“Honest, Neat & Capable”: Staff Stories from 55 Mount Vernon St

In 1895, a small notice ran in the Boston Evening Transcript: “A lady wishes to find a place for a Swedish cook: honest, neat & capable. Inquire at 55 Mt Vernon St.” Who was that cook? What was her life like? And what was life like for other staff members, primarily women, who lived and worked at 55 Mount Vernon Street?

On this tour, we’ll examine the Nichols House from the perspective of the people whose job it was to care for the home and the family who employed them. We’ll share specific biographies of a number of employees, fitting their time in service into their broader life story. We will also explore a few areas of the building not usually on view.

The Nichols House Museum on Boston's historic Beacon Hill was home to an early 20th-century family of artists and social activists. Preserved as a museum by Rose Standish Nichols, a pioneering woman landscape architect, the house is furnished with an original collection, including sculpture by Augustus Saint-Gaudens.