Legendary architect Charles Bulfinch designed this gorgeous 1796 mansion for an up-and-coming young lawyer who later became mayor of Boston. The restoration was one of the first in the country to use computer analysis of paint, and the result was revolutionary: It revealed that the colors on the walls were drab because the paint was faded, not because they started out dingy. Furnished in the style to which a wealthy family in the young United States would have been accustomed, the Federal-style building is a colorful, elegant treasure. Guided tours (the only way to see the house) discuss its architecture and post-Revolutionary social, business, and family life, and touch on the history of the neighborhood.