News & Events

2026 Longfellow Summer Festival

June Events

2026 Longfellow Summer Festival Events

August 16

Concert: Yujin Han

is a South Korea-born jazz pianist, composer, and arranger, studied at Dongduk Women’s University in Korea. 

August 23

Concert: Owen Mar

studies tap dance as a principal instrument in the Percussion Department at Berklee College of Music. He plays jazz and Latin jazz, both originals and standards, typically with bass, guitar, and piano accompaniment.

August 30

Concert: Pete Smith

Pete is a New York City-based guitarist (and H.W. Longfellow descendant) who performs in a wide range of musical settings. As a founding member of Grupo los Santos (Santos4tet), a vanguard Afro-Cuban and Brazilian-style quartet, he has played New York’s Town Hall and concerts throughout the U.S., Cuba & Austria. He has performed at the Berlin Jazz Festival and Montreal Jazz Festival, as well as concerts in thirty countries throughout Europe, Eastern Europe, Africa and Asia.

September 13

Concert: Juventas New Music Ensemble

is a dynamic contemporary chamber group with a special focus on emerging voices. They reimagine classical music as a vibrant living art form, uplifting rising voices and bringing audiences music from a diverse array of composers that live in today’s world and respond to our time.

2026 NPS schedule

Guided House Tours

Now Open

NPS tours

Join the Longfellow House Volunteer Team

How can you support your national park?

Become a Volunteer-in-Park (VIP) this summer!

Help in one of two ways:

Garden Volunteer Opportunity

  • Garden Volunteer Opportunity 

    The community of garden volunteers meets each Thursday morning from April 16 2026, into fall 2026. 

    Are you passionate about gardening, history, or both? We invite you to join us as a garden volunteer at Longfellow House-Washington's Headquarters National Historic Site, where history and horticulture meet. Behind the house is a beautifully maintained Colonial Revival garden, and we need your help to keep it thriving! 

    As a Volunteer-in-Park, you'll learn and work alongside the National Park Service's gardener and landscape management interns to: 

    • Care for the historic garden 

    • Learn hands-on techniques for managing a historic landscape 

    • Contribute to the preservation of American history 

    No experience? No problem! Whether you're a seasoned gardener or a curious beginner, we provide all necessary training, safety instruction, and tools. 

    Join a community of like-minded neighbors, enjoy the serenity of the gardens, and make a lasting impact in your community.  

    Learn more and register to help make history bloom as a garden volunteer! 

Event Operations Volunteer Opportunity

  • Event Operations Volunteer Opportunity

    Event operations volunteers support the Longfellow Summer Arts Festival each Sunday afternoon from May 1, 2026, through December 31, 2026. 

    Are you looking to help build community and support free, high-quality arts programming in your community? We seek enthusiastic event support volunteers to help bring these events to life!  

    As a Volunteer-in-Park, you’ll serve as a key member of the Longfellow House events team by:  

    • Assisting National Park Service staff with event setup and breakdown, including moving chairs, stage panels, sound equipment, tables, tents, signage, and more. 

    • Providing wayfinding assistance and answering visitor questions — or connecting them with National Park Service staff. 

    • Creating a welcoming and engaging atmosphere for our visitors. 

    • Preferred Qualifications: 

    • An interest in the arts, history, and/or engaging with the public. 

    • Physical ability to bend, kneel, stand for extended periods, and lift objects up to 50 lbs. 

    Learn more and register to support arts in our community as an event operations volunteer!  

Past Events

Knox Trail 250

On Saturday March 7, 2026, we took a trip across the Charles River to visit our friends at the Roxbury Historical Society to celebrate the Knox Trail 250. This reenactment depicts the arrival of cannon to the Right Wing Headquarters of General Thomas to be placed at Dorchester Heights. The Dillaway–Thomas House commanded the front lines of the Siege of Boston.

March 13, 2025

Choosing a Commander:

Myths & Realities Behind the Continental Congress’s Decision to Make George Washington the General

Speaker: J.L. Bell

NPS Livestream Recording

Powder Alarm 250

September 1, 2024

  • A Dawn Raid

    British soldiers showed up at the Powder House in what is now Somerville on the morning of September 1.

  • Prepare Arms

    Re-enactors attach bayonets to their rifles to keep the mob at bay.

  • The Redcoats

    British soldiers take a powder.

  • Throwing a Kegger

    Kegs of gun powder are seized in the re-enactment of the raid.

  • March Along Brattle Street

    On September 2 thousands of militia men streamed into Cambridge along the same street where J. L. Bell leads a walking tour.

  • Loyalists Lived Here

    The crowd demanded a resignation from Judge Joseph Lee, whose house is now the headquarters of History Cambridge.

  • Stories of Tories

    Scores of local history lovers turn out to enjoy tales from J. L. Bell, Robert J. Allison, and Michele Gabrielson.

  • Rebellion Along Tory Row

    The uprising on September 2 made Loyalists John and Elizabeth Vassall move out of their home, leaving it empty for General Washington.

Listen to J.L. Bell talk about the events of September 1, 1774 on WBUR / Radio Boston

Listen

Read more about the Powder Alarm 250 from our friends at: