Cultural Tourism
Consider Visiting These Historical Sites
The Dwight-Derby House
7 Frairy Street
Medfield, MA
dwightderbyhouse.org
The original Dwight-Derby House on Frairy Street, opposite Meetinghouse (Baker’s) Pond, was built in 1651 by Timothy Dwight. It is one of the ten oldest existing wood frame houses in America. In 1996 the house faced possible demolition, and the Town of Medfield purchased it to preserve an historic treasure that could serve as a community resource. Thanks to a dedicated group of Medfield volunteers, and grants from the Massachusetts Historical Commission and the National Trust for Historic Preservation, the house has been stabilized and partially restored.
Clark-Kingsbury Grist Mill
Kingsbury Pond
Spring Street (Route 27)
Medfield MA 02052
facebook.com/MedfieldGristMill
Constructed in Medfield’s early days, the mill had three distinct periods of operation. The first was about 1718, when it operated as the Clark Mill; next, about 1819 when the present structure was built; and the third came in 1889 with the transformation of the grain mill into a saw mill.
Lowell Mason House
51 Green Street
Medfield, MA 02052
(currently not open to the public)
lowellmasonhouse.org
The Lowell Mason House was founded in October 2010 when a group of concerned Medfield citizens and music educators from around the country came together with the desire to preserve the house and legacy of Lowell Mason, the Father of Music Education in America. Within months enough support was generated to secure a new location for the house and move it before demolition to town land next to Hinckley Pond.
Medfield Historical Society
6 Pleasant Street
Medfield, MA
508-359-4773
medfieldhistoricalsociety.org
Established in 1891, the Medfield Historical Society is one of the oldest in the Commonwealth. It is a private, all-volunteer, not-for-profit organization dedicated to preserving, promoting and sharing Medfield’s history. It provides connections with local history that enrich people’s lives and the local community. The Society shares the town’s remarkable heritage by collecting and preserving stories, by interpreting and displaying materials pertaining to the history of the town and its people, and by fostering public involvement in and appreciation of our rich heritage and culture.
Medfield State Hospital
45 Hospital Road
Medfield MA 02052
Medfield State Hospital information
Medfield State Hospital is located in the northwest corner of Medfield along the town line bordering Dover. The hospital grounds, now listed on the National Register of Historic Places, are on top of a hill overlooking the Charles River and the surrounding countryside. To the west is state land currently operated by the Massachusetts Division of Capital Asset Management & Maintenance (DCAMM) with a lookout point and trails winding through the trees to the river. When looking across the trees and the vista, one may be enjoying the same sights existing a century earlier.
Vine Lake Cemetery
625 Main Street
Medfield, Massachusetts
Vine Lake Cemetery website
Established in 1651, Vine Lake Cemetery is the town’s only public cemetery, aside from a small private lot at Medfield State Hospital. What began as a small 4-acre burying ground has evolved into a modern 30-acre cemetery. Today it is the town’s only outdoor museum. Four seamless gravescapes are celebrated here: the colonial burying ground, the rural cemetery, the garden cemetery and the landscaped lawn cemetery. The oldest marked grave is that of Lydia (Albee) Lovell, dating from her 1661 death. Only two of the town’s thirteen founders, James Allen and Samuel Bullen, are interred with marked graves.