Five Things You Must Do While You Are in Framingham

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Framingham, Massachusetts (population 68,000), is 19 miles west of Boston. Framingham was first settled in 1650, and officially incorporated in 1700 on land formerly known as Danforth's Farms, named after Salem witch trials judge Thomas Danforth of Framlingham, England.

1.   See the art of New England. The Danforth Museum of Art has a collection of historic American art and changing exhibits by contemporary artists, classes and workshops, and community-outreach programs. The Junior Gallery is designed especially for families, with more than 90 adult and children's art courses and workshops.

2.   Have family fun outdoors. Callahan State Park is an 820-acre day-use area in northwest Framingham. It has seven miles of marked trails, and is also used for fishing, picnicking, horseback riding, and cross-country skiing. Within the park are nearly 100 acres of open fields still under an agricultural lease.

3.   Improvise in front of an open mike. The Amazing Things Arts Center hosts top-name folk, jazz and acoustic acts, and has exhibits of local artists’ works, weekly jazz and folk music jams, and an open-mike night. Classes for all ages include acting, music, and puppetry.

4.   Learn to identify wildflowers. A few miles northeast of Framingham, Garden in the Woods is the headquarters and botanic garden of the New England Wild Flower Society. Throughout the seasons, it displays more than 1,600 kinds of wildflowers and native plants, including more than 200 rare or endangered species. Many of the exhibits are fun for children, and plants are sold from mid-April through September at the largest native-plant nursery in New England.

5.   See the lair of a famous hermit. Walden Pond State Park in Concord, a few miles north of Framingham, is where mid-19th essayist and naturalist Henry David Thoreau lived for two years and wrote of his experiences in the classic “Walden.” The pond is considered the birthplace of the U.S. conservation movement. The 333 acres surrounding it include a small beach with a swimming area and canoe launch, trails for walking and cross-country skiing, and a replica of Thoreau's cabin.