson House.
Host your micro-wedding at the Gibson House
The Gibson House is a perfect location for small wedding ceremonies. Contact info@thegibsonhouse.org for more information.
The Gibson House is a perfect location for small wedding ceremonies. Contact info@thegibsonhouse.org for more information.
Support the Gibson Society, Inc. with AmazonSmile
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Follow this link to go to smile.amazon.com.
Gibson House Museum • 137 Beacon Street • Boston, MA 02116
617.267.6338 • info@thegibsonhouse.org
617.267.6338 • info@thegibsonhouse.org