On February 6, 1788 Massachusetts became the 6th state to join the union.
Many events in Massachusetts, including the Stamp Act riots, the Boston Massacre and the Boston Tea Party, were precursors to the American Revolution. The first battles of the revolution were fought in Massachusetts.
The "new" State House is located across the Boston Common on the top of Beacon Hill and was built in 1798. The original dome was wooden and leaked, in 1802 it was covered with copper and in 1874 it was gilded with gold leaf.
The dome is topped with a pine cone which represents the current state of Maine. Maine was a district of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts when the dome was completed.
"The outstanding tribute to soldiers of the Civil War, was created by one of America's foremost sculptors, Augustus Saint Gaudens (1848-1907). Born in Dublin, of a French father, and an Irish mother, he grew up in New York, was apprenticed to a cameo cutter at 13, and studied at the Ecole Des Beaux Arts in Paris. His best known works include the Adams Memorial in Washington, D.C., General Sherman in New York and President Lincoln in Chicago. His home in Cornish, New Hampshire is a national historic site. The setting for the memorial was designed by the distinguished architect, Charles F. McKim."
John Kennedy (1917-1963) was the 35th president of the United States. Prior to being president he was a World War II war hero, a Pulitzer Prize winning author, a U.S. congressman and a U.S. senator.
Horace Mann (1796-1859) briefly practiced law, was a state congressman and senator and dedicate his life to social reform. He was an advocate of building hospitals for the mentally ill and worked to establish public education in the Massachusetts. He was given the title of "Father of American Education".
Daniel Webster (1782-1852) was an attorney and politician. He was a U.S. representative for New Hampshire; later he moved to Massachusetts and was elected as U.S. representative again. He also served as U.S. senator from Massachusetts and U.S. Secretary of State. He was a champion of national unity and was instrumental in enacting the Compromise of 1850. This compromise delayed the Civil War and avoided the secession of some states in his lifetime.
Dyer was hanged by Massachusetts authorities because of her religion. She was determined to bear witness to her Quaker faith in the intolerant areas of the Massachusetts Colony. Her execution in June, 1660 ultimately resulted in the easing of anti-Quaker laws in Massachusetts.
The Boston Common is one of the oldest public parks in this country. The park is nearly 50 acres in size and has had many uses. Public hangings took place here until 1817, cattle were allowed to graze here until 1830 and it is now the anchor park for a system of parks throughout the Boston neighborhoods.
A cemetary used during colonial times. Among the people interred here are the first victims of the Revolutionary War. The victims were killed in the Boston Massacre. The large monument in this cemetary is for the parents of Benjamin Franklin, Josiah and Abiah.
Adams (1722-1805) is known as the "Father of the American Revolution". While at Havard College in 1740 and long before Thomas Jefferson drafted the Declaration of Independence, Adams wrote a paper on the right for fairness and justice in government. He is one of the signers of the Declaration of Independence.
(Two hundred plus years later a beer was named after him.)
Also known as Boston's "Towne House", the Old State House dates back to 1713. Today, the building is run by The Bostonian Society as a Boston history museum.
