Freedom Trail Marks 50th Year
Year-Long Celebration of Boston History
BOSTON, MA, May 14, 2008. The British are coming - again. The Freedom Trail Foundation today introduced 50 Events to Celebrate 50 Years, a year-long, citywide program to celebrate the 50th anniversary of one of the country's most valued historic treasures - Boston's Freedom Trail. Major events that are part of this celebration include the first British soldier encampment on Boston Common since 1776 and an international fife & drum pageant.
The 16 Freedom Trail sites, the Freedom Trail Foundation and 20 other city entities will present Freedom Trail and American Revolutionary history-related events that mark Boston's role in America's founding. Under the leadership of the Freedom Trail Foundation, tourism partners will help promote the events, which are available at TheFreedomTrail.org.
"Boston citizens had the wisdom in 1958 to preserve the largest collection of original 18th-century American buildings to create the most significant and convenient walking-history experience in the country," said Mimi La Camera, president of the Freedom Trail Foundation. "The American Revolution began in Boston. Strolling the Freedom Trail makes traveling through this history easy and fun in the midst of this very sophisticated city. Stop and eat, stay overnight, shop and do the history - the 50th anniversary events make it a special experience this year."
Eighteenth-century costumed Freedom Trail Players(R) will retell the story of the Revolution every day, right in the heart of the city. Freedom Trail sites have installed special exhibits. Some of the special highlights of the yearlong celebration include:
oGrape Alarm Skirmish, a retelling of the very first skirmish of the Revolution, a battle over hay on Grape Island, which includes a boat ride to Boston Harbor Islands, May 25.
oBlack Heritage Trail and the 145th anniversary tour of the 54th Regiment, May 28.
oHarborfest activities and events, including a re-enactment of the Second Continental Congress, July 1-6.
o18th Century Gardens Tour of hidden gardens in period designs, July 3-5.
oRedcoat encampment on Boston Common, the first there since 1776, Aug. 15- 17.
oFife and Drum Tattoo in conjunction with the opening of the Rose Kennedy Greenway, Oct. 3.
oBank of American's Art on the Trail: People & Places of the American Revolution, including holdings dating from Revolutionary times belonging to John Adams and John Hancock, November through December.
oHistoric Re-enactments, including the first reading of the Declaration of Independence , July 4, and the Boston Tea Party, Dec. 14.
oNew Walking Tours:
---|- African American Patriots Tour - of the Freedom Trail telling the story of the Revolutionary contributions of Boston's black population.
---|- Pirates, Privateers & Patriots Tour of Boston's colorful waterfront history, the pirates who prowled the harbor and the marine merchants who built Boston's seafaring trade.
"The Freedom Trail is an American icon and belongs not only to the people of Boston, but to the entire country," La Camera said. "It's important that we celebrate the uniqueness of Boston's Freedom Trail and the great value it has for our citizens. To help us celebrate this history, more than 20 history organization offered to share their Revolutionary-era events to fill out a year of activities."
Month-by-Month Event Highlights
July events include Independence Day celebrations and fireworks and Harborfest - a weeklong, citywide history celebration.
In August, more than 50 tents will house hundreds of Redcoat re-enactors, creating a living history weekend of camp life for Revolutionary-era British soldiers. Never before has there been a British encampment on Boston Common since British troops camped during the long, bitter siege of Boston that ended in 1776.
September and October events will include performances of 18th-century classical music by the Handel & Haydn Society; a fife and drum concert - called a "tattoo" - at the formal opening celebration of the Rose Kennedy Greenway; and a Discover Roxbury tour of Dorchester Heights, from which vantage point Colonists "drove out" the British soldiers.
November and December event highlights include the 235th reenactment of the Boston Tea Party; Thanksgiving at Plimoth Plantation; a special exhibit of Bank of America's 18th century art collection including landscapes, portraits and artifacts at the bank's gallery; and the opening of the 2008 season of the Historic Holiday Stroll of the Freedom Trail.
Participating partners
Freedom Trail sites:
o Boston Common
o State House
o Granary (Boston Parks & Recreation Department)
o Kings Chapel & Burying Ground
o Benjamin Franklin Statue and Boston Latin School
o Old Corner Bookstore
o Old South Meeting House
o Old State House Museum
o Boston Massacre Site
o Faneuil Hall
o Paul Revere House
o Old North Church
o Copp's Hill Burying Ground
o USS Constitution ("Old Ironsides")
o USS Constitution Museum
o Bunker Hill Monument
Non-site participants:
o Ancient and Honorable Artillery Company of Massachusetts
o Bank of America
o Boston Athenaeum
o Charlestown Navy Yard (National Park Service)
o City of Boston
o Commonwealth Museum
o Dorchester Heights Monument (National Park Service)
o Downtown Crossing (Boston Redevelopment Authority)
o Downtown Crossing Association
o Faneuil Hall Marketplace
o Greater Boston Convention & Visitors Bureau
o Handel & Haydn Society
o Harbor Island Alliance
o Liberty Clipper
o Massachusetts Historical Society
o Massachusetts Lodging Association
o Massachusetts Office of Travel and Tourism
o Museum of African American History
o Museum of Fine Arts
o Myriad restaurants on and near the Trail
o Roxbury Collaborative
o Union Oyster House
Special hotel packages are available during the anniversary celebration. For a full calendar and additional details, please visit TheFreedomTrail.org.
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