Freedom Trail

The Freedom Trail is an introduction to Colonial Revolutionary history and is one of the oldest public parks in the country. Starting at the Boston Common, the trail then continues to hit as many as 16 historical points, until it ends at the Bunker Hill Monument. Different tour companies may offer different routes. Locations highlighted are the Old State House, the King's Chapel and Burying Ground, the First Public School Site and Ben Franklin Statue, Park Street Church and Granary Burying Ground, Old South Meeting House, Old Corner Bookstore, the Massachusetts State House, the Boston Massacre Site, Faneuil Hall, the Paul Revere House, Old North Church, Copp's Hill Burying Ground, the USS Constitution and Charlestown Navy Yard. You need to devote a full day to the trail, since its length is about 2.5 miles, and many visitors like to linger and taste some of the local flavor along the way.

Tourist Tip:

Povo makes it easy to find where to park, eat or shop around each Freedom Trail attraction. Simply go to a specific attraction page that you'll be visiting, find the "Tags In This Area" box in the right hand column, and click on the keywords that interest you.

The Massachusetts State House, also called the 'new' State House, was built in 1798 and operates as the state capitol and seat of government of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. It overlooks the Boston common, and is recognizable by the gilt gold dome topped with a lantern and pine cone.

Park Street Church was built in 1809, and was the site of the old town granary where grain was stored. Among many 'firsts' in this country, this is also the location of the first Sunday school program in 1816, the oldest radio ministry in 1923, as well as more recently, the start of the Animal Rescue League .

Founded in 1660, the Granary Burying Ground is the third oldest burying ground in Boston. Granary Cemetery is the final resting place of some of the greatest names in American History. John Hancock, Paul Revere and Samuel Adams all share shady plots alongside the victims of the Boston Massacre.

King's Chapel is first Anglican Church in Boston from 1688 and still stands at it's original location. Today, this is one of the oldest Unitarian churches as well.

Three statues stand in the courtyard: Josiah Quincy III, Boston's second mayor; one of the Democratic Party symbol, the donkey; and this one of Benjamin Franklin. Erected in 1856, this 8-foot tall bronze likeness of Franklin by Richard Saltonstall Greenough is Boston's first public portrait statue. Franklin is depicted in plain dress, and atop a base adorned with bas-reliefs of Franklin's accomplishments. The original school building was built in 1634 by the Puritans, 2 years before Harvard College, and the oldest public school in America. It was torn down to make way for King's Chapel in 1645 and the new building has since been renamed the Boston Latin School. The oldest portrait statue in Boston, of Benjamin Franklin and erected in 1856, is behind the fence in the courtyard, and overlooks the original building site where Franklin, Samuel Adams, and John Hancock once attended.

The original Old Corner Bookstore was built in 1712 as an apothecary, office and home of Thomas Crease, and is one of Boston's oldest surviving structures. This was the literary center of the United States during the 19th century and its publishing house actually paid royalties, then a rather new concept. The Scarlet Letter, Walden, and the Atlantic Monthly were all published here.

The original Old South Meeting House was built in 1729 by a Puritan congregation who hardly imagined the building's future prominence in American history. Within these walls Ben Franklin was baptized and Samuel Adams uttered the words that led to the Boston Tea Party.

The Old State House is an icon of American history that embodies the stubborn pride of the early rebels. This building once served as the seat of the pre-revolutionary Colonial government and also as Boston's City Hall in the 1830s.

At this site on March 5, 1770, in front of the Old State House, tensions between the colonists and British soldiers erupted into violence.

Faneuil Hall Marketplace has been a staple of Boston's freedom and bustling economy since it's creation in 1742. Faneuil Hall was originally created as a meeting house and a forum for our most famous Patriots to give speeches regarding our emancipation from Great Britian.

Downtown Boston's oldest structure (built in 1680), Paul Revere's House is a demure, seemingly unremarkable house that was home to everyone's favorite night rider from 1770 to 1800. It was also the starting point of his legendary nocturnal gallop to Lexington.

Built in 1723, Old North Church is Boston's oldest standing Church building and officially known as "Christ Church in the City of Boston". Several gardens grace this location: the 18th Century Garden, the St. Francis of Assisi Garden, the Washington Memorial garden, and the Third Lantern Garden.

Copp's Hill Burying Ground is Boston's second oldest burying ground, established in 1660, and was originally called the North Burying Place.

The USS Constitution, which is more commonly referred to as "Old Ironsides", is the oldest commissioned warship afloat in the world. It was built on orders from George Washington and has been an active military ship since 1797.

Only yards away from "Old Ironsides," the USS Constitution Museum has interactive galleries that tell the story of one of our country's most cherished icons.

Perhaps the most underrated point of interest on the Boston Freedom Trail, Bunker Hill Monument is a granite obelisk that rises 221 ft. above Breed's Hill, where the actual battle was fought on June 17, 1775.