Best hidden gem

Winner: The Boston Athenaeum

From the outside, the Athenaeum’s stone facade blends right into Beacon Hill. Inside, the private library is home to more than 620,000 volumes, including some of the rarest finds in Boston—a little over half of George Washington’s personal book collection is stored there. It’s not just the acquisitions that makes this place such a treasure, though. Oil paintings, spiral staircases, and marble sculptures of historical figures and notable members pepper the building’s interior. –Emily Anderson

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