Opening Our Doors: Celebrating Indigenous Peoples’ Day at the MHS
MHS Event
Come celebrate Indigenous Peoples’ Day at the Massachusetts Historical Society! Join the MHS and our neighboring cultural institutions for a free day of fun in the Fenway during this year's 25th annual Opening Our Doors.
From 9:00am to 12:00pm, we are hosting a K-12 teacher workshop on the history and legacy of the War for the Dawnland (also known as King Philip's War). Learn more and register.
From 12:00pm to 4:00pm, the MHS will be open to the public for activities and discussions inspired by the Indigenous philosophy of Seven Generations, exploring themes of community and interconnectedness between past, present, and future.
- At 1:00pm, enjoy a presentation and Q&A with Brad Lopes, Aquinnah Wôpanâak scholar and Director of the Aquinnah Wampanoag Education Department. Lopes is the author of "Nuttauwaog Yeush Nuttahkeunnonnash, Michemee: These Are Our Lands, Forever" in Reconnections: A New History of The Sakonnet Wampanoag People, published by the Little Compton Historical Society. His work focuses on the continuance and survivance of Wôpanâak people following the War for the Dawnland, commonly known as King Philip’s War, and examines the ways in which this story in the Dawnland has become a central foundation of the legal and military practices of the United States today.
Register to attend in person.
Register to attend online. - View a special display of Indigenous art, publications, and material culture from the MHS collection.
- Join MHS staff for gallery talks examining Indigenous items on display in the current exhibition, 1776: Declaring Independence.
- Take part in family-friendly activities, from Indigenous-designed coloring pages to scavenger hunts to becoming history sleuths uncovering the uses of everyday objects from the past.
Visitors will receive a plantable seed-paper bookmark. What knowledge and values will you plant for future generations?
Learn more about Opening our Doors.
