Ding! Ding! Ding!

Jump on one or both of the spring trolley tours of Somerville history. In April tours will feature Revolutionary history (alongside modern life) and in May, Industrial History. These ticketed tours will bring historians of all ages on a loop through town, guided by experts in Somerville history narrating the stories of what you can see and what is gone but not forgotten. Each tour is under 90 minutes, with a short stop to get off and see the history for yourselves.

The Revolutionary Line trolley tour brings us back to the night of April 18th, 1775 and the of the Redcoats’ march to Lexington and Concord and the Midnight ride of Paul Revere warning the residents of Somerville, Medford and beyond about imminent danger, and adds context, stories, and hyper-local history to those famous events that started the American Revolution. Visit a 1635 gunpowder storage building that became the “spark of the Revolution” and a tower with a view of the entire Boston basin and learn what put Somerville at the center of the early War. 

The Industrial Line trolley tour delves into Somerville’s industrial past and the many vital industries that allowed our dear city to thrive: Brickmaking, meat packing, fabric finishing and Nerf ball manufacture, and, in recent times, arts and biotech all supported by transportation, new immigrants and (formerly) cheap housing. Starting in Union Square and taking visitors through multiple neighborhoods each of which shine a light on a different industry, community, and history visitors will learn about what has defined Somerville for 200 years.