Wilmington Town Museum

Wilmington Town Museum/Col. Joshua Harnden Tavern

[Wilmington Town Museum @town_museum]

Due to inclement weather, the Museum will be closed today 02/23.

[Wilmington Town Museum @town_museum]

As the 2026 Winter Olympics begin, we honor Wilmington’s own Jeanne Ashworth.

In 1960, she made history as the first American woman to win an Olympic speed skating medal. Jeanne was later inducted in the Speed Skating Hall of Fame in 1975.

Photograph
1967
2009.0925.058D

[Wilmington Town Museum @town_museum]

Due to inclement weather, the Museum will be closed today, 01/26.

[Wilmington Town Museum @town_museum]

Due to inclement weather, the Museum is closed today, 01/19. We will be open tomorrow, 01/20.

[Wilmington Town Museum @town_museum]

In light of Netflix’s Death by Lightning, copy of Life of "President James A. Garfield" by Russell H. Conwell belonged to Silas Brown Jr., who lived in the Harnden Tavern at the time of Garfield's assassination.

Book
1881
FIC 2026.001

[Wilmington Town Museum @town_museum]

The Museum will be closed on the following dates for the holidays. We apologize for the inconvenience.

Monday, Dec. 22
Tuesday, Dec. 23
Monday, Dec. 29
Tuesday, Dec. 30

[Wilmington Town Museum @town_museum]

The Museum will be closed today 12/2 due to inclement weather. We apologize for the inconvenience. Our Annual Holiday Social will still be on Sunday, 12/7 from 2-4pm. We hope to see you there!

[Wilmington Town Museum @town_museum]

🎄✨ Join us for the Museum's Annual Holiday Social celebration!✨🎄

Celebrate the season with the Wilmington Historical Commission as we welcome winter with festive cheer. Enjoy wreaths and holiday decor for sale, sample festive foods, and soak up the spirit of the season.

[Wilmington Town Museum @town_museum]

Cup
19th century
Sabra Carter Collection
2022.1028.001

Birch bark containers like this were often crafted by indigenous people.

This specific cup is linked to Timothy Jacques Carter (a descendant of Woburn's first minister), who used it for "berrying" around 1840.

[Wilmington Town Museum @town_museum]

It’s spooky season! Perfect for dark romanticism.
Salem’s Nathaniel Hawthorne wrote The Scarlet Letter, inspired by the Salem witch trials.

This copy once belonged to Francis T. Hathaway, stepson of Maria Blanchard Brown.

Book
Boston, 1892
Gift of Larz Neilson
2007.0207.04

[Wilmington Town Museum @town_museum]

On Sept. 2, 1945, WWII ended. Families hung victory flags like this one, each star for a loved one in service—a symbol of sacrifice seen in homes nationwide, including Wilmington.

Flag
Boston, 1942
Donated by Fred Shine
2000.0503.021

[Wilmington Town Museum @town_museum]

Calling all Wilmington Scouts!

We're planning a Scouting history exhibit and need your help. If you'd like to donate or loan the following items, please email photos & info to [email protected]!

- Scout memorabilia
- Handbooks/documents
- Camp Forty Acres items

[Wilmington Town Museum @town_museum]

Thank you to everyone who came to honor our WWII & Korean War veterans at our Frontlines & Front Yards event this past Saturday!

Special thanks to everyone who helped make this happen!

Photo Credits: Brion Humphrey Berghaus, July 12, 2025.

[Wilmington Town Museum @town_museum]

Once a towering landmark on Aldrich Road, the Jaquith Hemlock was famed for its size and beauty. Although removed in 1953 due to safety concerns, we remember it today as a remarkable landmark of Wilmington's history.

Photograph
19th century
Gift of Stephen Jeffrey
2020.0112.072

[Wilmington Town Museum @town_museum]

NEW DATE
Frontlines & Front Yards
Saturday, July 12th
12 - 4pm
Wilmington Town Museum
430 Salem St

Enjoy a classic car show, special exhibitions, WWII reenactors, interactive demonstration stations, refreshments, a WWII-era plane flyover and so much more!

See you there!

[Wilmington Town Museum @town_museum]

The Wilmington Town Museum will be closed on Monday, June 23rd and Tuesday, June 24th.

We will be open the following Monday and Tuesday, and our monthly Open House on Sunday, July 6th from 2-4pm.

[Wilmington Town Museum @town_museum]

Due to weather, the Frontlines & Front Yards event that was scheduled for this Saturday at the Museum has been postponed. The new date will be announced soon.

[Wilmington Town Museum @town_museum]

Congratulations to the graduates of the WHS Class of 2025!

As we celebrate this year’s seniors, we also reflect on WHS’s earliest graduations.

Program
Wilmington, 1887
Gift of the Wilmington Memorial Library
2005.0201.009A

Photograph
Wilmington, 1874
FIC 2023.0000.072

[Wilmington Town Museum @town_museum]

Frontlines & Front Yards
Saturday, June 14th
12 - 4pm
430 Salem St

Join us as we honor those who served in WWII and the Korean War with a day of classic cars, period music, exhibits, and activities that bring 40s–50s Wilmington to life. A meaningful event for all ages!

[Wilmington Town Museum @town_museum]

Ribbon
20th century
FIC 2025.026

Photograph
1911-1968
Gift of Stephen Jeffrey
2020.0112.66

Wilmington Grange No. 268 began c. 1907. This ribbon’s blue side was for events; black side signified mourning.