Long-Awaited Renovations Underway at West End Museum

For the first time since its incorporation, The West End Museum is undergoing renovations and a modernization designed to create an even better visitor experience.

The first stage of renovations – installing a replacement floor in the main gallery – is expected to begin this August. New flooring for the permanent exhibit, “The Last Tenement,” will also be added later in the year.

Improvement Goals

The Museum aims to expand the West End’s story, to more fully illustrate and highlight the residents’ lives and experiences. To that end, the Main Exhibit gallery is being reconfigured to create an immersive space where visitors can feel as if they are transported back in time to the old West End neighborhood. Previously unseen pieces from the Museum’s archives will be added to this collection.

Other improvements will include an updated welcome station, where a Museum representative will greet the public and assist with their visit; a new gift section; and a reconfigured historical mural leading from the entryway into the permanent exhibit area.

“The Exhibits Committee aims to recruit researchers to develop content that will be designed with an eye toward clear and accessible content that better represents the dynamic nature and diverse character of the neighborhood through time,” said Museum Director Sebastian Belfanti. “While maintaining the stories of immigration and urban renewal that have always defined The West End Museum, exhibits will include an earlier era, the first substantial settlements of Black residents on Beacon Hill. It will likely also explore some of the various historical features―such as transportation, society, and politics―incorporating as many of the individual voices and stories as possible within our limited space.”

Belfanti noted these renovations are aimed at strengthening community engagement, increasing museum attendance and augmenting interactions between community members. It is hoped that these efforts will, in turn, increase revenue and secure the Museum’s future.

The renovations, however, may impact the hours the Museum is open to the public. “We’ll probably be closed for a week in the fall, but will try to incorporate natural breaks (such as Christmas, and time between exhibits) to reduce impact,” said Belfanti.