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History of Forbes House Museum |
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Captain Robert Bennet Forbes (1804 ~ 1889) was a member of the
network of prominent families who helped shape maritime and
trading history during the Golden Era of sailing ships. He and
his Perkins uncles spearheaded the expansion of U.S
trade with China, contributing to Boston's status as the
second busiest port in America during the mid 1830's.
Captain Forbes was a China Trade merchant, ship owner,
designer, writer, and philanthropist of international
stature. His portrait to the left (c.1830) is attributed
to the studio of Lamqua, the leading painter working in
the Western style in China. |
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| The history of the Forbes House
Museum chronicles several major shifts. The house, at 215 Adams
Street, was used as a Forbes family residence until 1962, when
Mary Bowditch Forbes, a granddaughter of the Captain, died. |
The Captain’s great-grandson, H.A. Crosby Forbes, along with
family and extended family members were the major forces in the
opening of the Museum in 1965, as the Captain Robert Bennet
Forbes House Museum.
One year later it was registered as a National Historic
Landmark. While family history was the focus of the Museum
initially, the China Trade collection eventually gained the
spotlight and the name was changed in 1973 to the Museum of
the American China Trade. |
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The Institution’s name changed once again in
1980 and the China Trade Museum was born. In 1984 the China
Trade Museum merged with the Peabody Museum (now the Peabody
Essex Museum) in Salem.
At this time the original collections of the Forbes Family and
the historic property were reorganized into
what is known today as the Forbes House Museum. |
| The Captain Robert Bennet Forbes House
Charitable Trust was
established in 1984 to ensure the preservation of the house,
collections, and grounds at 215 Adams Street. These treasures
are interpreted through tours, lectures,
programs, and special exhibitions and events. |
| © 2007 Forbes House Museum,
Milton, MA 02186 All Rights Reserved |
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