(Photo by Maddie Meyer/Getty Images)

There’s a lot of history in New England. And New England’s historical homes house a lot of that history. Let’s see where to go.

 

I was lucky enough to grow up in New England. Massachusetts, specifically. Wakefield, even more specifically. And Greenwood, even more specifically than that. From field trips to day trips, I’ve visited historic places all over the state. Because there’s a lot of history here! All the way back to Plimouth Plantation, where I went with my Greenwood School classmates and took my own kids years later.

 

When you have a place like Massachusetts–and New England as well–where people have been building houses for hundreds of years, you end up with a lot of historic homes. I can remember looking for those historic home markers on houses when I was a kid. And I actually have one in my neighborhood now: the Count Rumford House in North Woburn. It’s even open for tours from time to time.

 

New England’s Historical Homes: Which Cities Should You Visit?

But here’s the thing: there’s so many of these spread out all over New England that it’s hard to get a read on where to go. Enter the fine folks at Assurance. They put together something called Preserving the Past: Cities With the Most Historical Homes and it’s a fine resource. They dig into, among other things, the U.S. cities with the most historic homes. But I’d like to focus on New England.

 

Assurance played with the numbers a bit and got a ranking for the U.S. cities with the most historic homes per 100,000 residents. And that’s where New England really shines. Five out of the six states landed cities on that list, so let’s see how many houses each city boasts. And let’s pay one a visit, while we’re at it! Oh, and the full list is here if you want more.

  • 5) Newport, R.I.

    275.5 Historic Homes per 100,000 residents – With all of those breathtaking mansions that attract thousands upon thousands of tourists annually, it’s no wonder Newport landed in the Top 5.

  • 8) Greenwich, CT

    245.7 Historic Homes per 100,000 residents – Wasn’t Martha Stewart’s famous first home, Turkey Hill, in Greenwich? All those high-end CT towns just blend together.

  • 9) Augusta, ME

    241.3 Historic Homes per 100,000 residents – I was really hoping it was Bangor that would make the list and not Augusta. Because Stephen King’s house is in Bangor. What the hell, let’s take a look at it anyway.

  • 12) Newton, MA

    215.1 Historic Homes per 100,000 residents – Newton’s just a stone’s throw from the ROCK 92.9 studios in Waltham. I might have to pay a visit to the Hammond House one of these days.

  • 15) Portsmouth, NH

    184.9 Historic Homes per 100,000 residents – There’s a pretty decent drop-off between 12 and 15 on this list, but there’s still plenty to see from Olde Towne and beyond in Portsmouth.

  • 18) Cambridge, MA

    178.1 Historic Homes per 100,000 residents – It’s no surprise that Cambridge cracked the Top 20. It’s just a surprise that a city so rich in history wouldn’t rank higher!