Day 3: We slept in and then drove up to Lexington, MA for the Liberty Ride: a trolley tour of Lexington and Concord where the Revolution started. We learned that Paul Revere road first to warn Sam Adams and John Hancock that the British were coming to confiscate all the weapons that were stockpiled and also to warn that they would be arrested (they did not come to attack as I had thought before this trip: only to get the colonists' weapons and maintain control). So here come a whole bunch of untrained Scots and Irish redcoats. They had to walk from Charlestown to Lexington and it took several hours. They get into Lexington and some colonist fired at the British(some speculate Sam Adams since he was always doing whatever he could to start a revolution including using the Boston Massacre as propaganda- the 5 men who died there provoked the attack!). They fired back and the first colonist casualties occurred here. But this was NOT the shot heard round the world. That happened later in the day, April 19th, 1775. The British continued along the main road to Concord and there, by the bridge, they were fired upon by many colonists who had banded together. The redcoats incurred their first casualties here and this was the "shot heard round the world" because now the war had started. The poor British were shot upon all the way back to Boston.
Concord was also a literature and philosophy center in the 1800s. Right next to the bridge where the first shots of the Revolution were fired is the home of Rev. Emerson. His son, Ralph Waldo Emerson later owned it:
I also found out that Revere was later captured but then returned to Lexington.
Henry David Thoreau and the Alcotts also lived in the area and were friends. I went to the real Orchard House that Louisa May Alcott and her family lived in after she came home disabled the Civil war. She had contracted dissentary and they treated her with mercury! This is when she wrote Little Women, highly based on her own family. I got to see Anna's real, plain wedding dress (think Meg in the book) and see May's drawing and painting all over the house (Amy). 90% of the Alcott's stuff is still in the house which is amazing. It was very very cool.
Mr. Alcott's School of philosophy right on their property:
Day 4: We went to the oldest presidential birthplaces in the U.S! John Adam's and John Q. Adam's then to Peacefield where the Adams came home to after his retirement and 4 generations later lived there!
Adam's birthplace in Quincy, MA (south of Boston)
John Q's on the same plot of land:
Peacefield:
The gardens:
Their extensive family library (18,000 books!)
After this amazing morning, we went to the Sam Adams' brewery for a tour and got to try a some free beer, including one not on market yet! Most of it was lost on me but I liked their cherry wheat beer and Daniel of course was in heaven. =)
On the way to this section of Boston, we walked through an Arts district. This sculpture cracked me up:
Then we headed back to downtown Boston and saw a few things we missed the first time:
Quincy Market place/Faneuil Hall
Cheers
Boston Commons and then the Public Gardens (including Make way for the ducklings)
We walked by a whole bunch of women putting up signs. We finally read one and it said "Dyke March" Come to find out the Gay pride parade was the next day. We were rather glad to get out of Boston when we did.
The last thing we did on this busy day, full of walking (again! my legs were killing me) was see one of my best friends from high school, Amanda, and her fiance. We went to this hip restaurant called Fire + Ice. They grill your food right in front of you.
Good times!
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