Old South Meeting House
310 Washington St, Boston, MA 02108, USA
Massachusetts, USA
MUSEUM
TICKETED:
YES
PARKING:
YES
RESTROOMS:
YES
CHURCH
EST. 1729
PUBLIC ASSEMBLY
EST. 1729
PROTEST
December 16, 1773
Adams, Abigail Smith
Arnold, Benedict
Franklin, Benjamin
Hancock, Dorothy Quincy
Lincoln, Benjamin
Revere, Paul
Ward, Artemus
Adams, John
Clarke, Richard
Gage, Margaret Kemble
Hancock, John
Paine, Robert Treat
Smith, Francis
Warren, Joseph
Adams, John Quincy
Dawes, William
Gage, Thomas
Hutchinson, Thomas
Prescott, William
Trumbull, John Jr
Adams, Samuel
Erskine, William
Glover, John
Knox, Henry
Putnam, Israel
Trumbull, Jonathan Sr
HISTORIC PEOPLE WHO WERE HERE
26
HISTORIC PRESERVATION at Old South Meeting House.
The original 1729 brick meetinghouse survives in downtown Boston as a museum and public gathering space. Operated as part of Revolutionary Spaces, the restored landmark retains its large historic auditorium and presents exhibitions interpreting colonial protest, civic debate, and the building’s continuing preservation.
About Old South Meeting House
The meeting house or church was completed in 1729, with its 56 m (183 ft) steeple. The congregation was gathered in 1669 when it broke off from First Church of Boston, a Congregational church founded by John Winthrop in 1630. The site was a gift of Mrs. Norton, widow of John Norton, pastor of the First Church in Boston. The church's first pastor was Rev. Thomas Thacher, a native of Salisbury, England. Thacher was also a physician and is known for publishing the first medical tract in Massachusetts.
HISTORY HAPPENED HERE at Old South Meeting House
After the Boston Massacre in 1770, yearly anniversary meetings were held at the church until 1775, featuring speakers such as John Hancock and Dr. Joseph Warren. In 1773, 5,000 people met in the Meeting House to debate British taxation and, after the meeting, a group raided three tea ships anchored nearby in what became known as the Boston Tea Party.
In October 1775, led by Lt Col Samuel Birch of the 17th Dragoons, the British occupied the Meeting House due to its association with the Revolutionary cause. They gutted the building, filled it with dirt, and then used the interior to practice horse riding. They destroyed much of the interior and stole various items, including William Bradford's Of Plymouth Plantation (1620), a unique Pilgrim manuscript hidden in Old South's tower.
HISTORIC PLACES NEARBY
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