Revolutionary Spaces and Massachusetts Historical Society Announce The Road to Revolution Opening This Month at the Old State House
Rare 1776 Declaration Anchors Boston’s Flagship Semiquincentennial Exhibition
BOSTON, MA (February 9, 2026) — Revolutionary Spaces and Massachusetts Historical Society (MHS) today announce The Road to Revolution: Massachusetts and the Independence Movement, a landmark exhibition opening February 11, 2026, at the Old State House. Developed in partnership and timed to America’s upcoming 250th anniversary, and funded in part by the Massachusetts Office of Travel & Tourism, the project debuts at one of the nation’s most significant Revolutionary sites, a literal stage upon which the founding story unfolded.
The Road to Revolution invites visitors to explore major Massachusetts events in the first year of the American Revolution through private letters, personal diary accounts, and treasured artifacts from the MHS collection that preserve first-hand testimony from the city’s past. Woven together, these primary sources reveal how Boston emerged as the place where protest took root, ideas took shape, and revolution took hold. As a signature offering of Boston’s Semiquincentennial programming, the exhibition will run through January 2027.
This exhibition commemorates the 250th anniversary of the American Revolution by offering unique and personal perspectives on events in 1775 and 1776 leading to the Declaration of Independence. It delves into the tensions, choices, and consequences that defined this pivotal time, providing a deeper understanding of the people who shaped America’s fight for independence and why Massachusetts residents chose revolution as the path forward.
“Boston was not just the backdrop to the revolution, it was a catalyst,” said Nat Sheidley, President and CEO of Revolutionary Spaces. “Events here ignited ideas and aspirations that reshaped the world, and that story still has unique power to challenge and inspire us today. That’s why we’re committed to creating experiences that spark deeper understanding of the past and fresh thinking about our present. Bringing this experience to the Old State House in 2026 invites people of all ages to stand in the very spaces where the momentum for independence accelerated and a new nation began to take form.”
“As America commemorates its 250th anniversary this year, we are proud to partner with Revolutionary Spaces on an exhibition that explores pivotal events and personal stories that ignited the American Revolution in Massachusetts,” said MHS President Lisa Krassner. “Sharing notable and treasured pieces from the MHS collection in the historic setting of the Old State House is an ideal way to bring these stories to life. It embodies the MHS mission to connect our nation’s past with audiences today.”
Anchoring the exhibition is an exceptionally rare 1776 broadside printing of the Declaration of Independence, produced in Boston and signed in type by John Hancock, President of the Continental Congress, and Charles Thomson, Secretary—a defining document displayed as the nation begins commemorating its 250th anniversary.
Additional artifacts, documents, and personal materials illuminate the lived experience of resistance, war, and civic transformation. Highlights include:
- Grapeshot recovered from the Battle of Bunker Hill
- Henry Knox’s calling cards and printing plate
- A bullet mold used to cast buck-and-ball ammunition
- A 20th-century painting of the Washington Elm, where George Washington assumed command of the Continental Army
Items from the MHS collection further expand the narrative, including a vivid broadside depicting the British retreat after Lexington and Concord, a carved powder horn carried in 1776, Paul Revere’s deposition recounting the lead-up to the battles, diary entries from life under martial law, and letters from Abigail Adams describing the suffering of Boston’s civilians.
Through immersive interpretation, The Road to Revolution examines how ordinary people drove extraordinary political change. The exhibit traces Boston’s transformation from civic resistance and collective protest to open war, illuminating the siege, occupation, and displacement that defined the city in the 1770s. It also follows how revolutionary ideas circulated through broadsides, diary accounts, and print culture, forging enduring traditions of civic action that continue to shape Boston’s identity.
Robust public programming, including talks, student experiences, and anniversary-aligned events, will accompany the exhibition throughout its run. Exhibit entry is included in the cost of admission. For more information and to purchase tickets, visit https://revolutionaryspaces.org/explore/exhibits/the-road-to-revolution/
Press are invited to attend the private opening of The Road to Revolution at the Old State House on Tuesday, February 10, starting at 6:00 PM. To confirm attendance and for other press inquiries, contact taryn@tmlpublicrelations.com or scox@regancomm.com.
ABOUT REVOLUTIONARY SPACES
Revolutionary Spaces stewards the historic Old South Meeting House and Old State House as landmarks, museums, and active civic spaces. Its mission is to bring people together to explore the American struggle to create and sustain a free society—using history as a powerful tool for civic engagement and public dialogue. For more information, go to RevolutionarySpaces.org or follow on social media at @RevSpaces.
ABOUT THE MASSACHUSETTS HISTORICAL SOCIETY
Founded in 1791, the Massachusetts Historical Society is the nation’s first historical society and a premier research library dedicated to collecting, preserving, and sharing the documents and artifacts of the American past. MHS enables public engagement through exhibitions, publications, educational programming, and research fellowships. Learn more at www.masshist.org.