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Archive for the tag “Boston Common”

30 Apr 2025

Boston: 250 Years After the Revolution

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April 30, 2025

“The shot heard ’round the world” was fired on April 19th, 1775, in Lexington, Massachusetts, a small village 12 miles from Boston. This year, Massachusetts celebrated the 250th anniversary of the battles that began the American Revolution.

Now that 250 years have passed, I thought this month would be a great time to explore Boston, the seat of Suffolk County, Massachusetts.

The Suffolk County Courthouse reminds me of Manhattan’s New York County Courthouse. It’s huge, maybe 15 stories, and some windows have little a/c units.  The jail might be inside as well. The old John Adams Courthouse next door is a five- or six-story building with a French-style roof. I believe the state Supreme Court resides inside.

Suffolk County Courthouse in Boston, Massachusetts
The John Adams Courthouse in Boston.

The Massachusetts State House is just a 4-minute walk up the hill from the county courthouse. It has been here for over 200 years. Its gold dome atop Beacon Hill used to dominate the Boston skyline, but nowadays, it can rarely be seen except from Boston Common, the park below its front entrance.

Below: The Massachusetts State House in Boston. The public entrance is known as the “General Hooker” entrance and faces Boston Common down below. The top right photo features hanging banners cheering for the Boston Celtics and Bruins; the bottom right photo shows the Beacon Hill Memorial.

As expected, the grand old building is filled with portraits of past governors, many with powdered wigs. Much of the hallway trim is marble, and the floors are polished mosaic.  Golden chandeliers light the hallways. I took photos of a statue of George Washington. There is also a large portrait of Lincoln and a smaller bust of him. However, busts or portraits of Massachusetts’ many Revolutionary War heroes, from John Adams to John Hancock and Paul Revere, are somehow missing or hard to find in the State House.

The Beacon Hill neighborhood surrounding the State House is one of the wealthiest parts of Boston. The area’s narrow streets are filled with red stone apartments and condominiums. Flowering trees and old gas lamps along the sidewalks give Beacon Hill a special springtime charm. Nevertheless, the living quarters look cramped to me. The photo at the top right of the gallery below proves that a plumber is needed even in the wealthiest neighborhoods.

I next walked a few blocks toward the central business district of downtown Boston. Historic Faneuil Hall (only three stories but tall for its time) sits between a dozen glass skyscrapers.

I backtracked past the State House to walk through Boston Common. It was April in Boston. Pictures speak louder than words here, and George Washington‘s statue fits perfectly.

Boston’s streets and parks are filled with the statues and gravesites of heroes; it’s something the city does well. Bostonians deserve extra credit for not limiting themselves to the native sons of Massachusetts.
Below (clockwise from top left): Samuel Adams, George Washington (of Virginia), the grave of Paul Revere, the grave of Samuel Adams, Benjamin Franklin (of Pennsylvania), and Alexander Hamilton (of New York).

Most of Boston’s Revolutionary War history is concentrated in the North End neighborhood, north of downtown. I walked the Freedom Trail, part of the U.S. National Park System, to see these sights. Tourists are everywhere — but that’s the way it should be!
Below (clockwise from top left): Banner of the old Green Dragon Tavern, the Green Dragon Tavern, Paul Revere’s home, statue of Paul Revere, the Old North Church (inside), Paul Revere statue in front of the Old North Church, the Old North Church (outside).

Statue of Paul Revere outside the Old North Church in Boston’s Old North End.
Suffolk County within the State of Massachusetts

Click here to see a list of all TimManBlog American County Seats Series posts.
The photos in this post were taken on April 20, 2010. All photos are copyrighted by Tim Seibel.

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28 Apr 2019

April 19th in Middlesex County, Massachusetts

The Lexington Minuteman

On April 19, 1775, the battles of Lexington and Concord were fought in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, commencing the American Revolution. Each year on Patriot’s Day, the battles are re-enacted in remembrance of the day when the rights of men were asserted against despotic power.

I had long wished to be in Lexington, Massachusetts on April 19th and had my chance to go a few years ago. I stayed the night before in nearby Woburn, awoke at 3:00 am, and arrived in Lexington in the 4:00 am darkness. I wasn’t the first to arrive.

The crowds gathered before dawn on Lexington Green. About half were tourists while the other half were classes of schoolchildren, ready to watch history. Local guides dressed in period costumes explained to the crowds what is about to happen. I watched with keen interest.


Learning of the impending British advance, Massachusetts Minutemen gather on Lexington Green at dawn. They know they will be outnumbered.

The Redcoats arrive in formation.

The two sides confront each other on Lexington Green. There’s a stand-off.

Then shots are fired. The noise and smoke are tremendous.

The result was eight militiamen killed, ten wounded. One British regular was wounded.

The words attributed to Captain John Parker of Lexington are memorialized in stone:

After the re-enactment was over, I had a chance to wander about taking photos. The April weather was cool, but the skies were sunny.

The famous Minuteman statue, Lexington Common. Lexington, Massachusetts
An armed Rebel youth confronts and captures three Redcoat soldiers! What pluck!
Lexington Common

As you know from the history books, the fight then moved on to Concord bridge where 100 British regulars met 400 American militiamen.

Old North Bridge, site of the Battle of Concord. Memorial obelisk is on the left; Minuteman’s statue on the right
Inscription on the obelisk at the Old North Bridge: “Here on the 19th of April 1775 was made the first forcible resistance to British aggression…”
Minute Man statue at Concord, which was erected in 1875 on the centennial of “the shot heard round the world”
A view down Walden Street. Concord, Massachusetts

Later on, I drove down to Cambridge, the county seat. The Middlesex County Courthouse looks more like a military stronghold than a court of Justice, towering above residential East Cambridge like Saruman’s Tower from Lord of the Rings.  I believe the jail occupies several of the floors.

The courthouse is in a part of town called East Cambridge, away from the Harvard Square area which was the original Cambridge settlement. The buildings here are townhouses of brick or wood.  The brick ones are remnants of homes for the wealthy; the wood ones are cheaper, yet many have been painted bright colors and remind me of row houses on the Irish seashore.

Middlesex County Courthouse. Cambridge, Massachusetts

  The old red brick courthouse is across the street.

Registry of Deeds and Probate Court. Cambridge, Massachusetts
Historical sign: the History of Cambridge
The streets of Cambridge, Massachusetts

From East Cambridge, I drove down Main Street, up Massachusetts Avenue, around Harvard Square, and back down Broadway.  Cambridge is a college town but usually isn’t thought of in the same way as Lawrence, Kansas, or Athens, Georgia.  Yet I was amazed at how much Massachusetts Avenue looks like a college town’s main street.  Shops are in single-story buildings with a few large brick two-story buildings nearby.  Little restaurants and fast-food places predominate.  I saw several Middle Eastern eateries.  However, the pedestrians seemed to be not so much the college crowd as ethnic workers of all types.  So downtown Cambridge seems more of an ethnic neighborhood than a college hang-out.

Residences along the side streets are mostly two-story walkups surrounded by blooming trees.  It’s the middle of spring and all the trees are in bloom right now.  That’s especially nice on a warm, shirt sleeve day, perhaps the best day of spring so far.

Harvard’s Most Prestigious Law Firm: Dewey, Cheetham & Howe
Hahvard Yahd

Meanwhile across the Charles River in Suffolk County (Boston) I found this and couldn’t resist adding it here.

Statue of George Washington amid planters of tulips. Boston Common
Flower gardens blooming in April. Boston Common
Middlesex County in the state of Massachusetts

All photos were taken by the author. Photos were taken between April 19-21, 2010.


A list of all photo posts from the American County Seats series in TimManBlog can be found here.

I’m trying to travel to all of America’s county courthouses, and each month a post about my visit to the most interesting county seats. It’s only a hobby — but donations are greatly appreciated to help defer my costs.
Thanks,
Tim

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