Paul Revere House on North Square in Boston

See the Historic Sites web page for an interactive location map.

LOCATION

19 North Square

MANAGEMENT AND WEBSITE

The Paul Revere House, part of Boston National Historical Park, is owned by the Paul Revere Memorial Association. For more information, visit the Paul Revere House website.

OPERATING HOURS AND FEES

The operating schedule of the Paul Revere House varies per season, but it is typically open every day from April through October, 10 AM to 5 PM. There is a fee to enter. For the current prices and schedule, see the official Paul Revere House Hours and Prices web page.

VISITING THE PAUL REVERE HOUSE

Visitors to the Paul Revere House can explore both the ground and top floors. There are no guided tours given, but there are staff members on duty in each room to answer questions. Information panels have been placed throughout the house as well. No photography is allowed inside.

The house was built around 1680, making it the oldest house in Boston proper. However, Revere didn’t purchase it until 1770, and though he owned it for thirty years, the family didn’t live in it much during the 1780s and 90s. After being sold in 1800, the house was used as a boarding house, candy store, cigar factory, bank, and grocery store.

In 1902, the great-grandson of Paul Revere purchased the house to keep it from being torn down. The Paul Revere Memorial Association was formed and money was raised to restore the house to its original 1680 appearance. This entailed removing a third floor that was thought to have been added after the time the Reveres came into the picture (though now historians think it might have been there after all, but it’s too late to put it back). The renovation was completed in 1908, and the house was opened to the public.

The lower floor is furnished as it might have been when the house was first built. The upper floor is decorated in the style common to the late 1700s when the Reveres were the owners. Some Revere silverware is on display, and a few of the furniture pieces on the second floor were once owned by the Revere family, though not necessarily by Paul Revere.

The Paul Revere House is now accessible to those in wheelchairs and who have mobility problems. However, motorized wheelchairs may not fit through some of the doorways, so disabled visitors may not be able to see every room.

LATHROP PLACE

In 2007, the Paul Revere Memorial Association purchased house 5 and 6 on Lathrop Place, two of four row houses that sit on land that was once Paul Revere’s backyard. This land was sold to developers in 1835, and the four row houses were constructed. Upon exiting the Revere House from the second floor you will proceed along a walkway to the Lathrop Place houses where the Paul Revere Memorial Association now has a souvenir store and a small museum. Restrooms are also located here.

Along with seeing the restored interior of the row houses, visitors can peruse exhibits relating to Paul Revere such as a collection of silverware his metal shop crafted and Paul Revere memorabilia. His historic “midnight ride” is recounted, and you can read the complete version of Henry Longfellow’s poem, Paul Revere’s Ride. It is a small museum, and you can read through all of the information in about fifteen minutes.