Boston’s Freedom Trail is basically the birthplace of American Independence! You can easily follow it with the red line marked on the sidewalk. A lot of it is made out of brick, but in a few places it’s painted on and kind of hard to find due to wear. You can pass through everything fairly quickly especially the Boston part, but it can take the whole day if you’re going to stop by all the locations and really have a good look!
Here’s the brick red line you follow throughout the city!
1. Boston Common
The first stop was Boston Common. Boston Common sits on 44 acres of land in the middle of the city (the Central Park of Boston) and is America’s oldest public park! I was lucky enough to see the cherry blossoms because a few days later when we came back they had all fallen off!
2. Massachusetts State House
Was designed by Charles Bulfinch who also designed the state capitols for Connecticut, Maine, and worked on the U.S. Capitol in Washington.
3. Park Street Church
Built in 1809. Nicknamed “Brimstone Corner” because gunpowder was stored in the crypt during the War of 1812. America’s first Sunday School was founded here in 1817, the first prison aid society in 1824, and one of the earliest temperance societies in 1826. America’s first missionaries were sent to Hawaii from this church in 1819. Also the hymn “America” also known as “My Country ’tis of Thee” was sung for the first time on the steps of Park Street.
4. Granary Burying Ground
There are more famous people buried in this 2 acre plot than in any other small graveyard in America. 3 signers of the Declaration of Independence (Samuel Adams, John Hancock, Robert Treat Paine), 9 governors of MA, the victims of the Boston Massacre, Benjamin Franklin’s parents, and Paul Revere.
By the time we arrived they had already closed so these were the shots I was able to get from outside the gates.
5. King’s Chapel
“Symbol of what the Puritans fled” In 1630 the Puritans who settled in Boston were religious rebels fleeing from the Anglican Church. King James II ordered an establishment of the Anglican parish in Boston, but that was what the Puritans had fled from. Since they could not buy land they just took a corner of the burying ground and constructed their church there.
Although these columns look like they were made of stone, they were actually made of wood with sand mixed into the paint.
The site of the first public school. Boston Latin School.
6. Old Corner Book Store
Boston’s oldest surviving structures. It was erected in 1712. From 1833-1864 it was the office of Ticknor and Fields, the nation’s leading book publisher. Great authors such as Longfellow, Hawthorne, Emerson, and Harriet Beecher Stowe gathered here. Walden, The Scarlet Letter, and Hiawatha were published here.
Funny because this historic landmark was turned into an Ultra Diamonds so I was kind of confused where it was!
7. Old South Meeting-House
The largest building in colonial Boston. The location where they protested their outrage over the Boston Massacre and Samuel Adams gave the secret signal to throw 342 crates of tea into the Boston Harbor. Also served as a Puritan house of worship and Benjamin Franklin was baptized here.
8. Old State House
The Old State House is the oldest public building still standing in the eastern United States. It was built in 1713. In 1761 James Otis said a speech against the writs of assistance which was considered the “first scene of the first act of opposition” 15 years before independence was declared. 1776 from its balcony the Declaration of Independence was read to the people of Boston.
Under the balcony is a circle of paving stones which marks the site of The Boston Massacre.
9. Faneuil Hall
Gift to the town by Peter Faneuil. Hosted America’s first Town Hall Meeting. Used as a marketplace on the first level and a the town meeting hall on the second level.
10. Paul Revere House
Paul Revere bought this house in 1770 when he was 35 years old. He lived in this house with his family when he made his famous messenger ride. Revere fathered 16 children over a 29 year period. 5 of the children died in infancy.
11. Old North Church
“One, if by land, and two, if by sea” April 18, 1775 Robert Newman climbed the steeple and held two lanterns as a signal from Paul Revere that the British were marching to Lexington and Concord. This event started the American Revolution. This is Boston’s oldest church building.
12. Copp’s Hill Burying Ground
Copp’s Hill is the highest piece of land on the North End. Most people who were buried here are ordinary people. During the revolution the British soldiers camped among the gravestones.
13. USS Constitution
Also known as “Old Ironsides” because cannonballs fired at her from the British H.M.S. Guerriere seemed to just bounce off. The U.S.S. Constitution is made of a white oak/live sandwich which made it extra strong.
14. Bunker Hill Monument
Marks the first time Colonial forces held their own against the British Army. This famous battle was fought on June 17, 1775. The monument is a 221-foot granite obelisk.
The view from the top is amazing!
Click on the photo to see the panoramic photos larger.
Exhibit at the Bunker Hill Museum down the street.
This concludes our little education journey about the Freedom Trail!
Let me end with this…what happens when you throw your leftover oyster crackers on the ground in Boston Common? A ton of them flock over to you!
