COMMON_190809_143
Existing comment: The Common
an Historic Overview

In 1634, only four years after John Winthrop and the Puritans of the Massachusetts Bay Colony settled the Shawmut Peninsula and created the town of Boston, these colonists bought a 48-acre tract of land on the lower slopes of Beacon Hill. Purchased from Reverend William Blackstone, an Anglican hermit who had been the area's sole inhabitant for nearly a decade, the land was immediately set aside as an English-style "commonage," or common area for the use of all Boston's townfolk.

Although today we think of Boston Common as a tree-lined public park, its uses were far different during its first two centuries of existence . During this early era, the Common was a scene of public rallies and celebrations, a favorite place for recreations such as promenading, ball playing and sledding, but it also served as a military training field, cow and sheep pasture, public punishment site, and burial ground. For eight years, the British redcoats camped and drilled on the Common and many were buried here in the years of occupation leading into the American Revolution.

Though the first tree-lined pedestrian mall appeared in 1728, the Common's most conspicuous foliage was the ancient Great Elm. Ironically it doubled as a protective shelter and meeting place, and in the 17th century as the colony's dreaded hanging tree.

By the mid-19th century, the American parks movement had taken root in Boston and the face of the Common began to look substantially more modern. New tree-lined walks, commemorative statues and plaques, fountains, and iron fences and gates were gradually added, while activities continued to include public rallies and demonstrations, ball games, festive celebrations, musical concerts, in addition to sylvan strolls. The ancient Frog Pond, now paved, became a site for wading and ice skating.

Throughout its history, the Common has served the dual role of meeting ground and public park, a legacy of which will continue into the 21st century. In sum, the Common is a microcosm and a mirror of all of Boston's past – and that of America as well.
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