East Coast History Tour: Boston
4/16/2023
By Mom, Max, Brooke, Hailey, & Alisa
We took dive into US history and the start of the American Revolution during our trip to Boston, Massachusetts. We learned so much about the courageous leaders significant to the rebellion, including Sam Adams, John Hancock, Benjamin Franklin, George Washington, Paul Revere, and many others. The roots of our country are incredible to learn about!
We first landed in Boston and drove our rental vehicle to our hotel the Marriott Long Wharf. Yep, you guessed it! It was right on Long Wharf in the middle of the city of Boston. After we checked in, our first mission was to find some great seafood. We had lobster in mind! Our mission brought us right next door to the Chart House. Goodness, what an incredible history gold mine! The Chart House was converted from an old factory that was first built around 1763 and was an office to John Hancock. Inside we found John Hancock’s actual safe, and some other very cool pieces of history. We enjoyed our meal, our history lesson, then headed back to the hotel to rest up for a weekend of history!
On our first full day, we Uber’d to the start of the Freedom Trail. The Freedom Trail is an actual trail through downtown Boston, lined out with a red brick path, that you can follow to experience museums, churches, monuments, burial grounds, parks, and a ship that are all significant to the American Revolution. The trail was created and dedicated by the citizens of Boston in 1951 for everyone to enjoy. We met our tour guide “Mother Goose”, all dressed in colonial period attire, in the Boston Commons. Boston Commons is a huge green space and gathering place years ago for people to meet and graze their animals. We continued our guided tour on foot through the city, learning about Sam Adams, John Hancock, and the Sons of Liberty. We saw the place where many of those patriots were buried, as well as the location of the Boston Massacre. We concluded our tour in Faneuil Hall Marketplace, a downtown shopping/restaurant/entertainment area. What a fun first tour!
We proceeded to the Union Oyster House, America’s oldest restaurant establishment and a regular favorite of the late President John F. Kennedy. We sat in JFK’s favorite booth (just for a picture) that was turned into a mini memorial. We tried the lobster, the corn bread, the salads, and of course, the New England clam chowder. YUM!! Max even experienced his first oyster in front of cheering fans with that authentic Boston accent up at the bar. He’s still not sure if he likes oysters but we’re grateful for his bravery! The kids all got to “meet” and hold some of the live lobsters from the live well. YIKES! The restaurant is adorned with history and artifacts. What a great spot for a history class lunch!
After our meal and restaurant tour, we hopped back on the Freedom Trail to finish the 2 ½ mile trek to the finish at Bunker Hill Monument Park. After crossing the bridge into Charleston, we stopped for a quick ice cream at Emack & Bolios to cool off from the 89 degrees and sunny spring day. From here, we had the monument in our sites, and we zigzagged through the charming Charlestown until we made it to the park. We had a moment of reflection about the Battle of Bunker Hill, thinking of those who fell during the battle, such as William Prescott, John Stark, Israel Putman and Dr. Joseph Warren. We proceeded to climb the 294 steps inside the monument and enjoyed the Boston views from the top. It was a strong finish for the Freedom Trail, but not the end of our tour!
After Bunker Hill, we Uber’d to our next stop at the site of the Boston Tea Party. We relived the experience with a reenactment of the event in a meeting room and a ship modelled after the one in history, and all participated in throwing “tea” into Boston Harbor. “No taxation without representation!”
Abigail’s Tea Room was the next appropriate stop after the reenactment. We sampled different teas that would have been thrown into the harbor, and all choose our favorite. Hailey and mom loved the green tea! Yum!
After a quick stop at the room for a rest, we ventured out for our evening fun: local Boston eats! We walked to Regina’s Pizzeria for dinner, and hit up Mike’s Pastry for cannoli’s on the way home. We love how walkable, safe, and clean the city is, but we might love the friendly and lively Boston people even more!
What an adventure and history packed first full day in the city of Boston. By now, we are all feeling much more familiar with our nation’s conception and the courageous men and women that took a stand for liberty and a higher ideal.
Day 3
We woke up ready to retrace the path of Paul Revere and companions and travel from Boston to Lexington. In Lexington, we visited the location where the war first began. We learned about the Battle of Lexington, and the men who bravely fought. We toured the Buckman Tavern, where militiamen awaited to “Regulars” before the battle. We dined at a quaint sandwich shop, and watched the town setting up for a re-enactment of the battle. We were a day early for the festivities but it was fun to catch some of the energy! When we exited the lunch spot, we saw that hundred of flags had been set up around the memorial park. Very cool!
After Lexington, we drove through the historic Harvard and MIT campuses, and headed back to catch a Boston Ducks tour through the waterways to learn more about the city. The big kids got to take turns driving the Duck on the river, and Alisa found it was a perfect time for an afternoon nap!
Next we headed right over to Fenway Park to experience our first Red Sox game :).
Day 4
On our last morning, Mom and Dad jogged around the city and saw the excitement of the Boston Marathon setup. We were two of thousands of joggers in the city that morning! We jogged back, woke up the kids, packed to leave the city. We stopped at the Omni Parker on the way out to try the first Boston Cream Pie, then continued on our adventure to New York City!! Thank you Boston for the memories!
