Formerly: Wiggins Tavern, Hopkinton, New Hampshire (1786 predecessor)
Northampton, Massachusetts · Founded 1927
A Hotel Northampton restaurant created in 1927 around material from a Wiggins family tavern said to have opened in New Hampshire in 1786.
Wiggins Tavern is a restaurant and event space inside the Hotel Northampton at 36 King Street in Northampton, Massachusetts. Hotel Northampton says Lewis Wiggins created the tavern room when the hotel opened in 1927, moving and reassembling material from an earlier Wiggins Tavern in Hopkinton, New Hampshire. The 1786 date refers to that predecessor, not to a continuously operating Northampton restaurant.
Hotel Northampton says Benjamin Wiggins, an ancestor of hotel founder Lewis Wiggins, opened Wiggins Tavern in Hopkinton, New Hampshire.
Source: Hotel Northampton, "History" page
The Hotel Northampton opened in Northampton. The hotel says Lewis Wiggins incorporated and reassembled material from the earlier Hopkinton Wiggins Tavern within the new hotel.
Source: Hotel Northampton, "History" page; Hotel Northampton homepage
During World War II, Hotel Northampton says U.S. Navy WAVES billeted at Smith College were marched to Wiggins Tavern for meals.
Source: Hotel Northampton, "History" page
Wiggins Tavern is listed by Hotel Northampton as a Sunday-brunch venue and special-occasion space, with reservations handled through the hotel.
Source: Hotel Northampton, "Dining" and "Wiggins Tavern" pages
Every claim gets rated. A business's own website can never earn "documented."
The 1786 date belongs to the predecessor Wiggins Tavern in Hopkinton, New Hampshire. Hotel Northampton says the present Northampton tavern room was created when its hotel opened in 1927 using relocated and reassembled material from that earlier business.
Hotel Northampton provides a detailed account of Lewis Wiggins moving and reassembling the older Hopkinton tavern inside the 1927 hotel. This review did not locate an independent architectural survey or relocation record, so the claim is plausible rather than documented.
Hotel Northampton and Visit Hampshire County list Eleanor Roosevelt and John F. Kennedy among Wiggins Tavern visitors, but this review did not locate contemporaneous press reports, ledgers, photographs, correspondence, or other primary evidence documenting individual meals or visits. The celebrity story remains unverified.
The Hotel Northampton historical account says WAVES billeted at Smith College marched to Wiggins Tavern for meals three times daily. This review did not locate an independent military, college, or newspaper source corroborating the arrangement.
Wiggins Tavern has operated in Northampton since 1786.
The present Northampton restaurant was created within the Hotel Northampton in 1927. The 1786 date belongs to the earlier Wiggins Tavern in Hopkinton, New Hampshire, which Hotel Northampton says supplied relocated and reassembled material for the newer tavern room.
Source: Hotel Northampton, "History" page
Wiggins Tavern has endured as part of the Hotel Northampton rather than as a standalone colonial tavern. Its period-style room, Sunday brunch service, private-event role, and location in a downtown historic hotel have kept the venue connected to the hotel's larger hospitality operation.
Wiggins Tavern in Northampton, Massachusetts, was created inside the Hotel Northampton when the hotel opened in 1927. Hotel Northampton says Lewis Wiggins moved and reassembled material from an earlier Wiggins Tavern in Hopkinton, New Hampshire, which his ancestor Benjamin Wiggins reportedly opened in 1786. The current Northampton restaurant therefore preserves a connection to the 18th-century predecessor but did not itself operate in Massachusetts from 1786.
No. Wiggins Tavern's current Northampton operation began in 1927 inside the Hotel Northampton. Its 1786 date refers to a predecessor tavern in Hopkinton, New Hampshire, whose materials were reportedly incorporated into the hotel restaurant; it does not establish continuous restaurant operation in Massachusetts from 1786.
Hotel Northampton and the Hampshire County visitors bureau list Eleanor Roosevelt and John F. Kennedy among people who ate at Wiggins Tavern. This review did not locate contemporaneous guest ledgers, news reports, or photographs documenting their specific visits, so the celebrity accounts remain plausible but not independently verified.
36 King St, Northampton, MA 01060
(413) 584-3100
Hotel Northampton currently lists Wiggins Tavern for Sunday brunch and special occasions; confirm availability and reservations with the hotel before visiting.