Tradition runs deep in Massachusetts, which is evident in everything from its pride in the Colonial past to its unwavering devotion to Red Sox baseball.
Fortunately for meetings, there is no shortage of group-friendly venues that not only showcase the state’s unique heritage, but allow for engaging events that add spark to any program.
Following are several standout options for gatherings that will have groups beholding the Bay State and its quintessential character.
LANDMARK LURES
Old State House, Boston
Although dwarfed by surrounding high-rises, the Old State House stands tall in American history. Maintained and beautifully restored by the Bostonian Society, the building was the center of 18th century civic life in Boston. Samuel Adams, James Otis, John Hancock and John Adams debated the future of the British colonies within its walls. The first casualties of the Revolution—the Boston Massacre—happened just outside its doors and the Declaration of Independence was proclaimed from its balcony to local citizens in 1776.
Today it is a museum exhibiting items that include tea from the Boston Tea Party and John Hancock’s coat. It’s also a popular event site for everything from cocktail receptions to banquets with a Colonial theme.
“We’ve done events there with costumed interpreters and arranged for fife and drum players to give the group a rousing greeting,” says Lorraine Janusas, president of Eventful Connections in Forestdale, Mass. “You can do a reception downstairs with ethereal music played on the armonica, a historic instrument, and then proceed upstairs to a long table set in elegant, Colonial style.”
Boston Tea Party Ships & Museum
One of Boston’s newest attractions commemorates its best-known act of rebellion–the dumping of chests of British tea in Boston Harbor in 1773 to protest taxation without representation.
Dockside on Griffins Wharf, the attraction features two authentic replicas of the ships that carried the tea, a museum with exhibits that include one of the historic tea chests, and Abigail’s Tea Room, an event space with a fireplace and floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking the harbor.
Groups of up to 140 can book the venue, which can include joining costumed interpreters as they heave chests of tea into the harbor. PageBreak
Boston Public Library
With origins that make it the oldest free municipal library in the U.S., the current main building of the Boston Public Library was completed in 1895 by architect Charles Follen McKim, who intended it to be a “palace for the people.” His vision was realized in grand spaces such as the Sargent Gallery, with its murals by John Singer Sargent, and the Abbey Room, with its oak wainscoting, marble fireplace and beamed ceiling designed after the Doges Palace in Venice.
“It’s a great venue where you can have cocktails in the gorgeous reading room or dessert in an outdoor courtyard,” says Lindsay Goneau, director of operations for Allied PRA New England, a Boston-based DMC. “You can also arrange for a docent-led tour during the event.”
GOOD SPORTS
Fenway Park, Boston
History and sports come together at Fenway Park, which has been home to the Boston Red Sox since its opening in 1912.
The oldest Major League Baseball stadium still in use, Fenway offers a variety of spaces for groups, including a spacious deck seating 300 above the famous Green Monster, the left-field wall that has foiled many a potential homerun. Able to accommodate catered events for up to 10,000, the many venue choices include intimate luxury suites with plasma screens and indoor and outdoor seating, and the posh EMC Club with an open kitchen and great views just behind home plate.
“Fenway Park is a real ‘wow’ factor for groups,” Allied PRA New England’s Goneau says. “We’ve done a buy-out, including a full meeting in the big concourse and a variety of receptions in different venues for VIPs and sponsors. The on-site catering is top-notch. It goes way beyond hot dogs.”
Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame, Springfield
The history of basketball and its greatest players are the central focus of the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame, located two hours west of Boston in Springfield.
With over 80,000 square feet of function space, it includes the Center Court, a grand ballroom with a large domed ceiling that has hosted everything from gala awards dinners to team-building tournaments. There are also a 200-seat theater with teleconferencing capabilities, galleries available for receptions and a boardroom overlooking the Connecticut River. PageBreak
VILLAGE LIFE
Plimoth Plantation, Plymouth
An open-air museum overlooking Cape Cod Bay, Plimoth Plantation depicts daily life in a New England village in the years following the 1620 landing at nearby Plymouth Rock.
Along with touring the village with its dwellings and gardens tended by costumed interpreters, groups can experience 17th century dining at themed banquets such as the fork-free Eat Like a Pilgrim and the Wampanoag Social Feast.
“Plimoth is great for evening events,” Eventful Connections’ Janusas says. “During the dinners, you can have costumed musicians playing music from the period and historians from the village can come in and talk with the group.”
Old Sturbridge Village, Sturbridge
In central Massachusetts, Old Sturbridge Village, one of the country’s oldest outdoor history museums, portrays life in a rural New England town of the 1830s.
Its 40-plus historic buildings spread over 200 acres include homes, meeting houses, a bank, a school, a working farm, three water-powered mills and trade shops. Visitors can interact with costumed interpreters and see rare heritage-breed farm animals.
Frequently used for events, Sturbridge offers everything from a full-service conference center to team-building services and private dining areas. According to Eventful Connections’ Janusas, the site is a great choice for special interest groups who would like to learn about their 19th century counterparts.
“A financial group can talk with a curator about banking practices back in the day, while a group in the food industry can learn about historic foods and dining,” she says.
Hancock Shaker Village, Pittsfield
Set among the rolling meadows of the Berkshire Hills in western Massachusetts, Hancock Shaker Village was an active Shaker community from 1790 to 1960. Today, it is a living history museum dedicated to showcasing the superb craftsmanship and vegetable farming the religious sect was known for.
The grounds include a classic Shaker meeting house, a rare round barn, vegetable gardens and a collection of the highly prized Shaker furniture and other artifacts.
Options for groups abound, including authentic Shaker suppers prepared with farm-fresh ingredients, culinary workshops and catered receptions for up to 350 people.
OUT TO SEA
Schooner Thomas E. Lannon, Gloucester
Essex Shipbuilding Museum, Essex
North of Boston, groups can experience the seafaring and shipbuilding heritage long associated with the communities of Gloucester and Essex.
Groups of 50 or less can charter the Schooner Thomas E. Lannon, a sleek and graceful 65-foot fishing schooner, for a catered excursion through Gloucester’s working harbor, past lighthouses and magnificent waterfront homes. Passengers can take the helm and help the crew raise the sails.
For insight on how such a vessel was crafted, the nearby Essex Shipbuilding Museum offers a working shipyard and exhibits that include antique shipbuilding tools, photographs, documents and a classic schooner from the 1920s.
