• Lush vegetation on the top of Spectacle Island's North drumlin dominates the foreground. Boston's skyline can be seen in the distance. The park's logo with tag line minutes away, worlds apart empashises the stark contrast between the city and islands.

    Boston Harbor Islands

    National Recreation Area Massachusetts

Collections

Museum collections related to the Boston Harbor Islands, comprising more than 6,000 items, are held by more than a dozen organizations including municipal, state, and federal agencies, as well as nonprofit and educational institutions. Collections include archival, historical, archeological, and natural history objects, specimens, documents, and images.

Did You Know?

Thompson Island

Thompson Island in Boston Harbor Islands National Recreation Area was home to the first vocational school in America in 1833.  The facility featured a farm, a wood shop and a print shop as well as America’s first organized school band. More...