On The Freedom Trail

It was back to Boston for a 2nd day of touring. Yesterday was so hot and muggy that we weren't able to take in all the sites that we had planned. The ferry had made it so easy to access Boston that we decided to take it again. While we were cruising, we talked over lunch plans. Thinking I would please Mel, I had researched a good Italian restaurant in the North End neighborhood, known for its Italian restaurants. But Mel had other ideas. From the trolley yesterday, he had spotted a waterfront restaurant not far from the pier. So I agreed to his plan.

The name of the restaurant was Joe's. It was right on the water next to Columbus Park. We took the table closest to the water to take advantage of the gorgeous Boston skyline and the yachts in the harbor. The food and view were A+.

To our advantage, the restaurant was only three blocks from Paul Revere's house. The house is shown in the photo above. Paul Revere is the true Boston patriot, somewhat akin to Ben Franklin in Philadelphia. He was not a man of letters as many of our forefathers were, but he was a man of action and very productive. He fathered 16 children with 2 wives. His first wife died after giving birth to their 8th child. Within 6 months, Paul was remarried and went on to have another 8 children with his 2nd wife. Only 11 of his children survived to adulthood, so the house was never occupied by all 16 children at one time.

As we emerged into the garden, a gentlemen, dressed in garb of the time period, peeked over the fence and said, "Ah, I see that you, too, are waiting to be reimbursed by Revere. That happens a lot in this neighborhood with that rapscallion." We burst out laughing and by the time that we reached the gate, he'd disappeared. Had we not been together to see and hear him, we would have thought we were hallucinating. We love that stuff. We never did catch up with the guy.

There is a red brick line to follow on the Freedom Trail. If you follow, it will take you to places of note in Boston. From Revere's house, we found Paul Revere's statue in the Paul Revere Mall near the Old North Church, also known as Christ Church. "Listen, my children, and you shall hear of the midnight ride of Paul Revere"...H. W. Longfellow.

Here is the best photo that I could get of Old North Church of "One, if by land, and two, if by sea" fame. The story goes that Paul Revere had recruited the sexton of the church to light the lanterns. Robert Newman, the sexton, had secretly let himself into the church on the night of April 18, 1775 to hang the lanterns as the rebels or patriots had requested. He hung two lanterns, warning that the British were crossing by boat the Charles River. Once the deed was done, he let himself out of a rear window of the church. All this was undetected, until the British commander, who attended the church, figured out that it had to be Newman, since he was the only person with a key to the church. Newman was arrested, but because there were no witnesses nor evidence, he was set free.

The photo above is of the USS Constitution, or Old Ironsides. The ship is moored in Charleston Naval Yard and is still a commissioned Navy warship. The ship was built in Boston, but has been around the world. Its sides are made from 21 inch thick oak planks and it hull is reinforced with copper plate made by Paul Revere. It was named by George Washington, commissioned in 1790, carried 450 men and did service in the War of 1812. It fought in 42 battles and was never defeated. Nowadays, women serve on the ship.

This tour completed our trip to Boston, another great city with lots of history.