Adventures in Wandaland: Last Stop

We finally had a beautiful sunny day! We were so glad since we would be walking the Freedom Trail and didn't want to do it in the rain!

We arrived at the dock:

And headed to Boston Common to begin our walk. Boston Common is the oldest public park in America. Originally, it was deemed "common land" for cattle-grazing and military training. During the Revolutionary War, British troops assembled here for several battles.

This sculpture honors the Shaw-54th Regiment, soldiers in the Civil War:

Across the street from the sculpture is the State House:

This is the Park Street Church, founded in 1809. In 1829 William Lloyd Garrison gave his first major anti-slavery speech here:

The Granary Burying Ground, established in 1660.

Samuel Adams is buried here. He was famous for leading the Boston Tea Party and was a second cousin to John Adams. They often did not see eye to eye on political matters.

There were several tour guides leading groups around:

Paul Revere is buried here...

As is John Hancock:

We enjoyed looking at the many headstones. On one of the instructional plaques, we learned that many people prepared their headstone in advance. This person seemed to have a bone to pick with society:

It says:

Farewell Vain World I have Enough of the(e)

and now I'm Careles(s) what thou Sayst of me

What Fault thou Seest in me

Take Care to Shun

Theres worke within thy Self

That Should be Done

Thy Smiles I Court not nor thy Frowns I fear

My Cares are past my head lies quiet here

We continued our walk, following these:

Puritans came to America to escape the British Anglican Church, but as non-Puritans settled in Boston, King James II ordered King's Chapel be built. Shortly after the Revolution, King's Chapel became the first Unitarian church in America.

Boston Latin School was established in 1635 and was the first colonial public school. Benjamin Franklin attended here.

The Old Corner Bookstore (now houses shops) was a popular hangout for authors such as Longfellow, Emerson, and Harriet Beecher Stowe.

Old South Meeting House was a Puritan church with simple wooden pews and an austere pulpit. Samuel Adams was a member of this congregation and Benjamin Franklin was baptized here. It was also here that 5,000 Bostonians gathered here in protest of British tax policies which led to the Boston Tea Party.

This is the Old State House, built in 1713 and is the oldest public building in Boston. Next to it is a square which is the site of the Boston Massacre.

We walked through Quincy Market where I bought some gloves and a scarf to help cut the chill in the air.

Paul Revere's House where he moved in with his wife, Sara, and their 5 children. When Sara passed away during childbirth, Revere married his second wife, Rachel. All told, 16 children were raised in this home. It was from here that Paul Revere departed on horseback to participate in the Boston Tea Party. Besides his political activities, Revere was a renowned silversmith, goldsmith, and coppersmith.

This is what the streets looked like:

Old North Church is the oldest active church in Boston. It was here that Robert Newman signaled Paul Revere that the British were coming by sea.

Paul Revere statue outside Old North Church:

We took a break for lunch and Mark had oysters on the half shell and then another disgusting dish that had about 8 sea creatures including octopus. Eew!

Why, yes that IS a little octopus on his fork!

After lunch it was off to see the USS Constitution. President George Washington ordered six ships to built for the US Navy in 1794. Nicknamed "Old Ironsides", this ship was never defeated in battle. The oak wood sides were so dense that cannon balls literally bounced right off.