Boston National Historical Park
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Under the auspices of the National Park Service, the Boston National Historical Park consists of eight historic sites associated with the colonial struggle for independence and the American ideals of liberty & freedom. Seven of the sites are connected by the 2.5 mile-long Freedom Trail. The 8th is USS Constitution, "Old Ironsides" at the historic Charleston Navy Yard.
Bunker Hill Monument - Monument Square / Charlestown, MA
The iconic phrase "Don't fire until you see the whites of their eyes!" has come to symbolize the conviction and determination of the ill-equipped American colonists facing powerful British forces during the famous battle fought on this site. On June 17, 1775 "The Battle of Bunker Hill" actually took place on Breed’s Hill, the site of the existing monument and exhibit lodge. It was the first major battle of the American Revolution.
The colonists were an inexperienced and untested army fighting against a highly trained and better-equipped British forces. Even though the British eventually won this battle, they were surprised by the Colonials who repulsed their first two advances and inflicted great casualties. The first monument in 1794 was built by King Solomon’s Lodge of Masons to honor fallen patriot and mason, Dr. Joseph Warren. The current monument which was built by local citizenry to commemorate the famous battle was dedicated on June 17, 1843, in a major national ceremony.
Battle of Bunker Hill Museum - 43 Monument Square / Charlestown, MA / 9 am - 5 pm
A recent addition to the Boston National Historical Park, the museum houses all new exhibits on the Battle of Bunker Hill including a diorama of the battle scene as it appeared on June 17, 1775. There is also information and the history of building the Bunker Hill Monument as well as the history of Charlestown and environs.
Dorchester Heights - Thomas Park / Quincy, MA
On the night of March 4, 1776, colonial militia and local volunteers stealthily fortified the summit of Dorchester Heights, the Colonials had
retrieve badly needed cannon from Fort Ticonderoga, New York and had gotten them as far as Roxbury.
Wrapping their wagon wheels with straw to deaden the sound, they quietly moved the cannon from Roxbury and entrenched them on these hills south of Boston. British General Howe had planned an attack but a storm prevented the effort and with the firepower on the Heights, soon the British abandoned Boston for Nova Scotia.
Charleston Navy Yard - Charlestown, MA / 617-242-5611
Always important as a harbor since early colonial times, the United States Navy in 1800 built Charlestown, the first of six Navy Yards in the country. Since that time Charlestown Navy Yard has played an important role in building, and maintaining, the United States Navy fleet. Historic tours of the USS Constitution, the oldest commissioned warship afloat in the world and the USS Cassin Young which represents the type of ship built in the yard during World War II, are offered by the park service.
Faneuil Hall - Boston, MA / Open 9 am - 5 pm
First built in 1742, the Hall held town meetings between 1764 and 1774, and it was here Samuel Adams and others lead cries of protest against the imposition of taxes on the colonies. Enlarged in 1806, the Hall was still the focus or oratory in the 19th century as Frederick Douglass, William Lloyd Garrison and Lucy Stone brought their struggles for freedom. As in Colonial times, the ground floor Market stalls still are used as shops as they were in Paul Revere’s day.
Freedom Trail - 15 State Street / Boston, MA
The Boston Freedom Trail is a 2.5 mile trek through the history and sights of Boston. Beginning at Boston Common, the trail weaves through the city, marked by a red line on streets, sidewalks and pathways to the Charleston Shipyard and Bunker Hill. It is a unit of Boston National Historical Park and is overseen by The Freedom Trail Foundation. Sites include The State House, Park Street Church, Granary Burying Ground, King’s Chapel, King’s Chapel Burying Ground, Benjamin Franklin Statue - Boston Latin School, Old Corner Book Store, Old South Meeting House, Old State House, Site of the Boston Massacre, Faneuil Hall, Paul Revere House, The Old North Church, Copp’s Hill Burying Ground, Bunker Hill Monument and the ship, the USS Constitution.
Old North Church - 195 Salem Street / Boston, MA / 617-523-6676
Boston’s oldest church building and an active Episcopal Church, it's real name then and now is Christ Church. The church was built in 1723 and referred to, beginning in Colonial times, as the Old North church. Henry Wadsworth Longfellow memorialized church’s role at the start of the Revolutionary War in his poem, "The Midnight Ride of Paul Revere." On the night of April 18, 1775, sexton Robert Newman hung two lanterns in the Christ Church steeple to warn Charlestown patriots of the advance of British soldiers.
Old South Meeting House - 310 Washington Street / Boston, MA / 617-482-6439
Originally built in 1729 as a Puritan Meeting House, Old South was one of the first buildings in the United States to be preserved as an historic site. The event that sealed Old South’s place in history is one of the key events that sparked the Revolution - The Boston Tea Party.
As the largest building in colonial Boston to debate the issues of the day, Patriots were drawn here to protest a tax on tea, as they had gathered previously to protest impressment of American sailors into the British Navy. After hours of debate, Samuel Adams gave the secret signal that launched the Boston Tea Party. The Sons of Liberty, disguised as Indians, raced to Griffin’s Wharf and dumped 342 chests of tea into Boston Harbor.
Old State House - 206 Washington Street / Boston, MA /
617-720-1713
This handsome landmark was built in 1713 and has served many purposes including a merchants’ exchange and the seat of colonial and state governments. Today the Bostonian Society maintains the building as a museum of Boston history.
It was in 1761, the first seeds of independence were sown when James Otis opposed the Writs of Assistance here and in 1770, just outside the building the Boston Massacre occurred when British soldiers fired into a crowd of Bostonians. Fugitive slave Crispus Attucks was among the five victims who died that day, the first casualties of what was to become the American Revolution.
Paul Revere House - 19 North Square / Boston, MA / 617-523-2338
The oldest structure in downtown Boston is the Paul Revere House, built in 1680 the home was the domicile of silversmith and midnight rider, Paul Revere. Revere and his family resided here for most of the time from 1770 to 1800. The surrounding area is the oldest residential neighborhood in the city and the Revere house as well as the neighboring Pierce-Hitchborn House, are operated as a house museum by the Paul Revere Memorial Association.
USS Constitution - 24 5th Street / Charlestown, MA / The USS Constitution Museum / 671-426-1812
Launched in 1797, the frigate Constitution soon saw action in
the Quasi-War
with France. She gained her fame and nickname "Old Ironsides" in the War of 1812 when she sank the British frigates Guerriere and Java and in a single battle captured the sloops-of-war Cyane and Levant.
In 1830 she was to be broken up, but an inspirational poem by Oliver Wendell Holmes helped raise funds for her overhaul. In the next 20 years the frigate made an around-the-world cruise, captured the slave ship H.N. Gambrill off the African coast, and served as a training ship for the U.S. Naval Academy. Following the Civil War, the ship suffered a long period of neglect and in 1925 extensive repairs were begun that culminated, in 1931, in a 90-port tour of the United States. She returned to the city of her birth, where she remains as a memorial to the Navy’s age of fighting sail.
Today the USS Constitution the world’s oldest commissioned warship afloat, promotes the United States Navy and America’s naval heritage through educational outreach, public access and historic demonstrations. And on each 4th of July, the USS Constitution sails her annual voyage to turn around in the harbour and fires a 21 cannon salute to the Nation.
A USS Constitution Museum, a private, non-profit entity expands the visitors experience with interactive galleries to take adults, families and children of all ages on a 200-year voyage through history.
Boston National Historical Park
Downtown Visitor Center / Boston / MA / 02109
phone: 617-242-5642
Downtown Visitor Center and Charlestown Navy Yard Visitor Center, both administered by the National Park Service open daily, 9 am to 5 pm
