Boston, Massachusetts – Aquarium
We ended this day with 30,000 steps and 18 different sites. So I will split the day up. The aquarium is right off the Boston Harbor. The photo below was taken as we waited in line for the aquarium to open.
Our first stop was the Boston Aquarium. It made it on Ben’s tops for all of Boston. It was a great aquarium. One of the fun parts was a fish tank that went up 3 or 4 stories with walkways wrapping around it to see. They also had some sea lions that were be introduced to each other for the first time the day we were there. There was a lot of excitement as the male sea lion was getting frustrated that one of the females wasn’t hanging out with the harem. It was interesting to sit and watch their interactions. The aquarium was a great start to the day.
The Freedom Trail
Next, we took a tour that walked us through some of the historic sites that are downtown. The tour highlights the revolutionary history that took place at 11 of the 16 official Freedom Trail historic sites. It is the iconic touristy thing to do when your in Boston, and one of the main reasons we were there. We started at Faneuil Hall, then Boston Massacre Site, Old State House, Old South Meeting House, Boston Latin School Site/Benjamin Franklin Statue, Kings Chapel and Burying Ground, Granary Burying Ground, Park Street Church, the Massachusetts State House and lastly the Boston Commons.
Faneuil Hall
Often referred to as “the home of free speech” and the “Cradle of Liberty,” Faneuil Hall was where America’s first Town Meetings were held. It’s where the Sons of Liberty proclaimed their dissent against Royal oppression. It was at Faneuil Hall in 1764 that Americans first protested the Sugar Act and the Stamp Act, setting the doctrine that would come to be known as “no taxation without representation.”
The most famous weathervane in Boston is Faneuil Hall’s golden grasshopper created by acclaimed craftsman Shem Drowne, whose weathervane also tops the Old North Church. Tradition has it that the weathervane was used during the War of 1812 to spot spies. Anyone who did not know the answer to the question “What is on top of Faneuil Hall?” in those days invited suspicion. We were told that when they went to clean the grasshopper years later, they accidentally opened it and gold spilled out, left by the designer. We were told they put the gold back inside and it’s there today.
Boston Massacre Site
The tensions that led to the Boston Massacre were the product of the occupation of Boston by Redcoats in 1768. An argument, that led to a riot, that led to Redcoats coming to extract one of their own, the crowd pressed in on them, someone yelled fire (meaning something was burning), the redcoats fired into the crowd, and before it was over 5 men lay dead or dying. The Sons of Liberty held funerals for the victims and organized a vigorous propaganda effort to turn public opinion against the Redcoats and labeled the tragedy a “bloody massacre.” The British soldiers were tried for murder and were defended by John Adams, a Boston lawyer who was as loyal to the idea of justice as he was to the Patriot cause. Most of the British soldiers ended up being acquitted as it was a misunderstanding and not a planned attack. It’s so crazy to see the stories that led to our countries independence.
Boston Latin School Site and Benjamin Franklin’s Statue
A mosaic and a statue of former student Benjamin Franklin currently marks the School Street location of the original schoolhouse. This site was the first public school in America. Five signers of the Declaration of Independence attended Boston Latin: Franklin, Samuel Adams, John Hancock, Robert Treat Paine, and William Hooper. Of the five, only four graduated. Franklin, though one of America’s greatest minds, dropped out of school, but he still got his statue at it’s site : ) The school has continued in different locations and is still running today.
There was a statue of a donkey in front of the building. It’s from Italy, but a local wanted to place it there. And to justify the statue’s placement, he said the donkey represented the Democratic Party, a political affiliation long held by Boston’s mayors. And Boston’s mayors, after all, spent their days in Old City Hall from 1865 until 1970. When asked where the statue’s Republican elephant counterpart would go. Rather than find one, the man who donated the donkey decided to place two footsteps in front of the donkey so those who disagreed with the Democratic party could stand in opposition to it.
Park Street Church and Granary Burying Ground
Paul Reveres Gravestone
Granary Burying Ground is Boston’s third-oldest cemetery. It is the final resting place for Paul Revere, the five victims of the Boston Massacre which are buried near Samuel Adams (who used their deaths to ignite the Revolutionary movement), John Hancock and Robert Treat Paine.
Some interesting things our guide told us about Samuel Adams. He was a tax collector for a while but got arrested for not having people pay their taxes. He never owned a horse He liked to walk, and said he knew everything going on in Boston because he walked everywhere and was not on a horse.
Our guide said that there were 2345 headstones here, but almost 10,000 are buried. Only the rich had the headstones. Paul Revere didn’t have a fancy headstone until after the civil war the poem about Paul Revere became popular and so next to his small headstone, they added a large headstone. You can see his small headstone with the flag next to it, and the bigger one placed afterwards.
New State House
The new state house is still old by American standards, built in 1798. The story I remember most being told was that the dome was originally built out of wood, but it wasn’t long before rainwater leaks became a persistent problem. They were going to tear it down and not replace it. Paul Revere had just come up with a new technique to roll copper into workable sheets. He suggested they wrap the dome in copper. They did and it saved the dome, but over time the copper aged and so they replaced it with gold. 1.5 million dollars’ worth of gold is on the dome.
Boston Commons
The Boston Commons was the first park in America (around 1634). During the early era, the Common was a scene of public rallies, celebrations, ball playing, sledding, but it also served as a military training field, cow and sheep pasture, a public punishment site, and burial ground. This location is also where witch hangings began (well before Salem). There were also other hangings there. A children’s playground is now built on top of that location.
For eight years the British redcoats camped and drilled on the Common. Today it has tree-lined walks, statues, plaques and fountains. We walked through the park later in the week in the late evening and caught parts of a Shakespeare play in the park.
Boston Harbor Cruise
After a lot of walking, we took a Boston Harbor Cruise. This is the first time we have taken advantage of Go City Cards. There are many big cities that utilize them. They cost quite a bit, but we saved a lot, and did more things than we would normally do. This was one of those things we probably wouldn’t have spent money on. But it was nice to get off our feet, and it was fun to still learn the history of Boston while cruising the harbor
USS Constitution
USS Constitution, also known as Old Ironsides, is the world’s oldest ship still afloat. She was launched in 1797. The name “Constitution” was among ten names submitted to President George Washington by Secretary of War Timothy.
Constitution is most noted for her actions during the War of 1812 against the United Kingdom, when she captured numerous merchant ships and defeated five British warships. She circled the world in the 1840s. During the American Civil War, she served as a training ship for the United States Naval Academy. Constitution was retired from active service in 1881. In 1934, she completed a three-year, 90-port tour of the nation. She sailed under her own power for her 200th birthday in 1997, and again in August 2012 to commemorate the 200th anniversary of her victory over Guerriere. It was amazing to walk through a ship with that much history.
Bunker Hill Monument
The Bunker Hill Monument is walking distance from the USS Constitution. The battle was a tactical victory for the British, but it proved to be a sobering experience for them; they incurred many more casualties than the Americans. The battle had demonstrated that inexperienced militia were able to stand up to regular army troops in battle. A British General was recorded as saying, ‘with victories like this one we will surely lose the war.’
You can go up inside the monument and climb 294 steps to the top. The day we were there it was too hot, and the monument was shut down. Boston would be more fun to visit in the Fall. This happened a couple times on our trip, where places were closed because of the heat.
Walking back to the bus stop we passed beautiful old homes.
godncountry 