Sign titled "A State of Perfect Chaos" in the Charlestown Navy Yard. This sign describes Captain William Bainbridge taking command of the Navy Yard during the War of 1812.
Sign titled "Boston, the Navy Yard, and the War of 1812 " in the Charlestown Navy Yard. This sign describes the role of the Navy Yard during the War of 1812.
Sign titled "Life and Work in the Navy Yard in 1812" in the Charlestown Navy Yard. This sign shows a 19th century landscape view of the Navy Yard, highlighting places of residence at the Yard.
Sign titled "Serving the Fleet" in the Charlestown Navy Yard. This sign describes how by 1940, this navy yard supported a powerful fleet of modern steel ships during World War II.
Sign titled "The Changing Yard" in the Charlestown Navy Yard. This sign describes changes and advancements the Charlestown Navy Yard has seen over the years.
Built in 1806, the African Meeting House served as a church, school and gathering place for the political activism and cultural life of Boston’s free Black community in the 19th century.
This is where two thirds of the enlisted crew called home. Each man had a bunk, one small locker, and many, many neighbors. Men found the conditions from acceptable, to tolerable, to absolutely unbearable.
Born into a biracial family in 1880, the poet and playwright Angelina Weld Grimke lived her earliest years at 61 Temple Street, in a neighborhood long known as a hotbed of Black activism.
Beacon Hill, the historic Boston neighborhood and the hill from which that neighborhood takes its name, has served the inhabitants of Boston for centuries. Its residents, their homes, and their gathering spaces played a transformational role in Boston's unique social, cultural, and political history.
City Hall serves as the center of government for the City of Boston. Built in 1968, the design firm Kallmann, McKinnell, and Knowles committed to a brutalist style for the new city administration building.
Considered the oldest public park in the United States, Boston Common played an important role in the history of conservation, landscape architecture, military and political history, and recreation in Massachusetts. The Common and the adjoining Public Garden are among the greatest amenities and most visited outdoor public spaces in Boston.
This site served as the federal courtroom and jail cell for freedom seekers arrested under the Fugitive Slave Law. In response, the courthouse became a site of protest for abolitionists.
Located on the Rose Kennedy Greenway, the Boston Harbor Islands Welcome Center offers visitor information and serves as a waypoint before beginning any journey to the Boston Harbor Islands. The Welcome Center, opened in 2012, acts as a gateway to the Boston Harbor Islands National and State Park, as ferries to several islands, such as Georges and Spectacle, depart just east at Long Wharf North.
Beneath the Old State House balcony, a circle of granite pavers mark the site of the Boston Massacre. On March 5, 1770, an unruly group of colonists taunted British soldiers by throwing snowballs and rocks. Firing upon the crowd, the British killed five colonists including Crispus Attucks. Boston lawyer and future American President John Adams successfully defended the soldiers in court against murder charges.
Because of the thin armor of their ships, the rugged conditions, and the reputation of a "can-do" attitude, destroyer men took pride in their nickname: "Tin can sailors."
Due to its close proximity to Boston and its pivotal role during the Battle of Bunker Hill, Breed’s Hill in Charlestown is mostly remembered for its colonial and revolutionary ties. Today, it is home to the Bunker Hill Monument.
Since its construction in 1853, Building 10 has played several roles at the Yard. Initially, Building 10 was known as the Pitch House, where workers produced the tar that helped keep sailing ships watertight. Over the first half of the 20th century, it acted as a Paint Shop, a radio-transmitter station, and the Laundry. In 1958, the building served its last naval function as a charging station for ship batteries.
At the Charlestown Navy Yard, Building 107 served as the workspace for the Public Works Department of the Navy. This building also provides an example of American architecture and engineering for the "New Navy" period.
No other building in the Charlestown Navy Yard has had as many strikingly different uses as Building 5, reflecting the complexity of the 175-year history of the U.S. Navy in Boston.
Dedicated in 1843, this 221-foot obelisk commemorates the Revolution's first major battle. Visitors may climb the monuments 294 steps. A museum across the street has exhibits about the community, monument, and battle.
The Bunker Hill Museum’s exhibits and dioramas tell the stories of the Battle of Bunker Hill, the construction of the Monument, and the history of the Charlestown Neighborhood. The musem is housed in the old Charlestown branch of the Boston Public Library.
One of five peninsulas in Boston Harbor, Castle Island boasts 22- acres of land, a little more than two miles of walking trails, and the oldest fortified site in what was considered British North America. The former island has been connected to the mainland since 1928.
After refusing to pay the $5 fine for protesting Woodrow Wilson's visit to Boston in February 1919, 16 members of the National Woman’s Party received a sentence of eight days at Charles Street Jail.
Built in 1807, the Charles Street Meeting House served generations of worshippers both as a Baptist church and later as an African Methodist Episcopal church. Throughout its history, the Charles Street Meeting House acted as a space for social activism.
Home to USS Constitution and USS Cassin Young, the Charlestown Navy Yard consists of 30 acres of a once massive industrial area that supported the United States Navy from the 19th into the 20th centuries.
