On a recent Saturday afternoon, I scratched a major "to-do" off of my bucket list by visiting the Adams National Historic Park in Quincy, Massachusetts. It was time well spent.

The weather is about to change and trips to the beach will be limited. What to do with the weekends? Why not skip the mall and have a real educational experience instead?

Adams National Historic Park (Barry Richard / TSM Photo)
Barry Richard/Townsquare Media
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Adams National Historic Park (Barry Richard / TSM Photo)
Barry Richard/Townsquare Media
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The Adams National Historic Park is the birthplace of the nation's first vice president under George Washington who went on to become our second president, John Adams, one of the Founding Fathers. Adams was a signer of the Declaration of Independence, a foreign diplomat and author of the Massachusetts Constitution, which served as a model for the U.S. Constitution.

Adams National Historic Park (Barry Richard / TSM Photo)
Barry Richard/Townsquare Media
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The Adams National Historic Park consists of the home John Adams was born in and the neighboring house where Adams and his bride Abigail lived once they were married. It also includes the estate at Peace Field that the Adams Family called home during the White House years and after. Both John and Abigail Adams died there.

A little John Adams trivia: Adams died on July 4, 1826, 50 years to the day of the ratification of the Declaration of Independence. Fellow Founding Father Thomas Jefferson died several hours earlier on the very same day.

Adams National Historic Park (Barry Richard / TSM Photo)
Barry Richard/Townsquare Media
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Peace Field or The Old House includes a separate library building that contains several thousand books belonging to John Quincy Adams, John and Abigail's son who was the nation's sixth president.

Quincy is also the birthplace of another signer of the Declaration of Independence, John Hancock.

Adams National Historic Park (Barry Richard / TSM Photo)
Barry Richard/Townsquare Media
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The homes are accessible only by taking a trolly tour, which begins at the Visitor's Center in downtown Quincy, where you can also see the Hancock burial grounds and tour the church where John, John Quincy, and their wives are buried.

Tickets for the tour are $15 and worth every penny. Massachusetts is so full of history that is important to the founding of our nation. So many citizens are oblivious to what is available to do and learn here. Why not skip the mall this Saturday and visit the Adams National Historic Park instead?

You can find a lot more information by visiting their website.

Barry Richard is the host of The Barry Richard Show on 1420 WBSM New Bedford. He can be heard weekdays from noon to 3 p.m. Contact him at barry@wbsm.com and follow him on Twitter @BarryJRichard58. The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of the author.

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