John F Kennedy Presidential Library
You can visit the JFK Library and Massachusetts' Commonwealth Museum, and have a nice seaside walk and a picnic, in the same visit to Columbia Point.
John F Kennedy Presidential
Library & Museum on Columbia Point.
The John F Kennedy Presidential Library & Museum, America's tribute to one of its most popular presidents ever, is at Columbia Point in the Dorchester section of Boston (map).
Designed by I M Pei, the library features exhibits introduced by a 30-minute movie on the late president's life.
Then, arranged in chronological order, it displays JFK memorabilia from his christening dress, PT-109 uniform, and flight jacket worn when president, to papers relating to the Bay of Pigs and Cuban Missile Crisis.
There is a re-creation of the White House's Oval Office as it was when he was president, and his desk and rocking chair.
The JFK Library and Museum has a small café for drinks and snacks.
The landscaping of Cape Cod roses, sea grass, and weeping willows serves to harmonize the building with the peninsula, harbor islands, and sea.
Boston's Harborwalk goes all the way around Columbia Point with fine views of Dorchester Bay. Just off the Harborwalk by the JFK Library are picnic tables in a grove of shade trees.
Between the JFK Library and the University of Massachusetts - Boston campus stands the Massachusetts Archives which includes the fine small Commonwealth Museum outlining the history of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Admission to the museum is free.
Besides the Commonwealth Museum's historical exhibits (some interactive, designed to delight children), its Treasures Gallery displays the founding documents of the state, including John Adams' Massachusetts Constitution (1780), the model for the US Constitution; and the printed copy of the US Declaration of Independence, signed by John Hancock, that was sent to Massachusetts to verify the foundation of the United States of America.
To get there by subway, take the MBTA Red Line subway to JFK/U Mass Station. From the station it's a 1.1-mile (1.8-km, 25-minute) walk southeast to Columbia Point and the JFK Library (map), or you can take one of the free shuttle buses from the station. About every 20 minutes, a Line 2 shuttle bus takes you right to the Library. More frequently, Line 1 buses take you to the University of Massachusetts - Boston campus, whence it's a 10-minute walk past the Massachusetts Archives to the JFK Library.
If you're driving, follow I-93 (also designated as US 1 and MA Routes 3, 15, and 16, and the Southeast Expressway) south from the city center, taking Exit 15 at Columbia Road and Morrissey Boulevard, and follow the signs.
John
F Kennedy Presidential Library
& Museum
Columbia Point (map)
Boston MA 02125
Tel 1 866-535-1960 or 617-514-1600