Our travel day heading towards Boston was a sunshiny rainstorm.
Nice big site at Boston Minuteman RV Park. Excited to start our Boston trips.
Contrary to popular belief we drove into Boston for our first trip. Mass transportation is the general recommendation.
It was Saturday and traffic really wasn't too bad. And Walt has his trusty maps so we can't go wrong.
We parked under Boston Commons and started our walking trip on Beacon Hill.
I LOVE the Brownstones on Beacon Hill. Beacon Hill is regarded as one of the most desirable and expensive neighborhoods in Boston.
Its narrow, gaslit streets and brick sidewalks exude so much charm.
The first house on Beacon Hill was in 1625. It is no longer there but most of the homes here were built in the 1800's.
Beautiful doors, decorative iron work, brick sidewalks, what's not to like?
We walked much of the Freedom Trail starting with the State House. It is located on Beacon Hill and was completed in January 1798 at a cost of $133,333.
The dome has an interesting history. The original wood dome leaked and in 1802 was covered with copper by Paul Revere's Revere Copper Company. Then the dome was painted gray, then light yellow and then gilded with gold leaf. During World War II it was painted black to prevent reflection during blackouts and to protect the city and building from bombing attacks. In 1997, at a cost of more than $300,000, the dome was re-gilded, in 23k gold.
There are 16 official sights on the Freedom Trail. I am not going to give a history lesson and notate something on each location. To give even a cursory blurb about them would not give them justice. So for this I am going to note some things that were new to me, unusual or brought back memories.
There is a wonderful statue of Benjamin Franklin in the courtyard of the Old City Hall. He has always been one of my favorite historic characters. I have read several books about him and he led such a colorful life full of scientific and political achievements that is hard to believe one man could do in one lifetime.
Boston is amazing. There is history around every corner mixed with the new. Like a Walgreen's across the street from The Old South Meeting Hall. The Old South Meeting Hall is a Congregational Church built in 1729 and most remembered for being the location where the Boston Tea Party was organized in 1773.
The Old State House is the oldest surviving public building in Boston. It was built in 1713 and on July 18, 1776 the Declaration of Independence was proclaimed from the east side balcony to jubilant crowds by Col. Thomas Crafts.
A stop for lunch at the Union Oyster House. It claims to be America's oldest restaurant. Daniel Webster was a regular customer. We had typical Boston fare. Fried clam roll, clam chowder, corn bread, and Boston baked beans. Verrrrry good!
We strolled through the Saturday Farmer Market and wished we hadn't been just barely in the middle of our walk so we could buy some of that great produce at their thrifty prices. Too far to go to be carrying packages.
We all know about Paul Revere's midnight ride but I did not know that he had 16 children. Eight with his first wife, after she died he remarried and had eight more children. Unfortunately five of them died very young.
The Old North Church is the location from which the famous "One if by land, two if by sea" signal was sent. I did not know that over 1100 bodies are buried in the crypt beneath the church. You can actually take a tour to see it.
It takes a lot of places to bury people when a city is this old.
Crossing the bridge along the Freedom Trail you get a beautiful view of the Charles River.
At the end of the trail is the Bunker Hill Monument. It was erected to commemorate the Battle of Bunker Hill, which was among the first major battles between British and Patriot forces in the American Revolutionary War. It is 221 feet tall and the monument is not on Bunker Hill, but instead on Breed's Hill, where most of the fighting in the misnamed Battle of Bunker Hill actually took place.
At the end of our miles of walking one of my hips decided that it no longer wanted to bend so the last little while poor Walt had to put up with my slow progress.
As we paused to look at the back side of the State House and the General Hooker statue a local Italian gentleman stopped to talk with us and gave us some scandalous information about the General and told us about the private library across the street, Boston Athenæum, that houses a huge rare book collection as well as a book made of human skin. While we see the most amazing sights on this journey we are on it is the moments like this with interactions with people that will stand out in my memory. And the rest renewed my walking ability.
We returned to Boston Commons where our car was parked. OK.......we did not linger. We were afraid that if we stayed too long we would have our first experience of getting high.
That is not fog or dust in the air. Massachusetts has legalized recreational marijuana use and they were having a Cannabis Rally on the Common.
A first for us for sure.
Back in the car for the return trip to GypsyII. Love the contrast of the historic buildings and the contemporary architecture. Best of both worlds. Boston is an astonishing city. The day refreshed my memory of U.S. History and gave me so much more new information. A definitely educational day.