Hancock Clarke House
MA - Boston, Massachusetts, USA
36 Hancock St, Lexington, MA 02420, USA
MUSEUM
VISITOR INFORMATION
TICKET REQUIRED
Open daily except Tuesday, 10am-4pm (last tour); after November 1, weekends only, 10am-4pm.
FREE PUBLIC PARKING
This house is managed by Lexington History Museums, and there is an admission fee to visit.
SITE FEATURES
Surviving Structures
May-June are explicitly the busiest months for school groups. School bookings may disrupt ordinary opening; the full-year peak across all visitors is unconfirmed.
September-October for the guided house tour with milder walking weather beyond the main school-group period. Confirm a published tour day and any special closures.
HISTORIC SITES NEARBY
Nearby Historic Sites
miles
Landmark
WHO WAS HERE
4
Samuel Adams
Paul Revere
John Hancock
Dorothy Quincy
About Hancock Clarke House
The Reverend John Hancock, grandfather of the American revolutionary leader of the same name, purchased this site in 1699. In 1738 he built this two-story timber-frame house. Rev. Hancock's son, Thomas, a wealthy Boston merchant, is said to have financed the construction. The front or main portion of the house consists of the 2+1⁄2-story structure with central chimney, a short center hall, two rooms on each of the two floors, and an attic.
The original 1730s timber house survives as a furnished museum operated by the Lexington Historical Society. Restored period rooms, collections, gardens, and conserved architectural features interpret the Hancock and Clarke families and the building’s association with the opening hours of the Revolution.
History happened here at Hancock Clarke House
Succeeding Hancock as minister in 1752, the Reverend Jonas Clarke, who reared 12 children in the parsonage, was an eloquent supporter of the colonial cause.
On the evening of April 18, 1775, John Hancock and Samuel Adams, having attended the Massachusetts Provincial Congress in Concord and wary of returning to Boston, were guests of Rev. Clarke.
Fearing that they might be captured by the British, Dr. Joseph Warren of Boston dispatched William Dawes and Paul Revere to Lexington with news of the advancing British troops. Arriving separately, they stopped to warn Hancock and Adams around midnight, then set off for Concord. Hancock and Adams made their way to Burlington to avoid capture.
PEOPLE WHO LIVED HERE
PEOPLE WHO DIED HERE
PEOPLE AT REST HERE
EXTERNAL LINKS
lexingtonhistory.org: https://www.lexingtonhistory.org/hancock-clarke-house
battlefields.org: https://www.battlefields.org/visit/heritage-sites/hancock-clarke-house
Source note: Hancock-Clarke House is in Lexington, Massachusetts; the row’s City field says MA - Boston.
Accessed 2026-09-29