Boston, MA
Boston was founded in 1630 by Puritan settlers led by John Winthrop and quickly became the political, economic, and cultural center of colonial New England. It was here that events such as the Boston Massacre, the Boston Tea Party, and the Siege of Boston ignited the movement for American independence, earning the city its title as the "Cradle of Liberty." Beyond the Revolution, Boston has continued to shape the nation through its leadership in education, medicine, literature, and innovation. For me, Boston has always been more than a historic city. Living nearby and returning countless times over the years, it has been a place where history comes alive, reminding me that the story of America can be found on nearly every street corner.
Recent Posts
The Eliot School
During our walk through Boston’s North End, we passed the Eliot School on Charter Street. Its substantial brick building represents a history of public education that reaches back more than three centuries, long before this particular schoolhouse was built. The institution traces its beginnings to the North Writing School, which opened in 1713. In 1790, […]
Saint Francis of Assisi Chapel
During our walk through Boston’s North End, we stopped at the small brick building beside Old North Church that now houses its gift shop. The cross above the roof and the carved entrance suggest its earlier purpose. Built in 1918, it was once the Saint Francis of Assisi Chapel, serving a community of Italian Protestant […]
The Great Molasses Flood
Along Commercial Street in Boston’s North End, a waterfront marker recalls a disaster that can be difficult to imagine amid the neighborhood’s activity today. On January 15, 1919, a massive steel storage tank burst, releasing approximately 2.3 million gallons of molasses into the surrounding streets. Twenty-one people died, and roughly 150 were injured. The tank […]
St. Stephen’s Church
Across Hanover Street from Paul Revere Mall stands St. Stephen’s Church, a building whose history follows the changing religious and community life of Boston’s North End. Completed in 1804 as the New North Church, it is the only surviving church in Boston designed by Charles Bulfinch, the architect of the Massachusetts State House. Its balanced […]
The Greenway Carousel
I ride this carousel as often as I can when I visit Boston. Walking through the city often leads us to historical places, but I also enjoy making time for something simply because it brings me joy. The Greenway Carousel has become one of those familiar stops I look forward to. Opened on August 31, […]
Paul Revere Mall and Statue
Walking through Boston’s North End, I stopped at Paul Revere Mall to spend more time with a familiar landmark. The bronze figure of Revere on horseback stands above the brick walkway, surrounded by trees and the buildings of the neighborhood he once called home. His extended arm and the horse’s raised foreleg give the monument […]
Dr. Joseph Warren
Among the memorial plaques along Paul Revere Mall is one honoring Dr. Joseph Warren, a physician whose work placed him at the center of Boston’s growing resistance to British rule. His name may be less familiar than those of Paul Revere or Samuel Adams, but his leadership helped shape the events that brought Massachusetts into […]
Armenian Heritage Park
During our walk around Boston, we stopped at Armenian Heritage Park on the Rose Kennedy Greenway. Its angular sculpture offers a different kind of memorial: one whose form changes while its purpose remains rooted in remembrance. The sculpture honors the lives lost during the Armenian Genocide of 1915–1923 and the genocides that followed. The park […]
John Francis “Honey Fitz” Fitzgerald
Near St. Stephen’s Church in Boston’s North End, a bronze portrait set into a granite memorial honors John Francis Fitzgerald, remembered as “Honey Fitz”. His name connects the neighborhood with Boston’s political history and the Kennedy family, but his own story began here long before his grandson became president. Born in the North End in […]
Benjamin Franklin Statue
In the courtyard of Boston’s Old City Hall, a bronze statue of Benjamin Franklin stands above a granite pedestal decorated with scenes from his life. Our photograph captures a family visit to this landmark on School Street, where Franklin’s story connects with the history of the city in which he was born. Franklin was born […]
Copp’s Hill Burying Ground
Following the Freedom Trail through Boston’s North End brought us to Copp’s Hill Burying Ground. Beyond the surrounding streets and brick residences, its trees and gravestones preserve a different view of the neighborhood, one shaped by the people who lived and worked here long before the city took its present form. Established in 1659, Copp’s […]
Prince Hall at Copp’s Hill Burying Ground
Among the graves at Copp’s Hill Burying Ground is the monument to Prince Hall, a leader in Boston’s Black community whose work connected abolition, education, and the establishment of Black Freemasonry. His life unfolded during the American Revolution and the early republic, when declarations of liberty existed alongside slavery and racial exclusion. Hall helped bring […]
