The Old Granary Granary contains the earliest casualties of rebellion. Victims of the Boston Massacre and the Battle of Bunker Hill lie here, alongside Paul Revere, John Hancock, Samuel Adams and James Otis.
Author Archives: Steve Dunwell
Faneuil Hall postcard photo
Donated by Peter Faneuil in 1742, rebuilt after a fire in 1761, then enlarged in 1805, Faneuil Hall served as market and meeting place – the “Acropolis of Boston,” a marketplace of ideas and resistance. Later known as the “Cradle of Liberty.”
Old South Meeting House – aerial photo 1860
First successful aerial photograph in the US, by J. W. Black, Oct 13, 1860. Ambrotype print from a wet-plate negative. Old South Meeting House is at the middle left. More detail on this image, and my “same view” photograph made Oct 13, 2012 in the next post. Original print at Boston Public Library
USS Constitution photo
USS Constitution turn-around on July 4th. Tugboats pull the ship out every year on Independence Day and turn her around to equalize weathering. Boston Towboat donates their tugboat time and charges $1 for service.
Old Corner Bookstore photo
Ideas have flourished at this site since 1636 when William Hutchinson occupied it and his wife Anne held religious meetings that led to her excommunication. Thomas Crease constructed this brick shop with second-floor living quarters and a deep gambrel roof in 1711. Ten bookstores have used this building since 1828. It became known as “Parnassus Corner” under publisher William Ticknor.
Latin School marker photo
In 1635, Boston established the first “public” Latin or Grammar School in America, resolving that Philemon Purmont, a shopkeeper, “be entreated to become a schoolmaster for the teaching and nourtering of the children with us.” The original Latin School was demolished in 1844 to make way for City Hall. This plaque decorates the sidewalk nearby.
Copps Hill Burying Ground photo
Tombstone of William Hough, 1714. Copp’s Hill, the Town’s second burying ground, was established in 1659 on a hill named for shoemaker William Copp. The site soon rivaled the Common as a public venue, hosting such spectacles as the 1704 execution of seven pirates.
Boston Common photo
British troops bivouacked on the Boston Common from 1758 to 1776, when George Washington forced them out, demolished their trenches, and sent them packing with loyalists to Nova Scotia. Cast in Paris in 1868, the Fountain was donated by Gardner Brewer and named for him. The fountain was restored in 2009-2010.
USS Constitution bicentennial stamp photo
200 years ago today, “USS Constitution” fought and defeated “HMS Guerriere,” a British frigate taken from the French. Commanded by Isaac Hull, “Constitution” dominated the British ship, shot away her mizzen mast, took the crew prisoner, and burned the wreck. This commemorative stamp was issued yesterday.
USS Constitution Bicentennial sailing photo
200 years ago today, USS Constitution fought and defeated HMS Guerriere, a British frigate taken from the French. Commanded by Isaac Hull, “Constitution” dominated the British ship, shot away her mizzen mast, took the crew prisoner, and burned the wreck. Today, “Old Ironsides” took a bicentennial turn around the harbor and put her sails up in tribute to this glorious victory. This short sail was only the 2nd time in over 100 years that the ship has been underway on her own.