Warren Tavern & Breed's Hill Monument

In 1775, after the battles of Concord and Lexington, about 15,000 New England Militiamen attempted to cut off the 6,000 British troops stationed in Boston. In those days, Charlestown stood on a peninsula and the militia stationed 1,500 men there to bombard Boston. They chose Breed’s Hill rather than the higher Bunker Hill as it was nearer to Boston. Seeing the militiamen digging in, the British decided to attack. The British won the battle, but it was at the price of 226 dead and 828 wounded with many officers among the casualties. Today a monument marks the spot. In the foreground of the picture is another result of the battle, the Warren Tavern which was built in 1780 when Charlestown was rebuilt after being sacked by the British.

Charlestown

Breed's Hill

Boston has not looked after its history as well as some other US cities such as Philadelphia. There is no historical district, just a scattering of buildings most of which are overshadowed by modern monstrosities. When Boston woke up to it’s loss of heritage it used its Tea Party and Boston Massacre roots to promote itself as the centre of the American Revolution. In reality the revolution was spread across the colonies and the political aspects were mainly centred on Philadelphia. Only one major battle was fought in the vicinity of Boston, the Battle of Bunker Hill  which was actually fought mainly on Breed’s Hill in Charlestown.

Dry Dock 1, Charlestown Navy Yard

Charlestown Navy Yard was established in 1800 to build, maintain and supply ships of the US Navy. More than 200 ships were built at the yard and thousands of repairs were undertaken. Dry Dock No 1 was built in 1833 to serve the largest ships then in the US Navy. It allowed maintenance work on the hulls to be undertaken quickly and safely. The first ship to use the dock was the USS Constitution. The Navy Yard closed in 1974 after nearly 175 years of operation. About a third of the Navy Yard has been preserved as part of Boston National Historical Park.

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English settler Thomas Walford arrived on the peninsula to the north of the Charles River in 1625 to trade furs. The settlement was then called Mishawaum. Soon Puritans from the Massachusetts Bay Colony arrived with plans to lay out a settlement and Walford had to move on as his Episcopalian religious beliefs did not align with those of the Puritans. With the new name of Charlestown, the Puritan town was founded in 1628. Its location on  the mouth of the Charles River ensured that it grew into a significant port. During the Revolutionary War the town and port were destroyed as a result of the 1775 Battle of Bunker Hill. In the 1860s Charleston developed a strong Irish flavour following a major influx of immigrants. In 1873, Charlestown and Boston both voted to join together ending Charlestown’s 245 years as a separate town.

USS Constitution

No, it’s not the ship raided by the Boston Tea Party. The USS Constitution was built in Boston in the post revolutionary era, 1797 to be exact. During the War of 1812 she won an encounter with four British frigates. Because her hull was very thick, British cannonballs bounced off her so she became known as ‘Old Ironsides’. Saved from the scrap yard and restored in 1927, she is now a museum moored in the  former Charlestown Navy Yard, now part of Boston National Historical Park. She is the oldest commissioned ship in the US Navy and the oldest commissioned warship afloat in the whole world. The USS Constitution is on the Freedom Trail, a walking tour through Boston’s revolutionary history.

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© Mike  Elsden 1981 - 2023

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