The 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.

DID YOU KNOW? With historical emphasis on the Salem Witch Trials, the Boston Common has its own macabre history of public executions. Hangings were done on the old elm tree on the western side of the Common, and in 1769, gallows replaced the hanging tree. Public executions took place in the Common up until 1817, when the gallows were taken down.

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.

DID YOU KNOW? Park Street church's steeple rises to 217 feet and remains a landmark visible from several Boston neighborhoods. Also, the church became known as "Brimstone Corner," because of the storage of gunpowder during the War of 1812.

Founded in 1660, the Granary Burying Ground is the third oldest burying ground in Boston. Granary Burying Ground 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.

DID YOU KNOW? Granary Burying Ground is also the site of Elizabeth "Mother" Goose's grave, believed by some to be "Mother Goose." It's unclear whether or not her body is buried under the headstone or elsewhere in the cemetery. Of course, the debate among historians has, well, ruffled a few feathers over the years.

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.

DID YOU KNOW? The musical tradition of King's Chapel dates back to 1713 when the church became the first in New England to acquire an organ. The present organ, the sixth, was made by C.B. Fisk in 1964.

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, two 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.

DID YOU KNOW? 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.

DID YOU KNOW? The building had fallen into disrepair by the 1950s and was restored in 1960. Currently, it's the home of Ultra Diamonds.

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.

DID YOU KNOW? After the Boston Massacre in March 1770, where five colonists were killed by British soldiers, thousands of outraged Bostonians gathered at Old South to protest.

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.

DID YOU KNOW? The Old State House boasts a spiral staircase and a collection of memorabilia including a vial of tea from the Boston Tea Party, Benjamin Franklin's shaving bowl, muskets from Bunker Hill and John Hancock's red velvet waistcoat.

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

DID YOU KNOW? A minor dispute between a wigmaker's young apprentice and a British sentry turned into what Samuel Adams later coined the Boston Massacre. When the British relief soliders came to quell the fight, a crowd of angry colonists responded by hurling snowballs, rocks, clubs and insults at the soldiers leading to a bloody finale.

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.

DID YOU KNOW? Street Performers, or buskers as they were called, first appeared at Faneuil Hall Marketplace more than 30 years ago to provide entertainment for construction workers renovating Quincy Market, South Market and North Market Buildings.

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.

DID YOU KNOW? The name of Paul Revere's horse, made famous by the Longfellow poem, will forever remain anonymous. There is one mention of the mare within the genealogy of the Larkin family, rumored to be the owners of the horse Revere used that night. "Brown Beauty," the mare loaned at the request of Samuel Larkin's son, deacon John Larkin, was never returned to the owner after the famous ride. If true, not only did Revere ride a mare that he didn't own, but it's a twice borrowed horse.

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.

DID YOU KNOW? In the Old North Church's steeple, Robert Newman hung two lanterns signaling Paul Revere's famous "midnight ride." A re-enactment takes place every year on April 19 to commemorate.

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

DID YOU KNOW? Because of its close proximity to the Charles River and its location on a large hill, the British used the site during the Battle of Bunker Hill.

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.

DID YOU KNOW? Having never lost a battle in its long career, in 1997 the USS Constitution celebrated its bicentennial.

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.

DID YOU KNOW? The museum facility has expanded since originally opening its doors in 1976, nearly doubling in space as the museum worked with the National Park Service to expand into two adjacent buildings as well as erecting a connector.

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.

DID YOU KNOW? There are 294 stairs to reach the top of the Bunker Hill Monument, which ascends 67 meters or 220 feet.

For additional information on The Freedom Trail, please visit the the Freedom Trail Foundation Web site HERE. Or check out the foundation's Povo listing HERE.