History and Attractions of Boston Common
Boston Common is the oldest city park in the United States. The eccentric William
Blaxton settled the land, all alone with his books, in the 1620s. In 1634 he sold the land
to English Puritan colonists for use as a shared cow and sheep pasture. Each household
contributed six shillings to the purchase. Eventually, the land was also used for military
training, sometimes by colonists and sometimes by their British occupiers. Until 1817,
the land was Bostons site for public hangings. Livestock grazing was banned in 1830.
In modern times, Boston Common serves mainly as a recreation center. It anchors
Bostons Emerald Necklace, a chain of parks that runs about seven miles through the
city. The park itself measures about forty-four acres.
As one of the nations oldest landmarks, Boston Common has become rich with items of
historical interest. The park is home to the Central Burying Ground, one of Bostons first
graveyards. Among those buried there are choral composer William Billings, portrait
artist Gilbert Stuart, and many casualties of the 1775 Battle of Bunker Hill.
Unfortunately, the subway tunneling of 1894 disturbed more than 900 (perhaps 2,000) of
the cemeterys deceased residents! They were later reburied, and a tablet marks the
location of the event.
Several monuments can be spotted throughout the Common. The Robert Gould Shaw
Memorial, for example, is a Civil War monument honoring the first free black regiment
in the Union Army. (Shaw commanded the all-volunteer regiment and is depicted in the
Hollywood film Glory.) Another impressive Civil War sculpture is The Soldiers and
Sailors Monument. Located atop the Commons Flagstaff Hill, this neoclassical work of
art rises an impressive 126 feet. Elsewhere, in the parks Parkman Plaza, statues pay
homage to the ideals of Industry, Learning, and Religion.
With so many acres of green space, the park has hosted many large public events. In 1713
a public riot broke out in response to a food shortage. Two hundred people were present,
and the lieutenant governor was shot during the chaos. A century and half later, in 1969,
a Vietnam protest drew 100,000 people. Martin Luther King, Jr. and Pope John Paul II
also drew large crowds for their speeches. The parks Parkman Bandstand holds smaller
crowds for plays and concerts.
Boston Common is full of longstanding attractions for people of all ages. The Public
Garden was established in 1837 as the nations oldest botanical garden. Prior to that time,
the land had been a salty swamp. The 24-acre garden is especially famous for its fleet of
swan-shaped boats. Weather permitting, visitors ride the boats from spring through
autumn.
The Frog Pond is another popular destination within the park. The Frog Pond is a popular
childrens wading pool in the summer. During the brisk Boston winters, it freezes into an
ice skating rink. When the Frog Pond first opened in 1848, school was closed for a day
just so children could play in the fountain! Today the Tadpole Playground is adjacent.
Boston Common is flanked by other points of interest, such as: the Massachusetts State
House, which stands to the north; Park Street Station Americas first subway station
in the eastern corner; and Boylston Street Station Americas second subway station to
the south. For those who prefer to walk, the Freedom Trail (a popular walking tour) also
starts to the south of Boston Common at the Visitor Center.
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The Massachusetts State House
On July 4, 1798, surviving fathers of the American Revolution met in Boston for the
dedication of the Massachusetts State House. Governor Samuel Adams and patriot Paul
Revere placed the cornerstone, and Revere would later roll copper sheeting for the
capitols dome. With pomp and circumstance, stone for the building was drawn by fifteen
white horses one for each state in the Union. The State House would come to be known
as one of the greatest works of neoclassical architecture in the United States. It also
boasts a prime location, sitting on Beacon Hill and overlooking the prosperous Back Bay
and Boston Commons.
When the architect Charles Bulfinch designed this graceful seat of government, he was
inspired by the neoclassical Somerset House that rose above Londons River Thames.
Architectural buffs describe the State House design as intermediate between Georgian
and Federal styles. It is chiefly red brick with white accents. It has delicate Corinthian
columns, gently arching windows, and a vast golden dome.
The golden dome has been through a few important changes. The mound was originally
covered in wooden shingles. After Paul Revere laid copper sheeting, the dome was
finished with gold plating. It was painted gray during World War II to reduce its
vulnerability to potential Axis bombers; if there had been a blackout, the governments
dome wouldve shone conspicuously in the moonlight.
The State House dome is capped with a pinecone. This symbolizes the states
appreciation for the pine tree. Early Boston architecture, including the State House itself,
relied upon pinewood from surrounding forests.
As state government grew, Massachusetts built additions to Bulfinchs work. In 1895, a
yellow brick Brigham Annex was erected for new bureaucrats offices. Two marbled
stone wings were added in the early 1900s to provide fireproofing and additional office
space. Inside the State House today are the Governors office, the chambers of the House
and Senate, and three halls.
Doric Hall is named for the ten Doric columns that line its interior. These were originally
carved trunks from pine trees, but today the columns are made of plaster and iron. Doric
Hall is home to many statues and portraits, including an 1826 statue of George
Washington. In the marble corridor just outside Doric, the Hear Us display honors the
contributions of several influential women from Massachusetts history, including
Dorothea Dix and Lucy Stone.
The Hall of Flags honors Massachusetts residents who served in battles. It displays copies
of battle flags from all of the wars in which Massachusetts regiments have participated.
(The original textile flags are being preserved elsewhere.) These include flags from the
Spanish-American War, World Wars I and II, the Korean War, Berlin, and Vietnam. The
Hall of Flags is also decorated with murals, such as The Return of the Colors, which
depicts the return of flags after Civil War combat in 1865.
The Great Hall, completed in1990, is the newest architectural addition to the State House.
This impressive, airy hall is made of tri-colored marble topped with a glass dome.
Circular patterns on the floor were installed to create a clock motif; a few years earlier,
the state legislature had acquired an extravagant $100,000 clock made in modernist style.
The room is also decorated with 351 flags from Massachusetts localities. The expansive
room is used for large state events. A statue of President John F. Kennedy depicts him
striding across the Hall perhaps to meet up with a nearby figure of Horace Mann or
Daniel Webster.
Two statues of Colonial American women stand on the State House lawn. One is of Anne
Hutchinson, whose religious teachings led to her excommunication from Massachusetts
Bay Colony in 1638. She then co-founded Rhode Island on the principle of religious
freedom. The second statue is of Mary Dyer. In 1660, Bostonians hanged her for
violating a ban against Quakers traveling in their colony. Dyers statue eerily overlooks
the site of her execution: the gallows on Boston Common. She is one of four people
known as the Boston Martyrs. Along with the spirits of Anne Hutchinson, Sam Adams,
John Hancock, and other influential Americans, Mary Dyers spirit lives on at the State
House.
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TopThe Lincoln Memorial
Inside a Greek-style temple, a 19-foot statue of Abraham Lincoln looks out over
Washington, D.C. Above him are the words, In this temple, as in the hearts of the people
for whom he saved the Union, the memory of Abraham Lincoln is enshrined forever.
Some say that the grandeur of Abraham Lincolns memorial does not suit his style; he
was a modest man why immortalize him in a 99-foot tall Greek temple? But supporters
celebrate his grand achievements. Shortly after Abraham Lincoln became US President,
several states seceded from the Union. Before his presidency ended, Lincoln saw his
country through civil war, preserved its union, and passed the 13th Amendment
abolishing slavery.
The President was assassinated in 1865 just six days after the Confederate General Lee
surrendered. Congress formed the Lincoln Monument Association two years later.
However, they did not choose the site in West Potomac Park until 1901. It was 1911
before they appropriated funds; President Taft approved a bill for $2 million. (The
memorials final cost was $1 million more.) In February of 1914, on Lincolns birthday,
the first stones were set. The white marble memorial was completed in 1922. It was
dedicated on Memorial Day that year, 57 years after the presidents death. Tens of
thousands of people were in attendance, including many veterans from the Civil War.
The work was the collective effort of an architect and several artists. The New York
architect named Henry Bacon designed the building. He chose a Doric Greek style, much
like the Temple of Zeus in Olympia, Greece, complete with the traditional 36 columns.
After constructing the columns, he realized that there had also been 36 states in the nation
at the time of Lincolns death. He then had each column engraved with a state name, and
added above them the names of all 48 states that existed by 1922. (Alaska and Hawaii
were later mentioned on an inscription leading to the memorial.) The building is massive,
with each column measuring more than 23 feet around its base.
From inside the stone building, Lincoln gazes out over the Reflecting Pool and toward
the Washington Monument. His larger-than-life figure appears to be a continuous piece
of marble, but its actually made of 28 interlocking blocks carved by the artist Daniel
French. Several types of marble are used throughout the monument, perhaps to symbolize
Lincolns force for unity; stone is used from Indiana, Colorado, Georgia and Tennessee.
One marble wall features an inscription of the Presidents famous Gettysburg Address.
Another displays his second inaugural speech. The memorial also has murals entitled
Emancipation and Union by Jules Guerin. Ernest Bairstow and Evelyn Longman also
contributed to the memorials carvings.
The building has been used as a backdrop for events related to civil rights. In 1939, the
African American singer Marian Anderson was told by the Daughters of the American
Revolution that she would not sing to an integrated crowd at Washington, D.C.s
Confederate Hall. Eleanor Roosevelt, who immediately resigned her own DAR
membership, suggested the Lincoln Memorial as a stage. Anderson opened her act with
My Country Tis of Thee. Martin Luther King, Jr. delivered his I Have a Dream
speech at the Lincoln Memorial in 1963. This was also the scene of Vietnam protests and
the Million Man March.
The memorial is staffed from 8 a.m. to midnight every day but Christmas. The lower
level of the monument houses a bookstore, restrooms, and the Lincoln Museum, which
was funded with pennies from schoolchildren. At night, spotlights illuminate the outside
of the Lincoln Memorial. The lights seep inside and cast shadows across Lincolns face
for a spectacular view.
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