55 Mount Vernon Street, Boston, March 1920. Image courtesy Historic New England.
The Museum
The Nichols House Museum is a historic home located in Boston’s Beacon Hill neighborhood. Visitors are welcome for tours, programs and special events throughout the year. We highlight topics such as women’s history, decorative arts, and everyday life through stories of the Nichols family and their contemporaries in late 19th century and early 20th century Boston.
In 1885, Dr. Arthur Nichols and his wife Elizabeth purchased the 1804 townhouse where their three daughters matured into designers, writers, and social activists. Domestic staff, including locals and individuals from abroad, also lived and worked in the four story home. Rose Standish Nichols later inherited the property and occupied it until her death in 1960. Collection highlights span beyond this time period and include sculpture by Augustus Saint-Gaudens, Flemish tapestries, and Chinese ceramics, as well as day-to-day objects like a 1936 radio.
Our Mission
The Nichols House Museum preserves and interprets the 1804 Federal townhouse and its collection that was home to Rose Standish Nichols and her sisters. The Museum fosters curiosity, creativity, and change-making, inspired by the trailblazing work and legacy of the Nichols sisters.
Our Values
Our values are rooted in the values that drove Rose, Marian, and Margaret Nichols’ lives and work. The Museum endeavors to be a place where all people feel they belong.
Preservation
The Museum is a faithful steward of an architecturally significant Beacon Hill townhouse, its contents, and its history.
Creativity
Creative expression and practice are at the heart of the Museum’s legacy and influences everything we do.
Collaboration
The Museum respects the talents and perspectives of the organizations and individuals who are our partners and collaborators. Through these relationships we are committed to our neighborhood, the communities of Boston, and beyond.
Dialogue
Our work strives to facilitate dialogue, connection and understanding. We recognize the barriers to social equity that have divided our city and society as a whole. We believe in the power of bringing people together for the exchange of ideas in a supportive environment.
Our Team
- Linda Marshall, Executive Director
- Rosalie Wilbur, Development & Administration Coordinator
- Camille Arbogast, Public Engagement Manager
- Alyssa Shirley, Collections Manager
- Elizabeth Weisblatt, Visitor Services Representative
- Prentice Crosier, Visitor Services Representative
- Diann Ralph, Visitor Services Representative
- Anne Lofgren, Visitor Services Representative
- Lin Nulman, Visitor Services Representative
- David Achenbach, Visitor Services Representative
- Steven O'Donnell, Volunteer Guide
Board of Governors
- Georgina Winthrop, President
- Anne Conner, Vice President
- David Thibodeau, Treasurer
- Suzanne Besser, Governor
- Lynda Schubert Bodman, Governor
- Laura Cousineau, Governor
- Deborah Hanley, Governor
- Eliza Hodgson, Governor
- Leah Rosovsky, Governor
- Sandra Steele, Governor
- Kim Druker Stockwell, Governor
- Greg Van Boven, Governor
- Jessica Vaule, Governor
- Eve Waterfall, Governor
- Brigid Williams, Governor
Opportunities
Spring 2025 Archives Internship
The Nichols House Museum is seeking an Archives Intern for 10 weeks, onsite one day per week during February – April 2025 for up to 10 hours per week. In support of the Nichols House Museum’s mission to preserve and interpret the 1804 Federal townhouse that was home to Rose Standish Nichols and her sisters, and to increase researcher access to its collection, the intern will work with the Nichols Family Papers Collection, primarily transcribing handwritten manuscripts including correspondence, diaries, and other documents. This work requires the ability to read historic cursive, as well as strong typing skills. In addition, the intern will be required to create social media posts highlighting their work (posting schedule to be determined).
The Intern will receive a $1,500 stipend in two installments.
Graduate students working toward history, art history, library, archival, or museum studies degrees are encouraged to apply; prior experience handling archival materials and transcribing historic documents a plus. Individuals from backgrounds that have traditionally been underrepresented in museums are particularly encouraged to apply, as are those passionate about women’s history who excel at working independently and addressing a project holistically.
Completed applications are due by January 13, 2025, to info@nicholshousemuseum.org and must include a resume, contact information for two references, and a brief cover letter outlining your interest in the internship and project. Email subject line should read “Internship 2025 application.”
Summer 2025 Julie Linsdell and Georgia Linsdell Enders Research Fellowship
The Nichols House Museum invites applications for the Julie Linsdell and Georgia Linsdell Enders Research Fellowship. This fellowship supports scholarly research relevant to the Nichols House Museum’s mission, interpretation, and collections, with a focus on women’s history, particularly women’s lives in late 19th and early 20th century Beacon Hill and Boston. The 175 hour, 6-8 week fellowship comes with a stipend of $2,500 and will begin and end during the summer of 2025 at mutually agreed upon dates.
This opportunity is open to anyone pursuing advanced research, including, but not limited to, graduate students, academic historians, independent scholars, and museum professionals in material culture, museology, art history, public history, history, or other related fields. Individuals from backgrounds that have traditionally been underrepresented in museums are encouraged to apply.
Successful applicants will articulate specific research questions and indicate research sources to pursue. The chosen candidate will work with the staff of the museum, and in digital and area archives, to complete the research project in the time allotted. The final research project will exist as an interpretive resource for the museum’s staff. At the conclusion of their research, the Linsdell Fellow will be invited to present their work and findings in a public forum.
To apply for the Linsdell Fellowship, submit the following materials in one single PDF document via email to info@nicholshousemuseum.org:
- Cover letter outlining your interest in the fellowship
- Resume or curriculum vitae
- Proposal including description of research topic, specific collections you intend to work with, and expected final products
- Contact information for two references familiar with your work
Priority will be given to applications received before January 20, 2025.