longfellow house washington's headquarters national historic site

Just blocks from Harvard, this house was first the headquarters for General Washington and the Continental Army. Later, it became home to one of America's favorite poets, Longfellow. The house is furnished closely to how it looked in Longfellow's time. The park ranger was knowledgeable and enthusiastic---shared lots of great stories. It was free and probably our favorite sight on our visit to Boston. If you love his poems, you'll really love this tour!

This site was attractive to both history buffs and literature buffs. The house is still set up the way it was when Longfellow lived there Yet the park ranger doing the tour was excellent at covering what happened in the house during both Longfellow's and Washington's residencies in the house.

The house and grounds are beautiful. It was awesome to be in the study where Washington strategized to drive the British out of Boston--and in the same study where Longfellow wrote most of his poetry. In Oct., the gardens were past their prime, but still beautiful. I can only imagine how great the gardens must be in the spring and summer. The docents were knowledgeable and enthusiastic. You could tell that they love this house and its place in history.

I was fortunate enough to have a one-on-one tour with Will, the awesome tour guide. He clearly knew what he was talking about, and his wealth of knowledge made the tour such a great learning experience. The staff was really friendly and open, and you can tell they are working at jobs that they truly enjoy. The house is kept in amazing condition, and it's stacked with many of Longfellow's own books and artifacts. I highly recommend taking the time to experience this fantastic piece of American history.

What an excellent place to visit in Cambridge. The grounds were beautiful. The house was loaded with history and very accessible. Nice bookstore and clean restrooms. Our guide was knowledgeable and took the time to answer questions and often quoted Longfellow, Washington, and Adams.

The Longfellow House (Washington's Headquarters) is an historic house in a very picturesque location. The home is care for by the National Park Service and dates from the 18th century. The history of the home is rich and included Longfellow and George Washington. Tours are given of the home by the NPS and are worth the time spent (perhaps not for small children though). The children can be entertained by historic games that are played on the grounds. The home is among several others on "Tory Row", where several of the areas tories lived during the Revolutionary War period.

Don't miss going on a tour of this exquisite home. We had a park ranger give us the hour long tour. She was extremely knowledgeable, didn't hurry us & answered all our questions. The house has a long colorful history associated with it.The furnishings are all authentic.This was one of the highlights of my trip to Cambridge. If you like history & poetry - don't pass this tour up.

Our ranger was Garett and you can tell that he loved his job and the had deep admiration for the home. The house is exquistitely maintained. The architecture and furnishings are magnificant, and to think that they date back to the late 1700s. Every room was more breathtaking than the last and the staircase was marvelous. Just standing in the home and reflecting on all of the important figures in our nation's history that were once guests, and in George Washington's case, residents of the home truly gives you goosebumps. Equally beautful are the gardens and landscaping. This site is ran by the National Parks Service so it is totally free (they have a donation box). A visit to this home is an hour well spent. I highly recommend a visit. You'll be reminded of how hard it was to fight for our independence and of the brave individuals who helped shape our nation.

I recently decided to visit the Longfellow House Washington's Headquarters National Historic Site on Brattle Street near recently because I arrived in Cambridge early before meeting a friend near Harvard Square, and I was very pleased with the experience. The site was easy to reach from Harvard Square, and was informed by one of the rangers working there that tours were held on a regular basis. While waiting for the next tour, I was allowed to wander the well kept gardens on site, and a ranger allowed visitors to snack on the wild grapes growing there as well. The tour was led by a docent (I can't remember the exact title she had) who was training to be a park ranger who was quite knowledgeable and good at giving talks. She briefly discussed the house's history as a Loyalist home, then as George Washington's headquarters during the early battles of the Revolutionary War in New England, and finally during the life of Longfellow (and how his family acquired it) I was hoping for more about the war years, but the Longfellow part was much more interesting than expected as I am not a huge poetry fan. This place is a must for poetry lovers, and worth the visit for those who are not as well.

The Longfellow house, a very short walk from Harvard Square, has guided tours on the hour. The house is elegantly furnished and contains art, books and furnishings that bring visitors back to the 18th and 19th centuries. In addition to being the home of 19th century poet Henry Wadsworth Longfellow ("Song of Hiawatha", "The Children's Hour"), this was also George Washington's headquarters during the Siege of Boston. A history buff would be in heaven here. If you're not a history buff, the house is still a remarkable place to visit for its gorgeous and authentic interior and beautiful, strollable garden grounds. While this tour provides tourist with a gem of a view into "old Boston," locals like me appreciate learning more about Boston and Cambridge supported leadership, scholarship, and literature. Rob Velella led our tour; he was phenomenal, with the breadth and depth of knowledge of a true scholar, combined with an intuitive flexibility that allowed him to focus on the interests and questions of guests. My tour group held a group from the Netherlands who wanted to know more about Washington's activities; I look forward to returning and learning even more about activities in the house in Longfellow's time.

This house is interesting, because it has been preserved practically forever. Longfellow wanted to preserve it from the Washington period, and his family wanted to preserve it from when Longfellow was living here. So everything is original. There are two floors, which four rooms per floor. The tour takes about an hour.This isn't a Boston "must-see", but is worth checking out if you have more time. You can combine with the nearby JFK and Frederick Law Olmsted sites. Also, this is free.

We took the guided tour through the house and found all the history quite interesting. The original furnishings from Longfellow were quite spectacular and ornate. The tour guide certainly was familiar with the history.

An incredible place with so many historical and literary connections. Will was a very knowledgeable guide and I enjoyed every single minute of the tour. Also greatly appreciated the picture-friendly policy -- so/too many house museums where taking pix is not allowed. The house is an absolute must-see and the neighborhood on and around Brattle Street is also a very nice place to ramble and take in West Cambridge atmosphere.

My family enjoy going to national parks but not so much house tours as limited running around space and usually monotone, read from book type tour guides. We decided to come here because another family had suggested it and we were going to meet up. House tour-open Wednesdayto Sunday. Tours 45 minutes long, starts on the hour. Due to the size of our group-11 total, they were kind enough to do a second tour as 26 people had shown up at around the same time. Our tour guide Will (don't underestimate the fact he is pretty new) was AMAZING!!! As he guided us from room to room, his way of telling us the usual info was more like an entertaining storyteller. We learned so much about the house itself and Longfellow, Washington and others who lived there. The 45 min flew by and the kids did not at anytime ask "when is it over?" We truly enjoyed the house visit and wonderfully surprised at how many originals there are in the house and how well preserved they are. Thanks to our national parks services to keep this treasure and culture.

Didn't plan to visit this site and it turned out to be a real hit. Well worth the time. Our guide, Will presented his wealth of information entertainingly and educationally. One of the nicest house tours I have ever been on.