Events

New members are invited to join select board members for a dinner at Prescott House to welcome them to the NSCDA-MA.

All NSCDA-MA prospective and current members are cordially invited to an afternoon tea at Prescott House. Learn more about the organization and this beautiful property through conversation with current members and a docent-led tour of the collections.   Online RSVPs close on Friday, March 17th at 9:00 am. If you need to RSVP after then,...

Bring your friends for an evening of shopping and refreshments at J. McLaughlin, Beacon Hill. 15% of all sales during this event will all go directly to the National Society of the Colonial Dames of America in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts! Pair it with dinner at one of the many restaurants in the neighborhood for...

The National Society of the Colonial Dames of America in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts cordially invite you to the 14th annual Jean Brett Lecture by Joe Cornish, Preservation Historian. This exciting lecture, titled "The Architectural Legacy of Asher Benjamin: 1773-1845," commemorates the 250th birthday of Asher Benjamin, the architect of Prescott House. Asher Benjamin (1773-1845)...

Enjoy an evening of cocktails and conversation with fellow Dames and Warriors.   Please bring a prospective candidate as your guest. A genealogist will be present to answer eligibility questions, and we will hear welcoming remarks from both of our Presidents.   May 4, 2023 6:00 - 8:00 pm William Hickling Prescott House 55 Beacon...

THE NATIONAL SOCIETY OF THE COLONIAL DAMES OF AMERICA IN THE COMMONWEALTH OF MASSACHUSETTS CORDIALLY INVITES YOU TO:   The Annual Meeting Tuesday, May 9, 2023 Ten o’clock in the morning   The Country Club 191 Clyde Street Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts   Luncheon will be served following the meeting $60 per person   Reservations must...

Join fellow Dames on a walking tour of Beacon Hill with Prescott House's tour partner, Hub Town Tours. This tour will bring you into the must-see neighborhood of Beacon Hill, home to 19th-century mansions, cobblestone alleys, and Underground Railroad stops. As you stroll past all fourteen official landmarks on the Black Heritage Trail, hear true...

The National Society of the Colonial Dames in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts invites participants in the 2023 Hidden Garden Tours of Beacon Hill to enjoy a boxed lunch at the historic William Hickling Prescott House. Lunch will be served between 11:00 am and 2:00 pm, and will include a half-sandwich (choice of chicken salad or...

Don your best hat and enjoy the opening of the Summer 2023 exhibition, a fundraiser for the preservation and exhibition of the NSCDA-MA Costume Collection! Join Dames and others for a celebratory garden party on the private patio of Prescott House. By Her Own Design explores the lives of the entrepreneurial female milliners of Boston...

Please join us at The Singing Beach Club in Manchester by the Sea on Wednesday, June 21, 2023 at 12noon for a lecture by Robert Booth, Director and Curator of the Manchester By-The-Sea Historical Society followed by lunch. Mr. Booth will speak about the History of Manchester By-The-Sea, Massachusetts. This event is hosted by Nathalie...

The Dorothy Quincy Homestead looks forward to hosting Mayor Thomas P. Koch for a special reading of the Declaration of Independence on Saturday, July 1. This event in celebration of Independence Day will also feature a fife and drum performance, tours of the Homestead, and ice cream for all visitors. The reading will take place...

Henry Cooke, master tailor of Colonial dress, will present his trade at Quincy Homestead on Saturday, July 15 from 11-2. Cooke will discuss how men's and women's clothing was made, and the intersections of tailoring with fashion, the local economy and international trade that put English woolens on the backs of Colonial farmers and tradesmen....

Cape Cod Summer Cocktail Party Thursday, July 20,  5:30- 7 pm hosted by Bonnie and Phillip Rosenthall 7 Old Harbor Ln, Chatham   Please bring a bottle of wine and hors d'oeuvre to share. An email with further details and parking information will be sent soon.   RSVP below.

Julia Breckenridge has spent her summer interning in the NSCDA-MA Costume Collection - join us for a brown bag lunch to learn about her research!   Julia is a junior at Middlebury College studying art history and theater with a focus in costume. She has been passionate about historical clothing since she was a kid and she...

Quincy Homestead will be open for tours on August 19 from 11 am – 2 pm and will feature a spinning demonstration by Zoe Lawson. The Homestead was home to four generations of the Quincy family, including Dorothy Quincy, wife of John Hancock. Zoe Lawson acquired a passion for spinning at a early age. Her...

Music is in the air at Martin House Farm September 3 from 1-4 pm. Neil Jerinimo and the Case Drama Company are coming to perform a series of mini concerts consisting of productions Case High School is currently working on. He is a former Martin House Farm docent and head of CHS Drama Department. Enjoy...

Rescheduled from June 3, 2023!   Please join us at the Dorothy Quincy Homestead for a Colonial printing demonstration. The event will be lead by Andrew Volpe of the Printing Office of Edes & Gill who will illustrate how newspapers and other documents were printed in Colonial days. Tours of the homestead will be running...

Please join us for the opening event of the 2023-2024 Dames season!   Making Millinery Work: Charting the Successes & Hardships of Entrepreneurial Women in the Nineteenth Century Given by NSCDA-MA Collections Manager Liz Weisblatt   Expanding upon research from By Her Own Design: Women Milliners of Boston, this lecture will explore millinery work as...

Fall is officially here! Celebrate with us at Martin House Farm Sunday, September 24 from 1-4 pm for Cider Demo Day provided by Spencer Morris of Sowams Cider Works from Warren RI. He will be pressing apples from his very own Long Lane Orchard and offering samples of his apple juice. While there, be sure...

The National Society of the Colonial Dames in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts cordially invites you to its Fall Membership Tea   With a Docent-Led Tour of Prescott House   Welcoming new Colonial, Courtesy, and Transfer Dames and Prospective Members

Please join fellow Dames and Warriors in the annual "Welcome Back" cocktail party! Catch up with friends over drinks and heavy hors d oeuvres.

NSCDA-MA President Lydia Kimball invites you to join an evening of shopping, sipping, and socializing at Veronica Beard on Newbury Street. The store will be open for this event from 5-7 pm.   15% of all proceeds will be donated to the conservation of the Davenport writing desk in the Prescott Study.   Please join...

The NSCDA invites you to join us for a unique opportunity to tour the Dorothy Quincy Homestead at night.... by candlelight. Experience what night was like for people in the colonial period before electric or gas lighting. Hear the Quincy story from enactors playing the roles of the Reverend Samuel Sewall, Dorothy Flynt Quincy and...

Rescheduled from 10/19. More information coming soon!

Join the NSCDA-MA for a brief introduction to the Boston Athenaeum's expanded and revitalized spaces, including an exhibition in the new gallery of documentary photography of Boston by Berenice Abbott and Irene Shwachman, an overview of the reinstalled permanent art collection, and an exclusive opportunity to view specially selected highlights from the Athenaeum's rare book...

Join fellow Dames for a lecture and luncheon at this annual members-only event. See below to reserve your spot and to learn more about Ken Torino's lecture, “Deck the Halls: Female Abolitionists and Christmas." RSVP now, tickets always sell out!     “Deck the Halls: Female Abolitionists and Christmas" What we think of as the...

In partnership with the Colonial Dames of Massachusetts, Hub Town Tours is elated to offer special holiday tours inside one of the hidden gems in Boston’s Beacon Hill. Join us for impressive Victorian-era history amidst a fun, festive holiday atmosphere! Fridays & Saturdays in December Friday: 2pm–5pm | Saturday: 11am–2pm Open House plus Guided Tours...

Prescott House is Part of the 2023 Beacon Hill Holiday House Tour on December 10th Join us for a rare opportunity to experience a select group of remarkable private residences festively decorated for the holidays The Nichols House Museum, which is part of the Alliance of House Museums along with Prescott House, has organized a holiday...

The Young Dames Committee invites all Dames, Warriors, and guests to an evening of cocktails, conversation, and holiday merriment! See below to RSVP and reserve a parking pass.

Jean Brett Lecture Series, Brooke Barbier author of King Hancock presents “Huzzah! Drinking with John Hancock during the Revolution” followed by cocktails including a feature drink and hearty appetizers, book sale & signing. ______________________________________________________________________________________ When John Hancock needed to win people over, he didn’t talk about resisting taxes or policy improvements; instead, he served alcohol....