Looking for a fun and quick diversion for the family in Boston? Check out the USS Constitution Museum in Charlestown! The museum is on the campus of the Charlestown Navy Yard and is adjacent to the USS Constitution ship. The museum chronicles the ship’s history and related exhibits related to its tenure at sea.
I had been to this museum a few times prior, but this visit was my first with my kids. It highly entertained all three of them: ages 10, 7, and 3. The ten-year-old enjoyed the actual history, and my middle child loved the hands-on component, especially the LEGO Maritime Festival that coincided with our visit. The youngest just liked to play around with whichever exhibit we were viewing.
Museum Exhibits
Try not to get your ship captured in one interactive display. Other displays included STEM elements, such as testing how hard different types of wood were. There was even a large model of a fully rigged USS Constitution, which was a hit with the crew. They enjoyed taking photos with cannons and graphics of sailors. The upstairs exhibit put the patron in the shoes of a circa 1812 sailor with lots of interactive components. Atop the stairs, my kids tried their hands at rigging a stuffed goat aboard the ship. Take the questionnaire to determine your seamanship skills. Lie down in the hammocks aboard a pseudo bunk to see how comfortable they were.
The downstairs chronicles the history of the ship, including what skirmishes it was involved in. There are plenty of actual artifacts from the ship on display as well.
What I really liked about the museum was its true combination of hands-on interactive displays while still presenting an informative historical narrative. It blends both elements seamlessly.
LEGO Maritime Festival
The LEGO Maritime Festival was a big hit, especially for Tommy, my second child. He has a creative mind and loves to build. With bins of color-coded Legos, kids were able to construct the ship of their dreams from scratch. Past winners were on display, as were others from this year. Elaborate LEGO designs included the Beatles’ “Yellow Submarine” and boats from replicas of actual ships to wildly imaginative designs. Tommy based his on the Constitution itself. If our parking meter hadn’t been about to lapse, he could have spent another hour in this room, easily. There were also coloring pages that all three enjoyed in the same room that could be hung on the wall.
The museum is part of the Boston National Historical Park, which includes other slices of history such as the sites on the Freedom Trail. For our next visit, we would definitely climb aboard the USS Constitution and USS Cassin Young. Metered parking was easily found during our mid-week visit.
Near the museum, the whole family enjoyed the 36-foot ball, a bronze statue of an octopus named “The Arms of Friendship.” If you’re looking for another seaworthy Charlestown adventure, check out the local craft distillery, Chattermark Distillers, located a short drive away.
