Rotch-Jones-Duff House & Garden Museum

As an authentic whaling mansion dating to 1834 and the only estate of this type on its original grounds, the Rotch-Jones-Duff House & Garden Museum (RJD) shares stories about New Bedford’s history, the families and workers that lived on site, life in the 19th and 20th centuries, and whaling’s impact on the world. The one-acre property includes a formal boxwood rose parterre garden, a boxwood specimen garden, and woodland area, and a 19th century wooden lattice pergola. A Greek Revival mansion sits at the north west corner of the estate, and features period rooms and changing exhibitions. The property is a National Historic Landmark (one of only 2,500 in the entire country). The Museum is open for general visitation, group tours, events, education programs and private rental year-round. The RJD also serves the local schools with curriculum-related field trips. The historic gardens are free to visit seven days a week and the Museum has a modest entrance fee.