Marblehead Rev250

05/21/2026

Judy Anderson, Marblehead Architecture Heritage & Tours, will be leading outdoor tours the next two weekends. Each tour meets in front of Abbot Hall and ends at General Glover's home in Glover Square, near the Town Landing.

Outdoor Walking Tour featuring Glover Family Houses
Friday, May 22 & 29, 4 to 6 pm
Saturday, May 23 & 30, 9 to 11 am
Sunday, May 24 & 31, 4 to 6 pm

This is a Marblehead Rev250 activity.

The outdoor walking tour will feature Marblehead homes of the four Glover brothers and their families (exteriors only). Select outtakes from correspondence of General John Glover to General George Washington, will be shared.

Donations welcome, and will benefit the Save the Glover Farm House effort.

No RSVP or registration required. No rain dates. No restrooms.
For info, seehttps://marbleheadtours.com/2026_JA_Programs.pdf -- or call 781-631-1762.

MA250 America250 Essex National Heritage Area

05/21/2026

Wednesday, May 27, 7-8:30pm, Marblehead Town Historian, Don Doliber will present his talk at Abbot Public Library in their Event Center. The program is offered in person and via Zoom, the link which you can get on the Library website. No registration required.
Don Doliber became town historian after 24 years as an award-winning history teacher in town. He was selected as an "Outstanding American History Teacher" by the D.A.R, Daughters of the American Revolution. His ancestors arrived in Marblehead in the 1630's, and were fishermen and merchants, with a few later serving in the Revolutionary War.

Don will share the story of Captain James Mugford, a 26-year-old Marblehead sea captain with a fishing boat, who on May 17, 1776, commanding the USS Franklin, a small schooner armed with just four cannons and crewed by 21 men, captured the largest single prize of the Revolutionary War.

He spotted the British transport ship Hope, a 300-ton British supply ship, heading toward Boston Harbor through his spyglass. Lost in a thick fog, the Hope was carrying 1,500 barrels of desperately needed gunpowder, plus 1,000 carbines and artillery equipment. Mugford and his men boarded the ship and captured what became known as the largest single prize of the Revolutionary War.

Two days later, on his 27th birthday, the Franklin ran aground near Boston Harbor. British warships spotted the stranded vessel and sent a boarding party to recapture it. As 12 to 13 boats rowed silently toward the Franklin in the darkness, they called out that they were "friends from Boston." Mugford wasn't fooled. He warned them to keep their distance and opened fire when they refused. During the fierce battle that followed, Mugford was fatally wounded.
His last words to his crew were: "I am a dead man, do not give up the vessel; you will be able to beat them off." His men then sank two of the British boats and forced the rest to retreat. Mugford was the only American who died during this fight, becoming the first captain in Washington's navy to die in combat.

Mugford is buried at Old Burial Hill in

This program is funded in part by a grant from the Marblehead Cultural Council, and is part of the MA250 Revolution250and America250 celebration, and focusing on Essex National Heritage Area Essex County events.

05/08/2026

'Colonel Jeremiah Lee’s Covert Acts'

Join Judy Anderson's outdoor talk as she discusses the covert activities and risks taken by Colonel Jeremiah Lee in 1774 & 1775, when the Crown and Parliament's sanctions grew increasingly restrictive as the American rebellion mounted. The war that followed would tragically claim Lee’s life just three weeks after the first battle, with his death on May 10, 1775. It was after Colonel Lee's death that his Lt. Colonel, John Glover, became head of the Marblehead militia, which became a full regiment of the new Continental Army the following month, in June 1775.

Talks offered-
Fri, May 8, 4-5:30 pm
Sat, May 9, 9-10:30 am
Sun, 10, 4-5:30 pm
No RSVP required / No rain dates
Meet in front of Abbot Hall

05/04/2026

Our May library talks for Marblehead Rev 250 start with Judy Anderson's "Revolutionary Dwellings – Homes of Patriots and Loyalists in Marblehead." Her talk will be held again at our Rev 250 partner venue, Abbot Public Library on Wednesday, 5/6, 7p, and also available via Zoom.

Nearly every house in Marblehead that predates 1775 was the home of a serviceman in America’s Revolutionary War. An estimated 300 houses still survive, even if modified by later generations, out of perhaps 525 or so that existed as the war began. And a revolutionary story from every one of those homes!

In June 1775, nearly 600 men and teenage boys left their families to join the Continental Army’s new “Marblehead Regiment” under Colonel John Glover, which grew from the earlier militia led by Colonel Jeremiah Lee, until his death in May 1775. Starting in Autumn 1775, hundreds of them would sail out as captains and crews of privateer vessels. Over the course of the war’s eight long years, an estimated total of 1,400 or more would serve from this town of about 950 families –– all living in those 525 houses!

Nearly all were Patriots, with only about a dozen heads of households identified as Tories, or 'Loyalists.'

But many pre-Revolutionary homes still survive. Come learn about where some of these Marblehead Revolutionary heroes and their families lived.

MA250 Revolution250 America250

04/29/2026

Looking for something Revolutionary 250 MA250 to do? Join Marblehead Museum Wednesday, April 29 for a new talk on Marblehead's Founding Father, Elbridge Gerry. Bob Allison will discuss Gerry's legacy, and explore whether Gerry acted as a principled statesman, or a political chameleon.
Tickets are available here: https://marbleheadmuseum.org/upcoming-programs-page/
The Jeremiah Lee Mansion features this portrait of Gerry, made in 1860 by William Goodwin in the folk art style. An iconic Gerry quote is painted above his head: "It is the duty of every man, though he may have one day to live, to devote that day to the good of his country."

Join us on Wednesday, April 29 as we welcome Bob Allison for a new talk on Marblehead's Founding Father, Elbridge Gerry. Bob will discuss Gerry's legacy, and explore whether Gerry acted as a principled statesman, or a political chameleon.

Tickets are available here: https://marbleheadmuseum.org/upcoming-programs-page/

The Jeremiah Lee Mansion features this portrait of Gerry, made in 1860 by William Goodwin in the folk art style. An iconic Gerry quote is painted above his head: "It is the duty of every man, though he may have one day to live, to devote that day to the good of his country."

Congress etched this same quote onto a monument erected next to Gerry's grave in Washington, D.C.

04/07/2026

We are having out next Wednesday Marblehead Rev250 talk at Abbot Public Library this Wed, 4/8, 7pm. Marblehead's own town historian, Don Doliber, will be speaking about Michael Corbett's act of revolutionary resistance at sea. We hope to see you there! You can also participate via the library Zoom link at https://us06web.zoom.us/meeting/register/vj52KgmETY-wckcZdCJWqQ

This program is funded in part by a grant from the Marblehead Cultural Council
MA250 Essex National Heritage Area 250

03/29/2026

April 1: Abbot Public Library, 7pm (No registration required)
Presented by Judy Anderson
"How the Revolutionary War’s First Battle Could Have Occurred in Marblehead."

The first of our free illustrated talks offered by Marblehead Rev250, held at Abbot Public Library

The first shots of the American Revolution were 'almost fired' in Marblehead or Salem, on a cold Sunday in February 1775, when nearly 250 British soldiers marched through Marblehead, and on to Salem’s North Bridge. Instead, less than two months later on April 19th, the first shots 'were' actually fired in Lexington, and at Concord’s North Bridge.
That infamous ”first battle” could easily have happened in 'town,' (or in Salem), with loss of Marblehead lives instead. And that near-miss episode could have made Marblehead or Salem, instead of Lexington and Concord, “Ground Zero” for the seven long years of war that followed.

Presented by Judy Anderson, an independent social, cultural and architectural historian who worked at the Marblehead Museum for 16 years, as the organization’s first administrative director in 1994 and curator of the Jeremiah Lee Mansion 2001-10.

North of Boston

03/29/2026

We have an exciting year of Rev 250 anniversary events planned throughout the year. We have 13 historic talks, several walking tours, and more events planned, later in the year.

Our talks start April 1, and will be offered Wednesdays at 7pm, in partnership with Abbot Public Library as the main venue. No registration required for the Library events.
Two talks will be held at the Marblehead Museum.

Details of the first of the library Rev 250 talks, at tinyurl.com/Mhead-250

Save our schedule--
Part of Essex National Heritage Area Rev250, Revolution250 and MA250 events.

02/11/2026

From Essex National Heritage Area, the story of Joseph Brown of Marblehead, the son of a Wampanoag father and Black woman. He was enslaved in the house of Beriah Brown of Rhode Island. In the middle of the war, Joseph was enlisted to take Beriah’s son’s spot. He was one of many enslaved men “promised liberty" from both sides, if they served time in the Revolutionary war.

The Revolutionary War has no shortage of legacies. As we celebrate the 250th anniversary, it’s important that we learn about the local names and stories which shaped our communities in the years following America’s Independence.

One such story is the life of Joseph Brown of Marblehead. The son of a Wampanoag father and Black woman, Joseph Brown was enslaved in the house of Beriah Brown of Rhode Island. In the middle of the war, Joseph was enlisted to take Beriah’s son’s spot. According to the Marblehead Museum’s profile on Joseph, his pension application states that he was “promised his liberty, if he would faithfully serve out his master's son's time."

After receiving his freedom, Joseph goes to Marblehead and eventually marries his wife Lucretia. Together, they operate a tavern on Gingerbread Hill and become household names within the town. A lively business known for Joseph’s fiddling and Lucretia’s baking (the Joe Frogger cookie is one recipe which is frequently attributed to her), it was well-frequented by locals. The building still stands today.

From an enslaved man serving in the Continental Army to a free business owner, Joseph’s story is not standard for the time. Despite this, it stands as a testament to the contributions which People of Color have made in Essex County since the founding of this country.

Check out these links to learn more about Joseph and Lucretia Brown:
> https://marbleheadmuseum.org/joseph-lucretia-brown/
> https://youtu.be/hyYu503-R8Q?si=4OgUK9xxjVGfthcS
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If you have any suggestions for future features, or would like Essex Heritage to feature your organization’s Rev250 highlights, comment below or email us at [email protected].

Photo of Joseph and Lucretia's Tavern, located on Gingerbread Hill, Marblehead
(private property)
Courtesy of Smithsonian Museum



MA250 Marblehead Museum

02/11/2026

Last fall, Evan Berenson, Executive Director of WBZ TV's "New England Living," interviewed several Marblehead historic organizations and site contacts as part of WBZ / CBS News Boston 2026 news features for America 250. Different town historic Rev 250 features will be shown on Wednesday and Friday newscasts airing 5-7am, and 5-6:30pm. You can learn about interesting stories, landmarks, and sites surrounding the events of the Revolutionary War. Different towns will be featured, including Marblehead. Revolution250 MA250
Watch to see what you already know, and what is new to discover! The first Marblehead story aired and can be viewed at

This is "America 250 - Spirit Of 76" by WBZ News / CBS News Boston on Vimeo, the home for high quality videos and the people who love them.