About this vendor
Located on the Waltham/Watertown line in eastern Massachusetts, Gore Place is a historic estate and venue that provides a year-round setting for wedding celebrations. Just nine miles from downtown Boston, this historic estate and farm offer a number of gorgeous backdrops for your “I do." A pastoral oasis in the middle of the city, the venue's classic architecture and tranquil grounds help couples mark their milestone moment in an unforgettable way.
Gore Place was established by Christopher and Rebecca Gore in 1786 and their mansion was built in 1806. Rebecca was a key person responsible for the inspiration of the house's design, following the stately country homes of Europe. Gore Place Society was established in 1935 to permanently protect the historic buildings and open space as a private nonprofit museum and farm. In 1970, the National Park Service designed the estate a National Historic Landmark. As it was during the Gore family’s time, the property is a working farm as well.
Couples can choose from a few locations at Gore Place for their wedding celebrations. One is the 1793 Carriage House, which features climate control, accessible restrooms, and plenty of parking. Its wood tones, neutral color palette, and traditional style help amplify a variety of wedding styles. Among its convenient amenities is access to a catering kitchenette. The Carriage House can accommodate up to 125 guests. A secondary option for a your event is the onsite outdoor Tent. It is suitable for gatherings of up to 200 guests and also has access to parking and the catering space in the Carriage House. With this covered outdoor option, couples and their guests can immerse themselves in the stunning landscape around the estate.
Amenities + details
Ceremony Area
Covered Outdoors Space
Dressing Room
Handicap Accessible
Indoor Event Space
Outdoor Event Space
Reception Area
Wireless Internet
Liability Insurance
On-Site Accommodations
Ceremony Types
- Civil Union
- Commitment Ceremony
- Elopement
- Interfaith Ceremony
- Non-Religious Ceremony
- Religious Ceremony
Settings
- Barn
- Farm & Ranch
- Estate
- Historic Venue
- Museum
- Park
Popular with couples like you
Check out our featured vendors.
Reviews
Your trust is our goal. Our community relies on honest reviews to help
you make those big decisions with ease.
4.8
out of 5.021 reviews
We had our wedding reception at Gore in May 2023, underneath the large event tent on the grounds. The whole area was absolutely the perfect backdrop! We had our cocktail hour on th...
e grass in front of the large tent, and then dinner + dancing in the tent. Although sunny, the weather was a bit cool so we had the sides of the tent installed. We were worried it would hurt the vibe a bit, but it was perfect! The temp inside the tent stayed very comfortable, and we still got to see the beautiful grounds through the transparent sides. The lighting in the tent is also really beautiful and minimalist, but definitely keeps the tent bright enough after dark. We had ~80 guests + vendors and the tent felt super open with lots of space to move around, but it also didn’t feel too empty. The grounds are so gorgeous, and gave us a very beautiful setting for photos! There were lovely purple flowers in bloom around the tent, which was a bonus! We worked with Linda as the venue coordinator. She can be a bit hard to get in touch with sometimes, since they have many events and she's very busy, but she was really nice! The venue has quite strict rules about a limited time window for setup, since it is technically in a public park, which made planning/coordinating the logistics of setup a bit more challenging than they needed to be. However, in the end Linda was quite flexible and allowed us some additional time for setup, as well as allowing deliveries/pick-ups of rental items the afternoon before and morning after. If you plan to employ a day-of coordinator for your event, or a full wedding planner, then we would highly recommend Gore for your wedding venue! If you won’t have anyone helping you coordinate the setup of all your decor, then it might be a bit tricky given the short time window for setup on the day-of.
We had our wedding at Gore Place, and it was such a wonderful experience. Linda was so kind and answered any questions that I had with so much patience. When we had to move the cer...
emony inside because of rain, they worked with us to set up a beautiful ceremony space inside the Carriage House with open doors so we could still see the grounds. It was a lovely day and I didn't have to worry about anything that day because I knew I was in good hands with Darcy on-site. I can't recommend them enough.
Perfect place for a wedding. The scenery is stunning and the staff are very helpful.
Linda DeFranco from the Gore Place was amazing to work with!
She was the most helpful, responsive and genuinely caring. We formed an amazing connection with Linda from the start ...
and she made planning our wedding day seamless. Every step of the way she was informative and very timely in her communications with us.
The venue is gorgeous and extremely well-kept.
We highly recommend the Gore Place Carriage House for any corporate or social event and we remain very thankful that we had the opportunity to work hand in hand with Linda.
Thank you for everything!
My husband and I got married at Gore Place last weekend and it could not have been more perfect. Our original venue could not hold our wedding as planned and we had to look for a n...
ew location to hold a very small ceremony with our immediate family and friends to become legally married. From living in Waltham and passing by the beautiful grounds of Gore Place, we decided to inquire if they would be available to hold our ceremony. We met their wedding coordinator Linda to take a tour of the grounds and could not be more pleased with our experience. Linda was attentive and empathetic towards the current pandemic that is affecting so many weddings this year. She truly understood how brides and grooms are feeling during the pandemic and wanted to help in any way that she could. She gave us a tour of the grounds and the options we would have for our ceremony. Gore Place is so expansive and has multiple different options. Given that our wedding was in late October, we had no idea what we would be dealing with for weather, not to mention the State’s limits on guests, both inside and outside. Gore Place offered three different locations for our ceremony (outside in the field, outside under the tent, and inside the beautiful Carriage House) and we now had three options to help us with weather. We left our meeting with Linda and knew immediately this was the place we wanted to get married.
On our wedding day, Linda was very responsive and there for our every need. She allowed us to take pictures in the mansion, which make for breathtaking photo-opts. Linda was a superb wedding coordinator and she met and exceeded our every expectation. My husband and I would recommend Gore Place and Linda for your wedding as it truly provides a one-of-a-kind experience and especially during the pandemic, it was a ray of sunshine, during our cloudy skies. We are so grateful to have chosen Gore Place and highly recommend for future brides and grooms.
Working with Linda at Gore Place was a wonderful experience. While we cancelled our reception because of Covid-19, we absolutely loved our time working with Linda leading up to our...
would-be reception. She was so helpful in thinking through the details, timeline, etc and helped us think through details we wouldn’t have even thought of. The Gore Place is an ideal venue for a wedding on a budget...it’s a beautiful venue (we were planning to do the carriage house option but they have an outdoor tent as well) and really a hidden gem for weddings in the Boston area.
Gore Place was the perfect space for our wedding – a mix of the beautiful outdoors and the brick mansion in the background. We planned our wedding from out of state and Linda was ...
so kind and helpful along the way. She did a face time meeting with us, met us in person a couple of times, and communicated well over email. She was there on the day of the wedding and was so kind and helpful along the way. We loved getting to have food trucks pull right up to the big white tent for dinner and dessert! The bridal party got to use a room inside of the mansion for our getting ready finishing touches, some picture taking, and signing our ketubah. What an amazing venue – we’re so happy to have gotten married at Gore Place!
There are not enough words to say how pleased I am with the Gore Place. I knew I wanted to get married here after our initial tour. Linda wowed me, and she is so sweet, she is the ...
biggest reason I wanted to stay. The grounds a beautiful and Linda went above and beyond to make my day the wedding of my dreams. I was so happy she was there to coordinate because we had some trouble with the sound system, so our wedding had to start a bit late, but she didn't rush us at all! She also went around to make sure we were all in the loop so we knew what was going on. Anytime I had an issue, (like the fact that my vendors couldn't deliver on a Sunday and the typical drop off space was being used the day before my wedding) she worked her hardest to make sure it would be resolved! On top of everything, my guests loved the charm of the estate and loved that the sheep came out for the wedding ceremony! I will definitely keep this venue in mind for my next big party.
The Gore place is such a special and unique place to get married. It offers up, historic, vintage, outdoors, earthy, barn, rustic, and so much green space. We did our ceremony, coc...
ktail and reception there and each area on the property brought a whole new feel. We were able to make our wedding our own and were inspired by the natural landscape, the agricultural roots and the beauty of the mansion. It's in a great location and I can't picture having had my wedding anywhere else.
The manager, Marjorie, was highly organized, always professional and knowledgeable, and she helped us to put on a fabulous wedding. The Carriage House is charming and a marvelous ...
place for a ceremony or a small reception. The sound bounces off the walls so you wouldn't want to have a big band in there. The large tent space was marvelous for a reception. We had 85 people and a live band, but you could have more tables. Marjorie is reliable, honest and very smart about helping to plan the day. Also, she seems to know everyone in Waltham and a lot of good vendors, and this was helpful. The main house is a bit stuffy for our taste and we just didn't use it. Everything was clean, the staff are productive and terrific, and we would highly recommend this event space. All in all, this was an A+ venue for us.
We originally found Gore Place through the Knot's concierge service and instantly fell in love with the beautiful and historic grounds, the mansion and the rustic appeal of the new...
ly renovated carriage house. I had my heart set on a fall wedding and couldn't imagine another place to do it. It was also a plus that it is very close to Boston and fit into our budget. The venue is only part of the appeal, as Marjorie, the function manager was indispensable in making sure our wedding went as planned. She is very communicative, thoughtful and easy to work with with. Our beautiful fall wedding day turned into a rainy fall day but Gore Place and Marjorie's planning lends itself to multiple options, all of which made for a beautiful wedding and fun reception. We are very grateful that we were able our special day there and would recommend it to anyone planning a wedding.
I am really torn writing this review, because we had the most beautiful wedding at Gore Place this past May. The grounds are lovely and green, and it really was the historic New En...
gland venue we were looking for. Logistics, though, were a nightmare...and that was with a wedding planner, her team and a wedding coordinator. Marjorie is the event coordinator at Gore Place. She isn't there to actually help with the event, she will just be on site the day of to police things. The inflexibility we experienced with Gore Place was quite a turn off, and I caution anyone looking here for a wedding because it ended up costing substantially more than other venues in the Boston area because of this. What I just can't stand by is that the week or so before our wedding, Marjorie told our wedding planner that there was a plant sale on the property that would end an hour after our wedding started, and that she wouldn't instruct the customer's cars to not park behind our ceremony spot. She was adamant that she told us about this plant sale when we came to look at the venue, but had we known about this beforehand we would have asked a million questions before booking the weekend we did. We asked her to meet us halfway, and help us figure something out so the plant sale could go on and there would be no cars parked behind our ceremony. She wouldn't budge. There were several other incidents along these lines, which makes us unable to recommend a wedding at Gore Place.
We LOVED having our wedding at Gore Place! It was important to us to have a venue that we felt was more than just a hotel or country club hosting cookie cutter events. Choosing Gor...
e means that you are supporting a historic site and allows you to have a unique and customizable wedding! The site is absolutely beautiful and we were able to make use of the whole property in a way that made the day feel extra special. Our ceremony was on the lawn in front of a lovely apple tree with the mansion behind us; our cocktail hour was in the beautifully restored carriage house (with lawn games on the lawn); our reception was in the tent and we took pictures all over the estate, including in the mansion. Marjorie was an incredible help throughout the whole process from answering our one million and one questions to meeting with my husband and me (and my parents and in-laws) multiple times as we made our decision and then planned the day to her invaluable support and organization to make the wedding day go smoothly! I cannot recommend Gore Place highly enough-it was just perfect!
Gore Place is the venue you want to have your wedding at. Our venue search took a bit longer than expected, but we were SO HAPPY with how it turned out at Gore Place. Marjorie was ...
extremely helpful every step of the way: from our first meeting, to our subsequent trips to plan our the day, to the wedding day. Everything went perfectly. The mansion was great for our cocktail hour, the tent was a perfect dinner location, the carriage house was an awesome reception venue and the lawn looked beautiful with our ceremony set up. Seriously AT THE VERY LEAST go set up a meeting to check it out. You will love it!
I am still overwhelmed at how helpful Gore Place was in helping us organize our wedding. Marjorie helped recommend caterers and activities for our guests. She set up the favors/g...
uest book table for us on the day of and made sure there were special tours of the mansion.
The estate itself is gorgeous. There are 2 venues - the carriage house for parties under 90 (which we used - it was FANTASTIC!) and a huge tent that can accommodate many more (250 or more?). They will only rent out one venue at any time so you know you are the top priority for your event.
As an added bonus, since we are Waltham residents we got a huge discount.
It was a fantastic day and my guests all raved about the venue. I highly recommend!
We wanted to have our wedding at a museum or historical home. We figured that if we were paying a boatload for a venue, why not have the money go to somewhere that is preserving a ...
sense of history and/or education?
We looked at several locations around the Boston area and ended up with Gore Place. The field/farm outdoor area is gorgeous, and fit with our theme (casual, but classy). We opted to have a short cocktail hour in the mansion so that guests could look around while we took photos. Then, we moved to the rustic carriage house for the reception. I loved the feel, a bit more finished than a barn, but still casual. Michelle at Gore Place was super accommodating. We met with her to talk about what we could do to decorate, and were able to go in early to set up. (This had to do with timing, of course... but was also super appreciated because it saved time and stress on the day! She could have easily said no.)
The grounds outside provided a place for guests to explore/play some lawn games we had set up. A truly perfect afternoon!
If you are looking for a reasonably priced close to Boston outdoor wedding, this is the place to go. I got dressed and took group pictures in the mansion, our ceremony was outside...
and the reception was in the tent. There is also a carriage house that can be quite lovely, but we only had 125 people so we did not need to use it.
Michelle was great to work with and very flexible, she allowed us to drop things off the day before and was a joy to work with. They are strict about noise there because of the neighbors so our band had to end at 9pm. They really like you to use their vetted vendors, which worked out well for us, we loved everyone they suggested.
The tent where we had the reception is quite nice; it has a carpeted floor, lighting, and is very large. Plus there is a lawn area outside of the tent where we set up games for the kids and chairs.
Gore Place is a lovely estate and I loved having my wedding there, I could not imagine a more perfect location for a wedding.
You must have your wedding at Gore Place. First and foremost, the event coordinator, Michelle Caruso is fantastic. She is so accommodating, young, fun, and gets it! She wants to d...
o everything she possibly can to help out and was a big help on the day of. We even asked her to help organize our ceremony for us so we all knew when to walk. Aside from Michelle, the venue is beautiful and affordable. We did our ceremony, cocktail hour, and reception here and they have so much space for all 3 to feel like they are in separate areas. You get all of the grounds to yourself for the whole afternoon/evening and a massive tent (with a floor) comes with the cost. The grounds are also so stunning, full of green and flowers. We loved everything about this venue and working with the people at Gore Place – you should definitely hold your wedding here!!
We had our wedding ceremony in Chestnut Hill and needed a place nearby that could hold 200+ people comfortably within our fairly tight budget. We went to Gore Place in January, me...
t with Catie, and booked it on the spot. The location is easy to get to, beautiful (even in rainy, cold, dreary January), and Catie and Michelle were both fantastic to work with. I am a fairly type-A person, and Michelle immediately put me at ease as she was on top of everything, from being in contact with other vendors to permits to payments to making sure the grounds and tent looked perfect on our big day. She even handled my nervous and worry-wart mother gracefully and answered all her questions with patience and thoughtfulness (which I truly appreciated!) We were able to drop off decorations and lights, etc. throughout the week prior and didn't have to immediately take everything out that night - Michelle was so accomodating to our hectic pre and post wedding schedule. At the wedding, we were able to take many gorgeous photos in the house and out on the farm, and our guests could not stop raving about how beautiful the location was! The icing on the cake - the tent is included in the location rental (so no need to go through a separate rental company) and is on an elevated, solid platform - so no sinking heels, no damp dresses, or muddy tables as I've experienced at other outdoor weddings. Michelle was nearby throughout helping make sure that everything ran smoothly up to and on the day of - I don't think she ever stops working. I honestly could not have had a better wedding reception venue and people to work with and am so happy that we found Gore Place. I would give them 100 stars if I could and reccomend it to any bride who wants a close to Boston venue that has a bit of a country feel for an amazing value. A million thanks to Michelle and Catie for helping to make our wedding day perfect and for being a joy to work with.
After looking all over the Boston and Massachusetts area we settled on Gore Place, which offers several great options including a large Federal mansion (where we had our cocktail h...
our), rolling lawns with a gorgeous garden, a carriage house (for smaller weddings which we used for overflow) and a large marquee tent that easily accommodates a big crowd. While the site manager can sometimes take a bit of chasing, she worked very well with all our vendors, was very accommodating with all our questions and demands, and made the whole process very clear. The site is also a bargain compared to some of the other places we look, which easily charge double for a less distinctive location.
Gore Place is an excellent wedding venue! Catie is a dream to work with, and the tent is wonderful. The grounds are gorgeous. There is also a beautiful natural altar beneath an ...
apple tree that is perfect for ceremonies.
Make sure you light the path to the bathrooms (in the carriage house) - but everything else is perfect as-is. We couldn't have selected a better, more accomodating venue!
Contact
52 GORE ST, WALTHAM, MA
