SeeDorchester

William Clapp House

Dorchester Historical Society

This stately home was built in 1806 for William Clapp, son of Captain Lemuel Clapp, whose (1767) house still stands just around the corner. The William Clapp house is also the headquarters for the Dorchester Historical Society, it's open to the public once a month for tours. Fun fact: the Clapp family were prolific pear cultivators in their day, it's actually where much of their wealth came from. If you're into pears, you may have even eaten one of their creations; "Clapp's Favorite Pear" is still in production today. In 2007, a giant bronze pear statue was installed just south of here to commemorate the areas history as an orchard. So if you happen to notice it, now you know.

Address: 195 Boston Street
Getting there: T: Andrew
Hours: every 3rd Sun 11AM-4PM
Website: dorchesterhistoricalsociety.org (opens in a new tab)

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Listing from Wikivoyage: Boston/Dorchester, CC BY-SA 4.0.

Updated 28 Sept 2026. Something wrong? Tell us.

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