Sacred Places: A Virtual Tour Through Four National Trust Historic Sites
National Trust Historic Sites are open! We encourage you to check directly with each site for up-to-date information on available activities, ticketing, and guidelines if you are planning a visit.
Plan Your VisitIn this, the first of a seven-part “virtual tour” of our historic sites, I’ll be taking you on a journey to the sacred and religious sites among the portfolio—four places that represent the history of southwestern Pueblos (Acoma Sky City), post-colonial-era Black Americans (two sites of the Museum of African American History), and early Jewish residents of Newport, Rhode Island (Touro Synagogue).
As a nation, our defining characteristics include religious tolerance, and at a time when people are shut out from their houses of worship, instead streaming religious ceremonies online, we hope this virtual tour is a reminder not only that we live in a country with rich history and diverse faiths, but that we share collective values.
photo by: Douglas Merriam
Atop a sandstone bluff in a valley studded with sacred, towering monoliths, the traditions and culture of the Acoma people remain untouched. The Pueblo, located about 60 miles west of Albuquerque, New Mexico, was established in the 11th century, with buildings as old as 1144.
The village, comprised of earth-toned mud homes with white ladders for entrance, is one of the oldest continuously inhabited communities in the United States. Mission San Esteban Rey (opening photograph) was built c. 1641.
The Museum of African American History in New England comprises Boston's Abiel Smith School (shown here) as well as two historic African Meeting Houses, one in Boston and one on the island of Nantucket. Together they form New England's largest museum dedicated to preserving, conserving, and interpreting the contributions of Black Americans, detailing the story of organized Black communities from the Colonial Period through the 19th century.
The African Meeting House in Boston was built in 1806 to house the first African Baptist Church of Boston (First Independent Baptist Church), and it is now the oldest extant Black church building in America.
photo by: Joseph Ferraro
The Nantucket Museum of African American History locations include the the Florence Higginbotham House, which sits next door to the restored African Meeting House, the second-oldest oldest extant Black church building in America.
photo by: Joseph Ferraro
The interior of the African Meeting House in 2018, where a tour group stopped in to view a film about the property's past and to hear an oral history of the grounds, given by Charity-Grace Mofsen, when she was Associate Director of Nantucket Operations.
photo by: Lew Keen
Located in Newport, Rhode Island, Touro Synagogue is the oldest synagogue building in the United States. Dedicated in 1763, the structure is one of exquisite beauty and design. Steeped in history and ideals, the synagogue is considered one of the ten most architecturally distinguished buildings of 18th-century America and the most historically significant Jewish building in the United States.
photo by: Stanley Goldberg
Touro Synagogue's congregation was founded in 1658 by the descendants of Jewish families who had fled the Inquisitions in Spain and Portugal and who themselves left the Caribbean seeking the greater religious tolerance that Rhode Island offered. The interior architecture of the synagogue building is believed to have been influenced directly by the members of the congregation, especially, the Hazzan [prayer leader], Isaac Touro, who had only recently arrived from Amsterdam.
Check out the rest of our virtual tours of National Trust Historic Sites, exploring places related to Commerce and Industry, Garden Glory, Architectural Traditions, Presidential Retreats, Modernism, and Southern History.
Looking for an opportunity to take direct action on behalf of a sacred place? The National Fund for Sacred Places, a program of Partners for Sacred Places in collaboration with the National Trust, helps ensure that America’s sacred spaces continue to serve their communities’ materials and spiritual needs. This mission becomes even more significant during crises like the one we currently face. If you know of a congregation in need of support, learn more and apply for a chance to help the community steward its house of worship.
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