W.E.B. Du Bois Boyhood Homesite, Civil rights landmark in Great Barrington, Massachusetts.
The W.E.B. Du Bois Boyhood Homesite is a National Historic Landmark in Great Barrington, Massachusetts, set on a wooded parcel of land where the civil rights leader and scholar spent his childhood. The site features the stone foundation of the original family home, walking paths through the trees, and information panels placed around the grounds.
The Du Bois family owned the property in Great Barrington for several generations before financial hardship in the 1950s forced a sale and the house was torn down. The site sat largely forgotten for years before efforts to memorialize it gained momentum and it was eventually listed as a National Historic Landmark.
W.E.B. Du Bois grew up here in rural New England at a time when few Black Americans had access to quality education, yet he went on to earn a doctorate from Harvard. Walking the grounds today, visitors can read the information panels that connect his childhood surroundings to the ideas he later developed as a writer and activist.
The grounds are easy to walk through on foot, with clear paths and information stops spaced throughout the site. Wearing comfortable shoes is a good idea, as the terrain can vary depending on the season, and the visit works well at any time of day.
Although the house itself was torn down decades ago, the stone foundation that remains is surprisingly modest for the childhood home of someone who became one of the most studied figures in American history. Du Bois was also a co-founder of the NAACP, yet this quiet corner of rural Massachusetts is where that story began.
The community of curious travelers
AroundUs brings together thousands of curated places, local tips, and hidden gems, enriched daily by 60,000 contributors worldwide.
