How did the colonists of Massachusetts go from public protests meant to shame government officials and destroy offending property, to armed conflict with British Regulars in Lexington and Concord? John Bell, the prolific blogger behind Boston1775...
The City Upon a Hill. The Athens of America. The Cradle of Liberty. Boston has many names because it has played important roles in the history of North America. But how did Boston, or “The Hub,” come to be? Why did the Puritans who sailed from...
After achieving independence from Great Britain, the new United States and its member states had to pay war debts. As the national government lacked the power to tax its citizens, the problem of paying war debts fell to the states. Many states tried...
Law and order stood as a sign of civilization for many 17th-century Europeans, which is why some of the first European settlers in North America created systems of law and order in their new homeland. Today, we explore the legal history of colonial...
Do you believe in the supernatural? In ghosts, zombies, or perhaps witches? Today we celebrate All Hallows Eve with an exploration of the specters and witches that haunted 17th-century Massachusetts. Our guide for this exploration is Emerson W...
Have you ever heard the lines: “Listen my children, and you shall hear; Of the midnight ride of Paul Revere/ On the eighteenth of April, in Seventy-Five/Hardly a man is now alive/Who remembers that famous day and year?” These lines make up the...