USA: Boston I. - A Core City of the American History
Published: 11.5.2013
Boston, the capital of Massachusetts and a center of New England, has played a crucial role in the US history. It was founded in 1630 and the key event leading to the American Revolution happened there – the Boston tea party. Being is the city like living the American history itself, this is also due to the fact that Boston boasts with many firsts.
The first American city park was established there as well as the first private school, and there is still opened the oldest American pub and there functions the oldest American subway. Right there, in Boston, A. G. Bell introduced his telephone for the first time. The best way to get known historical landmarks of the city, is to go through the Freedom Trail. The trail is four kilometers long and it connects 16 historical points in the city. You can explore them individually or with guides dressed in historical costumes. Lets take a closer look at some of historical landmarks.
Following history
A walk begins at the aforementioned Boston Common, the oldest park in the US. Today, Bostonians use it as a sporting ground, summer theatre or just a place to rest during work. The Boston police horsemen secure order. The trail goes through several historical buildings such as the residence of governor and government and also through three graveyards where prominent figures of the American Revolution rest. Old gravestones are randomly placed and they awake respect in people, mostly due to the fact that famous personas rest beneath and ornaments (skulls or faces of angels). An important place is the Old State House, a former residence of local government and also the oldest building in the city. This house built of bricks is hidden between surrounding glassy skyscrapers thus seeming even smaller to visitors than it really is. The Boston massacre took place in front of its doors, one of the important events that preceded the American Revolution and Colonel Thomas Crafts read the Declaration of Independence on its balcony in 1776. Since then, the words of the Declaration repeat every year on July 4, the Independence Day .
Faneuil Hall a Bunker Hill
Next stop is Faneuil Hall – that used to be a marketplace and a place where the city representatives met. Today, it is a souvenir center, however, the market hasn’t disappeared, it just moved in three long hall on the square behind Faneuil Hall. You can buy there everything from underwear to local delicacies. The trail continues along other landmarks of the American history until it reaches Bunker Hill, the place of a significant battle between the colonial and British army at the beginning of the war for independence. The British won, however, they lost many man and also learned the Patriots are courageous.
A ship as a cordial matter
The walk ends by USS Constitution, the oldes active warship in the world that only occasionally leaves the port. In the meantime, the ship is a memory of the old times. Visitors can see the lower deck when accompanied by somebody from the ship’s crew and imagine how the life looked back then. Visitors may see the captain’s cabin as well as hammock of crew, storerooms, and cannons. Americans love this three-masted frigate, they even call it „Old Ironsides“ since it smartly designed was great protection against cannon balls.
And what about the tea?
Surprisingly, the place where the Boston tea party, the event the whole world knows about, happened is not part of the trail. Perhaps, it is because the part of the Boston harbor where it happened is no longer existent, as it was backfilled. Today, a museum is located nearby and two historical ships with same names as the ships the tea was thrown from berth there, their names are Beaver and Eleanor. Visitors may relive events of December 1773. In the replica of an assembly room they can curse unfair laws and then throw polystyrene pack of tea into the sea.
Text/photo: Anna Žilková
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