On the South Shore, Scituate is a seaside town with a lovely village center next to a natural harbor.
You can find many of Scituate’s best restaurants and shops around the harbor, which is also a base for anglers and the setting for all sorts of community events during the warmer months…
The Scituate Historical Society tends to list centuries-old homes and structures around town, and a good time to visit is Scituate Heritage Day in August when All are open to the public.
The city also maintains five public beaches and lies to the north of a large, ecologically rich wetland at the mouth of the North and South rivers.
1. Kathleen Laidlaw Center (Schoolhouse)
The headquarters of the Scituate Historical Society is located in this beautiful school, completed in 1893 as the Scituate High School.
At the time, the building was adjacent to the Old Town Hall but was moved to its present location at 43 Cudworth Rd in 1919, shortly after a new school building was constructed.
The school was acquired from the city in the 1980s and now houses exhibition spaces, a library, a map archive, a genealogical research center, offices, and conference halls.
The structure was extensively restored in 2020, using photographs of the building in the society’s archives. You can visit on Tuesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday.
2. Maritime and Irish Mossing Museum
You can learn about Scituate’s centuries-old connection to the sea at this museum housed in one of the many beautiful old houses assigned to the Scituate Historical Society.
This is Captain Benjamin James’ first period, built circa 1700. Exhibits cover topics as diverse as salvage, historic shipbuilding trade on the North River, fishing, and the industry. The Irish-ruled sponge industry boomed in Scituate from the mid-19th century until the second half of the 20th century.
There are fascinating stories of ships stranded or wrecked on Scituate’s shores, as well as the raging Portland Gale (1898), a brutal storm that forever changed the city’s coastline. The Irish Moss and Maritime Museum is open on Sunday afternoons.
3. Bates Lane Conservation Area
In the far west of Scituate, the town has nearly 350 acres of woodland, on farmland some 200 years ago.
The place was invaded by a pine and hardwood forest around the mid-19th century, but the only stone walls that demarcate the farmland remain.
The number of glacial rocks, deposited about 10,000 years ago and visible along the orange Maxwell Trail and the blue Carl Pipes Trail, is also fascinating.
The most magnificent geological specimens can be seen on the first road, which takes you to Teepee Rock, a 430 million-year-old Avalon granite outcrop.
The property also features 5 certified clear blue pools that are home to an abundance of wildlife including salamanders and wood frogs.
4. Peggotty Beach
Half a mile long, this public beach is a short but picturesque walk from Scituate Harbour, crossing the vast expanse of Kent Street Marshes along the way.
Plunging quite steeply into the sea, Peggotty Beach is covered with coarse sand, compacted on a relatively airtight bay.
In winter, the beach is subject to many coastal storms, and the two abandoned stilts in the landfill illustrate how much the coastline changes.
In season, visit Scituate’s Treasurer’s Office for a non-resident beach parking pass, while a visitor pass can be obtained from the harbor master’s office on Tuesdays and Thursdays at this beach.
5. Old Stockbridge Grist Mill
Where First Herring Brook drains Old Oaken Bucket Pond is one of the oldest mills in the country.
The Old Stockbridge Grist Mill dates from about 1650 and was erected by John Stockbridge, next to a sawmill whose stream was dammed in the late 1630s. The Stockbridge family operated the pair of mills for over 160 years until the end of the 1630s. when the Greenbush family took over in the 1830s.
They stayed there for a century, before handing over the pond to the city and donating the flour mill to the Scituate Historical Society.
An amazing number of original parts have survived, including many grinding devices. The factory is located next to a lovely tree-lined pocket park, with picnic tables overlooking the creek and you can tour the interior during the regular social opening days.
6. Scituate Heritage Days
Each year, the city celebrates its great maritime heritage with three days of events on the first weekend of August.
Based in the port, but with something going on around town, Scituate Heritage Days is a mix of live music, crafts, great food, local wine and beer, and an appreciation for history. history, family fun, etc.
It’s a great opportunity to see many of the historic sites on this list, with open dates like the Scituate Lighthouse, Lawson Tower, Mann Farm, and the old Stockbridge Wheat Mill.
There’s no shortage of fun for kids, with a kid’s farm, mobile game trailer, and pirate and princess activities at Morrill Bandstand.
7. Old Oaken Bucket
In the 19th century, this farmhouse and its accompanying well were a major tourist attraction in Scituate, and it was all due to the local-born Romantic poet Samuel Woodworth (1784-1842).
The well and its wooden bucket inspired his most famous work, Old Oaken Bucket (1817), which was set to music in 1826 and became Scituate’s city anthem in 1835 by popular vote variable.
The oldest part of the farmhouse dates to 1675, adapted to the main Cape-style structure in 1826. In front is the Scituate Historical Society sign and a cast-iron historic sign. The old one was erected in the third year of the Massachusetts Bay Colony in 1930.
8. Mann Farmhouse
Located south of Common Town and its cemeteries, this charming Cape-style residence is another historic Scituate society set in a small public park.
Mann Farm was built by the descendants of Richard Mann, who had settled in Scituate as early as 1636.
The Mann family is well known for keeping records and being able to trace their history from Richard Mann’s arrival until the death of the last resident Percy Thomas Mann in 1968.
The Manns family also meticulously preserves family heirlooms and Mann Farms has a full range of tools for every trade, from carpentry and beekeeping to sailing, sailing, shoemaking, and teaching…
Outside, you can see the remains of the Buick that Percy dumped in the yard in the 1920s. You can tour the grounds for free every day, while the house can be toured on open days.
9. Humarock Beach
Although this beach and its coastal community are part of Scituate, you have to drive through Marshfield to get there.
So you can thank the 1898 Portland hurricane, which irrevocably changed the coastline, separating Humarock and the neighboring Fourth Cliffs from the rest of the city.
Returning to the Nam River, the stretch of sand here is 5 kilometers long, with very different features in the winter when the coastline is rocky but picturesque, and in the summer when there is a stretch of accommodating sand.
The public beach at 30 Marshfield Ave is relatively small, but you are free to walk along the shore for miles. Parking is limited and you will need a Scituate sticker to use the main car park.
10. Untold Brewing
This craft brewery opened in Scituate in 2017 and has an exceptional tasting room, in a historic schoolhouse built in 1852.
The Untold Brewing founder grew up in Scituate, and the brewery is community-driven, with a calendar of community events and philanthropy.
The beers also have a sense of location, reflecting the New England coast and changing seasons.
The four popular beers are Seatown Lager, Sunny Sea (Hazy IPA), Pale 143 (American Pale Ale), and East by Northwest (West Coast IPA), which come with a multitude of seasonal, limited, and collaborative beers ranging from IPA to honey and dark beer Taza Chocolate.
Indoor and outdoor seating is available at this one-of-a-kind location, just a minute or two’s walk from Greenbush MBTA station.
11. Scituate Lighthouse
At Cedar Point, at the north end of Port Scituate, is the 11th lighthouse built in the United States.
Completed in 1810, the Old Scituate Light quickly rose to prominence in 1814 during the War of 1812 when Rebecca and Abigail Bates (Two-Man Lighthouse Army) thwarted an attack by British soldiers by playing drums. and beat the drums, making them think they were the beacons of the city. Militia.
The lighthouse was in use until the mid-19th century with the completion of Minot’s Ledge Lighthouse, a mile away, and purchased by the city in 1917. You can join the Scituate Open House Historical Society.
At any other time, it’s worth making the trip just to sit back and enjoy the harbor, and soak up some of the most beautiful sunrises and sunsets you could ever hope to see.
12. Scituate Harbor
Now designated as a Cultural District, Scituate’s award-winning city center is a quaint seaside village with many restaurants, shops, shipping businesses, and other local amenities behind the scenes. Beautiful antique storefront.
The waterfront is accessible and you can enjoy views of the harbour, First Cliffs as well as the many yachts and sailboats moored in the protected waters.
The Harborwalk stretches for more than half a mile past the Morrill Bandstand, which hosts outdoor events in the summer. One is the Harbor Bandstand concert series, Thursday nights through the end of October.
Meanwhile, First Friday is a city-wide event, with artists and artisans taking center stage at businesses around Scituate Harbour. These are just two of many events taking place over the six months between the St Patrick’s Day Parade and Halloween in the Harbor.
13. Lawson Tower
Designed to resemble the turret of a fairy tale castle, the 153 ft tall Lawson Tower was erected in 1902 to conceal a steel water tank.
The driving force behind the construction was wealthy investor Thomas W. Lawson (1857-1925), who had just established his Dreamworld farm nearby and wanted the water tower to be more eye-catching.
Lawson was also responsible for ringing the bell in one of the upper rooms, which is still played by a carillonneur on special occasions.
Lawson Tower is a permanent symbol of Scituate, and for a moving view of the South Rim and the Boston skyline, you can climb the stairs (123 steps) in one of the Scituate Historical Society’s open houses…
14. Seafood
One of the joys of visiting the Massachusetts coast is the opportunity to enjoy world-class seafood, caught straight from the ocean.
Scituate will never disappoint you with its traditional New England dishes, such as Lobster Rolls, Baked Haddock, Swordfish, Clam Chowder, Lobster Stew, Clam Strips, Fritters of crab, and fried scallops.
In a prime location on Scituate Harbor is the Mill Wharf (23 Mill Wharf Plaza), with all these favorites and more on the menu.
Also, be sure to check out the Satsuit Tavern (39 Jericho Rd), Oro (227 Chief Justice Cushing Hwy), Barker Tavern (21 Barker Rd), and Roht Marine (2205 Main St), just across the street on Marshfield’s shores North River.
15. Driftway Park
A place of outstanding natural beauty, Driftway Park protects approximately 330 acres of mangrove swamps on the mouth of the River Herring.
You can spot migratory birds in the spring and fall and enjoy the vast views from Lookout Hill, while these lower reaches of the Herring River are popular summer boating sites.
Around the salt marshes, there are also clues to recent industrial history. From 1914 to 1963, it was a sand and gravel mine, supplying raw materials for megaprojects such as Boston Logan International Airport. Remains of this period are the decaying wharf, where barges loaded with sand made their way to Boston.