Free to All: The History of the Boston Public Library
The Boston Public Library was the first large free municipal library in the United States. Here is how it began and what to see at Copley Square.
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The Freedom Trail, Part Three: The North End to Charlestown
The last five stops of the Freedom Trail take you from Paul Revere’s front door to the deck of Old Ironsides. Here is a guide to the final leg.
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The Freedom Trail, Part Two: Old South Meeting House to Faneuil Hall
The middle of the Freedom Trail covers the buildings where colonists argued, protested and declared independence. Here is what to know at each stop.
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The Freedom Trail, Part One: Boston Common to the Old Corner Bookstore
The first stretch of the Freedom Trail packs seven sites into a short walk, from the nation’s oldest park to a famous publishing house.
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South Boston’s Story: Dorchester Heights, Castle Island and the New Year’s Plunge
From the cannons that forced the British out in 1776 to the L Street swimmers who dive into the harbor each January, here is Southie’s history.
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Mattapan’s Long History Along the Neponset River
Mattapan takes its name from the Native people of the area and grew around a river, a trolley and a busy square. Here is its story.
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West Roxbury and the Brook Farm Experiment
West Roxbury is known for quiet streets and Centre Street shops, but it was also the site of Brook Farm, one of America’s most famous utopian communities.
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Roslindale Village: The Story of a Streetcar Suburb Inside Boston
Roslindale grew from farmland into a commuter village with a lively square. A look at how it got its name and how its main street came back.
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Hyde Park, Boston’s Last Annexation: Mills, Rivers and the 54th Regiment
Hyde Park joined Boston in 1912, the last town to do so. Its history includes river mills, a Civil War training camp and wide green reservations.
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Allston-Brighton: From Cattle Market to Student Neighborhood
Brighton was once home to one of New England’s biggest livestock markets, and Allston was named for a painter. A short history of the neighborhood.
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Fenway-Kenmore Beyond the Ballpark: Marshes, Museums and a Famous Sign
Fenway-Kenmore was built around an Olmsted park that solved a sewage problem. Then came the museums, the ballpark and the Citgo sign.
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Building the Back Bay: How Boston Filled a Bay and Planned a Neighborhood
The Back Bay was literally a bay until the 1850s. Here is how Boston filled it, laid out Commonwealth Avenue and created its grandest neighborhood.
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Beacon Hill’s Secrets: How a Hilltop Became Boston’s Most Famous Neighborhood
Beacon Hill was once taller, wilder and partly a pasture. Here is how developers, an architect and a free Black community shaped the hill.
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East Boston: From Noddle’s Island to Gateway Neighborhood
East Boston began as farmland on harbor islands, then built clipper ships, welcomed immigrants and grew around an airport. Here is its history.
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Jamaica Plain’s Story: Ponds, Breweries and the Emerald Necklace
Jamaica Plain grew from a country retreat into a streetcar neighborhood known for its pond, its arboretum and its brewing past. A short history.
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Roxbury Through the Centuries: From Colonial Town to the Heart of Black Boston
Roxbury was one of the first towns in Massachusetts Bay, the first annexed to Boston and, in the 20th century, the center of Black Boston.
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Dorchester Explained: Boston’s Largest Neighborhood and Its Many Villages
Founded in 1630 and annexed in 1870, Dorchester is really a collection of villages, from Savin Hill to Lower Mills. Here is a guide to its history.
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Charlestown Before Boston: The Neighborhood Where the City Began
Charlestown was settled before Boston itself, burned during the Battle of Bunker Hill and later built warships for the nation. A look at its long history.
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How the South End Was Built on a Marsh: The Story of Boston’s Victorian Neighborhood
The South End was created on filled land in the 1800s and lined with bowfront brick rowhouses. Here is how it rose, fell out of fashion and came back.
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The North End, Street by Street: A Short History of Boston’s Oldest Neighborhood
Puritans, sea captains, Irish and Jewish families, then Italian immigrants: the North End has been remade many times. Here is how it became the place we know.
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The Great Molasses Flood of 1919: What Really Happened on Commercial Street
On a mild January day in 1919, a giant tank of molasses burst in the North End. Here is how the disaster unfolded and what it changed.
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