@ This Address

Story of the Bunker Hill Monument, Part 2

A closer look at the famous marker in the middle of Charlestown.

Editor's note: This is the second in a two-part series about the history of Bunker Hill Monument in Charlestown. Click here to read part 1. Breaking ground for the Granite Railway in 1826 made it possible to get the stone intended for the monument to Charlestown. This was a massive undertaking. Stones weighing several tons were hoisted at the quarry onto railroad cars, which then hauled the massive granite stones from the quarry to the Neponset River. The granite was then loaded onto schooners to be ferried to Charlestown, where, at Deven’s wharf, the stone was transferred, again, to ox-driven carts and trekked to Breed’s Hill. No wonder the monument took 18 years to build. To lift the enormous blocks of granite, Willard, with the help of …

•  16 Comments
• Photos (10)

Mary Kay Donovan

6:18 pm on Wednesday, February 27, 2013

Hi Plenty - Was not "The Charlestown Patriot" a weekly paper that was available all over town? And did it not give the community news from new babies to obits and everything in between? Thanks to the hard work of Jim & Gloria Conway, we had a paper. Let's not forget you could even place a prayer request in it. Now that's a paper for the people.   more ›

@ This Address

Story of the Bunker Hill Monument, Part 1

A closer look at the famous marker in the middle of Charlestown.

[UPDATED Monday, Feb. 25, 12:14 p.m.] All that is most important about Charlestown might be found at the top of Breed’s Hill. Towering over the town there, dwarfing everything else, is the solitary Bunker Hill Monument, one of the first public monuments in the history of the United States. Not to overstate the importance of this landmark, but the battle commemorated here, even though considered a victory for the British, proved to be a sword in the side of the British military, a blow from which the Empire never recovered.  The granite pillar stands as a testament, not only to the sheer, raw courage of men determined to drive out the enemy, but also to the loss of life of so many.  It is witness to an excruciatingly bloody battle and the …

•  6 Comments
• Photos (5)

@ This Address

Edward Everett House Was Home to Several Public Figures

The residence at 16 Harvard St. was built after the Revolutionary War.

According to the Boston Landmarks Commission, the Edward Everett House provides an "elegant and memorable introduction to Harvard Street’s important collection of early mid 19th century Charlestown residences." Matthew Bridge, one of the leaders of the effort to rebuild Charlestown following the Revolutionary War, had the house built. Bridge most likely built the house for his daughter Sally. Soon after the house was finished, Bridge died and Sally and her husband Seth Knowles moved into number 16. When Sally Knowles died unexpectedly in 1825, Seth Knowles and his new wife Sarah Payson remained in the house until 1830. When they relocated to Beacon Hill, they leased the house to Edward Everett, 16 Harvard St.'s best known occupant. Edward …

•  2 Comments
• Photos (9)

@ This Address

Mead Street Home Once Part of Garden Estate

The land owned by successful Morocco dresser Isaac Mead once encompassed several streets, stretching to Bunker Hill.

The land on which the house at 38 Mead St. presently stands was once part of Isaac Mead’s estate. That great swath of land originally encompassed Main, Eden, Mead, Russell and Oak streets and stretched to Bunker Hill Street. The estate included an enormous garden, known as the Vineyard, at the corner of Eden and Russell. According to Timothy Sawyer’s "Old Charlestown," the Vineyard contained "rare and beautiful plants" known to horticulturalists throughout the United States. Sawyer writes that this experimental garden was "devoted to the testing of foreign varieties of grapes," and to the introduction of Keen’s seedling strawberry from Europe. There was also a greenhouse filled with varieties of camellia. Isaac Mead was one of Charlestown’…

•  2 Comments
• Photos (4)

Helen O'Neil

3:23 pm on Saturday, January 5, 2013

That's a great question, Mary. This is the hill below what used to be St Francis de Sales School (now Orchard Hill condos). I wonder if anyone knows how the hill got the name Nanny Goat Hill.   more ›

Christmas Gift Ideas for Charlestown History Buffs

Community organizations are selling an architectural guide, calendars, a mug and other items this holiday season.

Looking for that special Christmas gift for a Charlestown resident past, present or future? The Charlestown Preservation Society is selling copies of their first ever homeowner's guide. Called, "Charlestown History and Architecture: Guide for Homeowners, Residents, and Visitors," the book contains historical information about local buildings and details about architectural styles, features and preservation methods, as well as resources for homeowners.      Whether you're an out-of-towner or a longtime resident, a new homeowner, a real estate agent selling property in town or someone hiring a contractor to renovate your Charlestown home, this guide is exactly what you need, according to the Charlestown Preservation Society's description of …

•  1 Comment
• Photos (3)
• Documents (1)

@ This Address

North Washington Street Bridge Brought Elevated Rail to Charlestown

The structure was preceded by the Charles River and Warren bridges.

Connecting the new settlement of Charlestown with the Boston mainland was paramount. As early as 1630 a ferry carried passengers between the two points. By 1781 there were four boats, two docked at each side of the Charles River. The ferry was run by Harvard College. In 1786, when the Charles River Bridge opened, there were 17,000 people living in Boston and 1,200 in Charlestown. Perhaps the first public bridge in the country, the Charles River Bridge was built as a toll bridge with private funds. According to "The Ferry, the Charles-River Bridge and the Charlestown Bridge," published in the late 1800s by the Boston Transit Commission, to cross the bridge each foot passenger paid 2/3 of a penny; one person and one horse paid 2 pence and 2/…

•  10 Comments
• Photos (6)

Helen O'Neil

5:25 pm on Wednesday, December 5, 2012

Thanks for your comment, Mary Kay. It's a great story to tell.   more ›

Charlestown Homeowner Handbook Has Arrived

Pick up your copy of the Preservation Society's first guide to local architecture.

The Charlestown Preservation Society has announced the arrival of Charlestown’s first ever Homeowner’s Handbook. "Charlestown History and Architecture: Guide for Homeowners, Residents, and Visitors" contains a Charlestown history and corresponding architectural styles, character defining architectural features and preservation methods, and many resources for homeowners.     The publishing of the handbook brings to fruition a long-term project for the Charlestown Preservation Society. Several members and friends of CPS have worked tirelessly for several years researching, documenting and putting together this handbook for the community.   The Handbook will be available on Dec. 1 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. during the Holiday Stroll in the …

•  2 Comments
• Documents (1)

Becca Manning

4:27 pm on Saturday, December 1, 2012

Shoot me an email and I'll respond with the PDF.   more ›

@ This Address

John Tapley's Yellow House on Common Street

Built in 1806, the building was used for a time as a funeral home.

  The yellow house at 14 Common Street was built in 1806. The house’s first owner was John Tapley, a blacksmith and master iron worker at the Navy Yard. The Tapley family operated Tapley Wharf, near the entrance to the Navy Yard, for the repair and building of vessels, and as a landing spot for small cargo ships carrying wood, bricks and hay from Maine. Tapley was contracted to repair USS Constitution when the ship was damaged during the war of 1812-1815. Tapley and his wife Lydia, a daughter of Samuel Tufts, had nine children and lived in the yellow house until the 1820s. They then, according to Boston Landmarks Commission, moved to a small farm on Milk Row Road, ‘outside the Neck.’ Reuben Hunt owned the house until 1835, and sold number …

•  2 Comments
• Photos (6)

Helen O'Neil

8:16 pm on Monday, December 3, 2012

Thanks Nancy. Glad you enjoy the history of Charlestown. I received an e-mail from a reader about the Salem Inn saying that "original beams still hold up the roof."   more ›

@ This Address

The Only House Near Charlestown's Poorest Graveyard

Local writer Helen O'Neil brings us the history of 240 Bunker Hill Street.

The brick gambrel house at 240 Bunker Hill Street was built around 1800. At one time the house was owned by Phillips Academy. It seems that John Phillips, the only surviving son of Judge Samuel Phillips, the founder of Phillips Academy, lived in Charlestown. After graduating from Harvard College in 1795, Phillips moved to Charlestown, ostensibly to study law. He gave up law to go into business and married Lydia Gorham, daughter of Nathaniel Gorham, one of the signers of the United States Constitution. John and Lydia Phillips stayed in Charlestown for several years, then returned to the Phillips Mansion in Andover. It is not clear how or why Phillips Academy became a one-time owner of 240 Bunker Hill Street but it’s conceivable that the …

•  10 Comments
• Photos (4)

Helen O'Neil

8:02 pm on Saturday, October 13, 2012

Thanks everybody for your comments. As far as the 'opening' of parts of Bunker Hill, it was pasture. It's hard to picture what Bunker Hill must have looked like in the early 1800's, when 240 Bunker Hill Street was built. Along with the photos of the house is a drawing of Bunker Hill, as seen from the inner harbor.   more ›

@ This Address

A Unique Piece of Architecture on Albion Place

This 1842 house is the only one of its type in all of Charlestown.

The house at 20 Albion Place is three quarters up the street on a cul de sac. The four enormous columns of this unusual house grace, not the building’s main entrance, but instead support the roof over the house’s side porch.  The modest main entrance faces the street.  An entrance into the house from the porch is on the side, under a window, non-ostentatious. The columns are the most dramatic feature.  Described as ‘monumental Tuscan columns’ they rise two stories, in support of a ‘heavy projecting entablature’ incorporated into the roof slope. The fluted columns seem to hold up the sloping gable. It’s the only house like it on Albion Place. According to the Boston Landmarks Commission, 20 Albion Place is the ‘only Charlestown example of a…

•  6 Comments
• Photos (11)