Massachusetts

The Boston Swan Boats | A Tradition of Family and Community

The Boston Swan Boats have been delighting New Englanders for more than 140 years. Learn more about this iconic and beloved Boston landmark.

By Bethany Bourgault|May 06 2021| Print icon

The Boston Swan Boats | A Tradition of Family and Community

Boston's Swan Boats | A Tradition of Family and Community

In Boston’s big-building, busy-city culture, it sometimes seems hard to find anything with longevity or sentimental value. Generations of the Paget family have been proving that wrong, though, for more than 140 years. That’s how long they’ve watched over one of the city’s most charming traditions– the beloved Boston swan boats, opening for the season on Saturday, May 8, 2021. These beautiful birds have nested themselves right in the heart of the public garden (and the hearts of New Englanders.)
Boston
The Boston Swan Boats | A Tradition of Family and Community
Credit: Bethany Bourgault

Boston Swan Boats History

Robert Paget took inspiration from just about everything around him when formulating the idea for the boats back in the 1870s. It was a popular pastime for 19th century Bostonians to float around the man-made pond in the public garden on paddleboats. Paget loved this idea, and since he had just been granted a boating license, he decided to build a boat that could carry passengers around the lagoon.
Close-up of a hand holding two green tickets for one ride on the Swan Boats at the Public Garden in Boston, Massachusetts.

Even the tickets for the Boston swan boats evoke a feeling of nostalgia.

Credit: Bethany Borgault
Even the tickets for the Boston swan boats evoke a feeling of nostalgia.
Credit: Bethany Borgault
A circular plaque embedded in cobblestones reads "Swan Boat Landing 1976. Made possible by the George B. Henderson Foundation," surrounding a star-shaped design in the center.

George B. Henderson Foundation 

Credit: Bethany Borgault
George B. Henderson Foundation
Credit: Bethany Borgault It was the heyday of the bicycle, thus Paget was inspired to power his boats with foot-pedals. He then built ornamental swans to cover the pedals. Why swans? Paget was a big fan of the German opera Lohengrin, in which the hero rides a swan-drawn boat across a river to save the princess.
A red and white boat with passengers sails on a pond surrounded by trees, with a brick building in the background and a small structure on the water's edge.

The swans sit toward the rear of the boats. The foot-powered pedals are behind the swan.

Credit: Bethany Borgault
The swans sit toward the rear of the boats. The foot-powered pedals are behind the swan.
Credit: Bethany Borgault
A white swan with an orange and black beak swims in a body of water with ripples.

You may even catch a glimpse of the pond’s two real swans on your voyage!

Credit: Bethany Borgault
You may even catch a glimpse of the pond’s two real swans on your voyage!
Credit: Bethany Borgault The first of the Boston swan boats, with its heavy copper swan and two wooden benches for passengers, took to the water in 1877, fulfilling the dream of Mr. Paget. Unfortunately, he did not get to see his dream blossom more than a year. He met his untimely death in 1878 at the age of 42. His wife took over the budding business, and it has never left the family since.
The Boston Swan Boats | A Tradition of Family and Community

Swan boats glide underneath the garden’s suspension bridge.

Credit: Bethany Borgault
Swan boats glide underneath the garden’s suspension bridge.
Credit: Bethany Borgault
Nowadays, the boats take passengers on more than just a 15 minute ride around the lagoon. They transport them through time. As Jon Marcus wrote in Yankee’s Mar/Apr 2011 issue, “people who once rode these icons with their grandparents now take their grandchildren.” The Boston Swan Boats are one of few experiences that have changed so little over time, residents can almost totally replicate the beloved rides they took in their own childhoods. Sharing those memories with the young ones makes for an even more special voyage. Children all over the world are familiar with the boats from another point of view, too. Robert McCloskey’s Make Way For Ducklings has been a favorite of many since it was published in 1941. It tells the story of a pair of ducks that move their family (complete with adorable ducklings) from the Charles River to the small island in the pond. There is even a statue in the garden commemorating the ducks and their liveliness, charm, and spunk.
Bronze statues of ducks in a line on a cobblestone path in a park.

The statue by sculptor Nancy Schon of Mrs. Mallard and her ducklings is a popular destination for children and adults.

Credit: Bethany Borgault
The statue by sculptor Nancy Schon of Mrs. Mallard and her ducklings is a popular destination for children and adults.
Credit: Bethany Borgault
A group of ducks resting on a grassy and rocky hillside surrounded by green foliage.

Real-life ducks nest and nap on the island featured in Robert McCloskey’s book.

Credit: Bethany Borgault
Real-life ducks nest and nap on the island featured in Robert McCloskey’s book.
Credit: Bethany Borgault
After the ride, visitors can spend as long as they’d like wandering the Public Garden (one of our picks for the Best Public Gardens in New England), admiring the vast and varied array of flora and fauna in the area. Beautiful flowers and the friendliest squirrels I’ve ever met made for a peaceful and lovely stroll.
A landscaped garden with neatly trimmed bushes, colorful flowers, and a backdrop of tall buildings under a clear sky.

Boston’s Public Garden

Credit: Bethany Borgault
Boston’s Public Garden
Credit: Bethany Borgault
A landscaped garden with neatly trimmed bushes and yellow flowers in the foreground, city skyscrapers in the background under a partly cloudy sky.

Boston’s Public Garden

Credit: Bethany Borgault
Boston’s Public Garden
Credit: Bethany Borgault
Bronze equestrian statue of a historical figure in uniform on a stone pedestal, set against a partly cloudy sky with tree foliage in the background.

The famous statue of George Washington in the Public Garden.

Credit: Bethany Borgault
The famous statue of George Washington in the Public Garden.
Credit: Bethany Borgault
A squirrel climbs a large tree with a small sign attached to the trunk. Trees and greenery fill the background.

A squirrel checks out the sign noting this tree as a Dawn Redwood. The Public Garden is a botanical garden, meaning that many of the plants are labeled.

Credit: Bethany Borgault
A squirrel checks out the sign noting this tree as a Dawn Redwood. The Public Garden is a botanical garden, meaning that many of the plants are labeled.
Credit: Bethany Borgault
Though the Boston swan boats have a long-lasting legacy of tradition, those who keep them running today have less-known traditions of their own. At the end of every season, all of the workers, many of them high school or college students, toss each other into the pond for laughs. Perhaps that’s why the Boston swan boats seem to be as popular as ever. They are unique pieces of nostalgic history. Bostonians are proud of them. A quick ride on a swan boat is 15 minutes in a different time – a time that’s quiet, calm and peaceful, even while the rest of the city is not.
The Boston Swan Boats | A Tradition of Family and Community

Seeing the dock of Boston’s swan boats brings back fond memories in many.

Credit: Bethany Borgault
Seeing the dock of Boston’s swan boats brings back fond memories in many.
Credit: Bethany Borgault
Have you ever enjoyed a ride on the Boston Swan Boats? This post was first published in 2015 and has been updated. 

SEE MORE: Best Public Gardens in New England 5 Best Free Boston Attractions

Bethany Bourgault

Bethany Bourgault interned with Yankee and New England.com during the summers of 2015 and 2016. She then graduated from Syracuse University, majoring in magazine journalism with minors in writing and religion. She loves reading, exploring the outdoors, ballroom dancing, and trying new recipes.

More by Bethany Bourgault

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  2. My parents took me for many rides on the Swan Boats. I took my son. I have a framed colored print of the Boats and Duck pond on my wall. I moved away from my beloved Boston area in 1986 with my husband’s job . I have not lost my accent, even after all these years. I’m proud to be a Bostonian, and I love all of the traditions I grew up with in the 50’s. Franks and beans with brown bread on Sat night, Wednesday was Prince spaghetti night, all the holidays were festive, going to watch the Marathon with my Dad as a young girl. Filene’s basement, lunch at the Woolworth’s counter, Jordan Marsh’s Christmas lights as well as the lights on the common. Skating on the duck pond for my Dec birthday! Thanks for the memories from Yankee.

    Reply

  3. Back in the early 50’s my parents took my sister and me to ride on the swan boats. It’s something I still remember until this day. I live in Pa. but I’ll always remember the swan boat rides.

    Reply

  4. Its my favorite thing to do in Boston.
    I took my children and am now excited to take my grandson.
    I hope this family tradition continues.

    Reply

  5. The Swan Boats are lovely and have always been very dear to me. A friend sent me pictures of Boston Ballet dancers representing Swan Lake on the boats (in 2014), and they were wonderful.

    Reply

  7. From my early childhood until I moved because of my husband’s job (USAF), IN 1968, I rode them several times each season. Was never able to take my own children there when they were young because of European assignments. But my grandson got a ride. One of my most favorite memories of my childhood.

    Reply

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