Children’s Winter Festival Returns to Boston Common February 19
Mayor Michelle Wu and the Boston Parks and Recreation Department present the annual Children’s Winter Festival on the Boston Common Parade Ground on Wednesday, February 19, from 11:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. The free festival is open to all and offers music, dancing, giveaways, winter activities, treats, and crafts. Featured attractions include large inflatable installations such as the all-star challenge, fun house maze, and candy cane obstacle course. Children and their caregivers can also enjoy rides on the trackless train, the alpine slide, snow throw, and more.
“My family and I enjoyed visiting the annual Winter Festival last year, and I encourage Boston residents to take advantage of this fun way to keep kids engaged and connected with their peers over February school break,” said Mayor Michelle Wu. “I’m grateful to the Parks Department and our local business partners for keeping this beloved winter tradition on the Common going.”
LEGO® Discovery Center Boston will be in attendance with seasonal builds and activities with LEGO experts. Enjoy farm fresh milk from New England Dairy’s Mobile Dairy Bar. Try your musical skills at Boston Music Group’s instrument ‘petting zoo.’ Visit boston.gov/winterfest for more information about this family-friendly school vacation week event.
The event is hosted in partnership with title sponsor Highland Street Foundation and our contributing sponsors H.P. Hood LLC and Raising Cane’s Chicken Fingers. The Boston Globe is the media sponsor. Additional support is provided by LEGO® Discovery Center Boston, New England Dairy, Laboratories of Cognitive Neuroscience (LCN) at Boston Children’s Hospital, and UMass Boston Early Minds Lab.
The Boston Common Parade Ground is located at the corner of Beacon and Charles Streets. Call (617) 635-4505 or email [email protected] for more information. To stay up to date with news, events, and improvements in Boston parks, visit Boston.gov/Parks, join our email list at bit.ly/Get-Parks-Emails, and follow our social channels @bostonparksdept on Twitter, Facebook, Bluesky, and Instagram.
South End Library Author Series resume Feb. 26
South End Library Author Series resumes with Nicole Treska discussing her latest book ‘Wonderland’ (about growing up in a Boston mob family) on Wednesday, Feb. 26, at Union Church, Connection Room, 485 Columbus Ave. (access from Newton Street), as well as virtually. This free event starts at 6:30 p.m., followed by refreshments and book signings at 7:30 p.m.
Parkside Booksellers will offer books for sale at the in-person event.
Email [email protected] to receive the virtual link.
St. Patrick’s Day tours of the Gibson House Museum set for March 15
‘Upstairs, Downstairs: A St. Patrick’s Day Tour Experience at the Gibson House Museum’ is set for Saturday, March 15, from 1 to 4 p.m. at 137 Beacon St. (Timed entry is on the half hour at 1, 1:30 p.m., 2, 2:30, and 3 p.m.)
Between 1860 and 1920, the Gibson House was the home of dozens of domestics—mostly young, Irish immigrant women who worked as cooks, laundresses, nannies, and chambermaids. They also made friends, fell in love, and worshipped at nearby churches. In honor of St. Patrick’s Day, come for a self-guided tour of the Gibson House Museum, and learn about the work and the lives of these Irish immigrants. Finish your tour experience by enjoying Irish-themed snacks and live music from The Kitchen Strings, featuring Jonathan Axon (fiddle), Gail Gardner (fiddle), Betsy Lynch (fiddle), and Ned Resnikoff (octave mandolin/bouzouki), in the working spaces of the Gibson House.
General admission is $25 per person and $22 per person for museum members; purchase tickets at https://www.thegibsonhouse.org.
Upcoming event sponsored by the Gibson House Museum
Back by popular demand, the Gibson House Museum, located at 137 Beacon St., presents
‘Elements of the American Wedding 1860-1920’ on Saturday, Feb. 22, from 4:30 to 6 p.m.
At this time, join Etiquetteer, Robert B. Dimmick, on an exploration of wedding customs in the United States from the Civil War to Prohibition. Aside from familiar customs like the white wedding dress and tossing the bouquet, Etiquetteer will look at fads like the floral bell, how wedding breakfasts were conducted, and the home wedding. Two of the most celebrated weddings of this period included President Cleveland’s White House wedding to Frances Folsom and Consuelo Vanderbilt’s wedding in New York to the Duke of Marlborough. Etiquetteer will also share the stories of Gibson family weddings, especially those of sisters Mary Ethel (held in Nahant) and Rosamond, held in the Music Room of the Gibson House six months after the death of her father.
Admission is $25 per person for the general public and $20 per person for museum members. Purchase tickets online at https://www.thegibsonhouse.org.