March 26: Pricked and Painted: Tattooing in the 19th Century

The flyer features a faded, black-and-white historical photograph of Charles Longfellow, a man with extensive tattoos across his chest and arms, wearing a hat and necklace. Large red and black text overlaid on the image reads "PRICKED & PAINTED: Tattooing in the 19th Century." The event details note it takes place Thursday, March 26 at 6 pm at the Longfellow House, 105 Brattle Street. Logos for History Cambridge and the Longfellow House-Washington’s Headquarters National Historic Site appear at the bottom.

Thursday, March 26, 20266-7:30 pmLongfellow House – Washington’s Headquarters National Historic Site105 Brattle Street, Cambridge, MAFreeSpace is limited; please register! Can’t make the event in person? Watch the livestream! Pricked and Painted: Tattooing in the 19th Century How prevalent were tattoos in the 1800s, how widespread were they, and who had them? Charles Longfellow, the…

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June 22: Longfellow House-Washington’s Headquarters Annual Juneteenth Gathering

Sunday June 22, 202512:30 pmLongfellow House-Washington’s Headquarters105 Brattle Street, Cambridge About the Event History Cambridge will gather with our friends at Longfellow House-Washington’s Headquarters for Juneteenth. Join us to honor those who endured slavery and seized freedom on Brattle Street 250 years ago, their descendants, and the long history of Black freedom activism in Cambridge…

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Self-Guided Tour: The Work of Revolution in Cambridge

Laundresses at a Revolutionary Army camp, circa 1780.

Introduction For many, the first image that comes to mind when thinking of Cambridge during the Revolutionary Era is that of General George Washington taking command of the Continental Army on Cambridge Common in July of 1775, under what would come to be known as the Washington Elm. Although we now know that this tale…

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Andrew Craigie: Mover and Shaker of East Cambridge

by Daphne Abeel Craigie Street, just to the west of Harvard Square, memorializes Andrew Craigie (1754-1819), but his most significant legacy is his development of East Cambridge. He also arranged to move the courthouse and the jail from Harvard Square to East Cambridge. That move, combined with his building of the Canal (or Craigie) Bridge…

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Why the “Longfellow” Bridge?

By Franklin Reece, 2015 In 1905, the magnificent Longfellow Bridge was nearing completion, even as the Cambridge Historical Society came to life. And today, 110 years later, the iconic bridge is being restored, just as the society enters an exciting new stage of life. The bridge was an engineering marvel. Designed to mimic the artistic…

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