Concord (Massachusetts)

Concord [2] is a town in Massachusetts. One of the first battles of the American Revolution was fought here at the Old North Bridge. Henry David Thoreau penned Walden here. The home town of Ralph Waldo Emerson and Louisa May Alcott.

Church

Get in

By car, from Interstate 95 take Exit 29-B -- Route 2 West.

MBTA Commuter Rail has stops [3] in Concord center and West Concord. The Concord stop is closer to the tourist attractions than the West Concord stop. $6.25 one way from Boston North Station.

Get around

Traveling by car is easiest, but many of the tourist attractions are within walking distance of each other. Liberty Ride [4] is a seasonal trolley between Lexington and Concord that serves many of the tourist attractions.

• Concord Bike Tours, 978-697-1897, [5]. A great way for the active traveler to tour historic Concord and its pristine conservation lands.

See

• Minute Man National Historical Park, 174 Liberty St (Interstate 95, Exit 30-B), Phone: +1 978-369-6993 or Phone: +1 978-318-7800, [6]. Sunrise to sunset. Gates close at sunset.

North Bridge Visitor Center: Daily 11AM-3PM thru Mar. Daily 9AM-5PM Apr-Oct.

Minute Man Visitor Center Daily 9AM-5PM. Apr-Oct. Daily 9AM-4PM Oct-Nov.

Hartwell Tavern: Daily 9:30AM-5:30PM. June-Oct.

The Wayside: open by guided tour, Jun-Oct. Th 2PM & 4PM; F,Sa,Su at 11AM, 1:30PM, 3PM & 4:30PM. Nathaniel Hawthorne's home.

• Sleepy Hollow Cemetery, Bedford St, Phone: +1 978-318-3233, [7]. Visit Nathaniel Hawthorne, Ralph Waldo Emerson, Louisa May Alcott, and Henry David Thoreau. The largest of the municipal cemeteries of the town of Concord; not related to Sleepy Hollow Cemetery in Sleepy Hollow, New York.

A tomb at Sleepy Hollow - looks just like in the movies!

• Concord Museum, Cambridge Turnpike at Lexington Rd, recording: +1 978-369-9609 or Phone: +1 978-369-9763, [8]. $8 adults, $7 seniors and students, $5 under 16. Emerson, Thoreau and more.

• The Olde Manse, 269 Monument St., Phone: +1 978-369-3909, [9]. Mid Apr-Oct. $8/$5 under 16. Built in 1770 by the Reverend William Emerson. Later residents include his grandson Ralph Waldo Emerson, and Nathanial Hawthorne. Period furnishings and family memorabilia from the Emerson, Ripley and Hawthorne families. The grounds border on the Concord River, its neighbors include the Old North Bridge. Owned by Trustees of Reservations.

• Walden Pond State Reservation, 915 Walden St. (Rte. 126), Phone: +1 978-369-3254, [10]. 8AM-sunset. Walk, swim or fish where Thoreau did. See a replica of the Thoreau cabin. Parking lot closes if it reaches capacity. Parking $5.

• Great Meadows National Wildlife Refuge, [11]. A twelve-mile long river wetlands conservation area, in two major parcels, stretching from the towns of Billerica (downstream) to Wayland (upstream), along the Concord and Sudbury rivers. Considered by some ornithologists among the best inland bird observatories in the state. The original 250-acre Concord parcel that started the sanctuary has long been known as the "Great Meadows," and was donated by Concord resident Samuel Hoar in 1944. There are several trails for daytime wildlife observation and walks, with trail-side observation blinds and an observation tower. The Dike Trail, a 1.7 mile loop circles one of the marsh pools. In winter, as snow permits: walking, snowshowing and cross-country skiing. Access by car: travel from Concord center east on Route 62 toward Bedford. After about one mile, turn left onto Monsen Road. Continue to the refuge entrance road to the left. The federal Fish and Wildlife Service manages the refuge.

• Orchard House, [12]. Former home of the Alcott family and the setting of Little Women. Open for tours at varying times depending on season.
• Concord School of Philosophy. Founded by Bronson Alcott.
• Wright Tavern
• First Parish in Concord
• Ralph Waldo Emerson House
• Concord Free Public Library, 129 Main Street, (978) 318-3300, [13]. Houses a priceless collection of oil paintings, marble sculpture and original Transcendental Movement manuscripts.
• Estabrook Woods
• Hapgood Wright Town Forest

• Concord Center A classic and historic New England town center, with small storefront shops.

Center

Do

• The Concord Scout House, 74 Walden Street, in the town center, [14]. A community hall and home to local boy scouts and girl scouts. The Scout House is a regional center for New England folk dance known as "contra dance." Several groups conduct contra dance and square dance evenings to live music at the hall. Two weekly series, year-round: Monday evenings [15]; and Thursday nights, [16] the most popular night. For both series, there's a different band and dance caller each week.

• Friends of the Performings Arts in Concord (FOPAC), 51 Walden Street, Tel: +1 (978) 369-7911, [17]. At the FOPAC hall a diverse assortment of concerts and plays can be seen year round. The resident groups are The Concord Players [18], the Concord Band[19], and the Concord Orchestra[20].

• Go to Concord-Carlisle Regional High School sporting event or play[21].

Buy

• Blue Dry Goods (Upscale casual men's & boys' clothing), 16A Walden St, ☎ (978) 369-1120‎, e-mail: info@bluedrygoods.com. Weekdays 10AM - 6PM; Sat 9:30AM - 5:30PM; Sun 12:00 n - 5:00PM.
• European Flair Hair Salon, 1220 Main Street, West Concord, MA, ☎ (978) 369-1051.
• I Came, I Saw, I Concord (T-shirts at Concord Teacakes), 19 Walden St, ☎ (617) 869-6066‎, e-mail: icameisawiconcord@gmail.com.
• Priscilla Candy Shop, 19 Walden St, ☎ (978) 371-0585‎.
• The Grasshopper Shop of Concord, 36 Main St, ☎ (978) 369-8295. Monday-Saturday 9am-6pm Sunday 12pm-6pm.

The Grasshopper Shop of Concord

Eat

• Walden Grille, 24 Walden St., ☎ +1 978-371-2233, e-mail: jack@waldengrille.com.

• Twin Seafood, 2 Church Street, ☎ +1 978-371-9030.

• Helen's Restaurant, 17 Main St., ☎ +1 978-369-9885. Breakfast, lunch and dinner daily.

• Main Streets Market and Cafe, 42 Main Street, ☎ +1 978 369-9948. Open Daily: Breakfast, 6:30AM-11AM; Lunch, 11AM-5PM; Dinner, Tu-Th 5PM-10PM, F-Sa 5PM-11PM.. Entertainment many evenings (no cover charge).

• New London Style Pizza, Thoreau Street, ☎ +1 978 369 7053.

• Sorrento's Pizza, 58 Thoreau St., ☎ +1 978 371 2233. Brick oven pizza

• Michael's Restaurant. Greek

• Vincenzo's.

• Chang An, Sudbury Road (just past railroad crossing), ☎ +1 978 369-5288. Upscale Chinese food

• Rossini's.

• Ninety-Nine Restaurant, 18 Commonwealth Ave., ☎ +1 978 369 0330. Variety, reasonable prices

Bakeries

• Concord Teacakes Bakery, 59 Commonwealth Avenue, ☎ +1 978-369-7644, e-mail: bakery@concordteacakes.com. M-F 6AM-5PM, Sa 7AM-5PM, Su 8AM-1PM.

• Nashoba Brook Bakery, 152 Commonwealth Av, ☎ +1 978-318-1999. M-F 6:30AM-5:30PM, Sa,Su 8AM-5PM.. Homegrown yeast and slow-rise breads.

Drink

• Papa Razzi, 768 Elm Street, +1 978-371-0030, [1]. It's where the Kayakers go drinking on Friday afternoons.

Sleep

• Best Western at Historic Concord, 740 Elm Street, ☎ +1 978-369-6100, fax: +1 978 371-1656. http://book.bestwestern.com/bestwestern/productInfo.do?propertyCode=22040

• Concord's Colonial Inn, 48 Monument Square, ☎ +1 978-369-9200 Toll-free: 800-370-9200, fax: 978-371-1533. Charming old inn with 56 rooms and a restaurant.

• Hawthorne Inn Bed and Breakfast, 462 Lexington Road, ☎ +1 978-369-5610, fax: +1 978-287-4949, e-mail: inn@concordmass.com. $125-$285.. Recognized by Forbes Magazine as one of New England's 10 best inns.

• North Bridge Inn, 21 Monument St., ☎ +1 978-371-0014, fax: +1 978-371-6460.

• Mill Brook Inn, 69 Walden Street, ☎ +1 978-369-5515. Lovingly restored and updated, the house was built in 1758 and added onto in 1828, after being moved to its current location. Steps away from downtown Concord.

Go next

For more history it's Lexington or Boston. North Shore towns have the closest beaches. The White Mountains are great for hiking, fall foliage viewing or skiing.

Routes through Concord

Fitchburg ← Acton ←

W  E

→ Lincoln → Boston