Sitting on the village green and the Boston Post Road, the Square House has welcomed visitors to the entrance of Rye for nearly three centuries. It has served as a home, an inn, a tavern, and city hall. Today, it is a historic museum, exhibit hall and the home of the Rye Historical Society.

The Square House Museum is a faithfully-preserved 18th century inn and tavern. Back in the 1700s, when the Boston Post Road was the primary way to travel, the inn sat between mile markers 25 and 26, offering rest and replenishment to weary travelers. George Washington, John and Samuel Adams all stayed at the cozy inn. In fact, Washington “tweeted” it’s “A very neat and decent inn.” 10-15-1789.

The Square House has five period rooms: the front hall, tavern room, the warming kitchen, upstairs hallway and the innkeeper’s bedroom. Each room contains antique furniture, decorative arts and everyday objects that illustrate tavern life during the late 1700’s. There is also a tavern bedroom furnished with reproductions that can be touched and handled so that 18th century tavern life can be experienced first-hand.