Open House: Free Historic Tour in Watertown

• Story by Alison Bauter (Patch Staff)

WATERTOWN, MA - Historic New England is hosting free open houses around the region this Saturday.

"From Maine to Rhode Island, learn about the people who lived in stone-enders, urban mansions, rural estates, and working farms during free guided tours at Historic New England’s house museums," HNE's site says.

For the social media-inclined, tag photos with #HistoricNewEngland on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.

All tours are first-come, first-served, Historic New England notes. Watertown's Browne House will open at 11 a.m. and the last tour will begin at 4 p.m.

Constructed in the late 17th or early 18th century, the Browne House was originally home to a farming family.

According to HNE, it was in a dilapidated state when it was acquired and restored by Historic New England founder William Sumner Appleton in 1919.

"Browne House is a modest 'one-over-one' dwelling with eighteenth- and nineteenth-century additions. Prominent features include a steeply pitched roof, diamond-patterned casement windows, and early door and window placements and styles," HNE's site says. "During the restoration, an impressive amount of seventeenth-century finish detail was uncovered."

You can find the full list of open houses from Historic New England here.

>> Photo of the Browne House via Historic New England