There are plenty of historic sites in and around Boston to explore, including Walden Pond, the site of Henry David Thoreau’s famous cabin. It’s also home to other important historical sites, such as Boston Common and the Royall House & Slave Quarters.
Walden Pond
Walden Pond, where Henry David Thoreau lived for two years in the mid-19th century, has long captured the imaginations of transcendentalists and nature lovers alike. But its rich history extends far beyond Thoreau's philosophical views alone - colonial, slave trade, and Native American events all played their parts here; today there stands a replica cabin and statue commemorating where Thoreau began his personal experiment in simpler living.
Thoreau describes an idealized lake in Walden as "water as clear as the sky itself", and that its rise and fall at regular intervals kills any weeds or brushwood growing nearby, leaving an uninterrupted shore.
Walden Pond is what geologists refer to as a kettle hole - an indentation left behind from glacial melt that transformed into an open depression after it subsided. Its depth depends on the amount of sand and gravel trapped during melt-away processes which then filled in as blocks with water as the pond expanded further. Most kettle holes don't feature streams entering or leaving them, however.
Thoreau constructed a one-room house near the pond in 1845 and settled there to study natural history, garden and write his journal. He spent his days exploring the surrounding area and conducting the first accurate survey of what at that time was one of few remaining woodlands within an otherwise heavily agriculturalized region. Over his stay, he came to appreciate simple pleasures of life such as that provided by nature's beauty in particular that of Thoreau Pond.
But Thoreau also witnessed the devastation caused by civilization. Walden Pond served as an essential source of fresh water for Concord and neighboring towns, and Frederic Tudor (Boston's "Ice King") harvested its ice for sale across Europe and India. Thoreau watched ice cutters work underneath his cabin.
The pond has since been designated a State Reservation, where visitors can swim, hike, walk, picnic, and boat. A new LEED-built wood and glass Walden Pond Visitor's Center built to LEED standards makes a worthwhile visit, with its 20-minute high-definition orientation video which weaves interviews from Doris Kearns Goodwin and Bill McKibben into colorful nature scenes is particularly worthwhile.
Boston Common
Boston Common is widely recognized as one of Boston's iconic landmarks, yet many remain unaware that it's one of America's oldest public parks, playing a vital role throughout our nation's history - from colonial days through today. From serving as pasture land and military training grounds to hosting executions, sermons, and protests - Boston Common has played its own special part.
In 1634, Boston Town purchased its park after residents voted to tax every household six shillings to fund its purchase. Initially, this land served multiple functions; including being home for public executions of pirates, murderers, witches and Quakers such as Mary Dyer. Additionally, the space could also be used for grazing livestock and planting communal crops.
In the 1700s, Boston Common was also an area for military activity; militia companies regularly trained and mustered on its grounds. Furthermore, it served as the focus for political activism during this era, hosting Sons of Liberty protests of 1765 against Stamp Act and Revolutionary War battles for Boston.
Time after time, Boston Common transformed into a more recreational space. Residents added tree-lined paths in the 19th century; following the Civil War monuments and fountains were installed; today it serves as a hub of activity, including strolling, jogging, skating around Frog Pond, and hosting all manner of events of every sort.
The Boston Massacre monument stands as one of the park's most striking features, honoring all five victims of this horrific act of violence and representing them on its walls. A must-see attraction for any resident or visitor alike.
Boston Common offers an ideal spot for anyone to appreciate nature and enjoy outdoor activities such as walking, running or skating in its scenic natural environment. There's also plenty of room to relax by the frog pond or just sit and read - managed by the Boston Parks & Recreation Department with additional funds provided through Friends of Public Garden for the upkeep of this National Register of Historic Places site since 1987.
Royall House & Slave Quarters
Isaac Royall Sr.'s arrival from Antigua in 1737 to take up residence at a Georgian mansion outside Boston brought with it, among other chattels, "a parcel of negroes." Over time he would hold sixty men, women, and children in bondage on his property; today it serves as a museum that explores this intersection between wealth and bondage in pre-Revolutionary Massachusetts through architecture, household objects, archaeological artifacts and more.
The museum's centerpiece is a complex of slave buildings located to the rear of an 18th-century mansion built in 1732. This building is believed to be one of only two freestanding, intact slave quarters left standing in the northern United States and houses Royall family furnishings as well as collections.
Royall's mansion, extravagant by colonial standards, serves as an icon of white American wealth generated through slavery. Both its exterior and interior feature the finest furnishings, wallpapers, and European-tile fireplace surrounds to add further visual opulence.
Royall House and Slave House serve as both a museum of memory, commemorating the lives of African slaves who worked to make possible wealthy planter lifestyle. Furthermore, its significance and mission can be found in its historical relationship to one of Massachusetts's largest slaveholding families - the Royall Family.
One of the museum's most significant artifacts demonstrates the relentless nature of slave labor: A kitchen floor pallet identified in a probate inventory from 1739 was where workers could rest between rounds of work.
Long-term, the museum aspires to reinterpret this building as the living and working quarters for sixty of Royalls' slaves over four decades of ownership. At present, public and school programs use this space, with an exhibit featuring artifacts unearthed on the property as its centerpiece.
To reach the Royall House and Slave Quarters, take an Eastbound trip on the MBTA Green Line Extension from Medford/Tufts station. Walk north on College Avenue past Joyce Cummings Center until George Street; look behind its park for your destination house!
Phillis Wheatley Memorial
This monument, located near the Old State House and dedicated in 2003, honors three historically significant women: Abigail Adams - wife of America's second president; Phillis Wheatley - one of the first Black female poets who published a book of poetry while sold into slavery; and Lucy Stone - an abolitionist and suffragist who endured threats and opposition while remaining committed to social change.
The memorial includes three sculptural elements to honor each woman's life and work: Phillis Wheatley's bust, an ode to President George Washington and a quote by Stone. Designed by Meredith Bergmann and Cyrus E. Dallin respectively, it stands in Boston's historic district as a reminder of women's ongoing challenges today.
Wheatley moved to John and Susanna Wheatley's wealthy Quaker family from West Africa as an infant and quickly excelled academically. Her masters recognized this, permitting her to pursue literary interests that did not interfere with household duties; as a result, she learned history, British Literature, Greek, and Latin - something unthinkable at that time for someone enslaved as she.
At her peak, she published over 200 works. Her poems became an effective weapon in promoting abolition, encouraging slaves to embrace Christianity while convincing Protestants in America and England to support abolition. Her poetry also drew from various influences such as Alexander Pope and Thomas Gray; it may have also drawn upon African tradition where girls would perform funeral dirges to help support her cause.
One of her most powerful works was an ode to President George Washington, which read: "Proceed, great chief, with virtue on your side;/ A crown and mansion and throne that shine / With gold unfading, WASHINGTON! Be thine." This poem played an influential role in Washington's deciding to lead the Continental Army; after hearing it he replied with: "Proceed with your noble work / The goddess guides thy mighty hand!"
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