Posted by Goody Sandy on November 17, 1999 at 12:33:48:
In Reply to: Places of Historic Interest - In YOUR home town? posted by Kate on November 15, 1999 at 21:19:50:
Hi All:
My hometown of Quincy, MA (pronounced Quin-zee)� The City of Presidents -- has a rich history. First settled in 1625 in Wollaston, Quincy was established as a town in 1792 and incorporated as a City in 1888. Here are some of the interesting sites, many located within one mile of my home.
The Adams National Historic Site Birthplaces. John Adams, second president of the United States, was born in the north house in 1735. He brought his bride, Abigail, to the south house in 1765, where John Quincy Adams, our sixth president, was born in 1767. It was here that Abigail wrote most of her famous letters.
The Adams National Historic Site. The original house was built by Leonard Vassall, a sugar planter from Jamaica. It was purchased by John and Abigail Adams in 1787 and was renovated and enlarged by Abigail during John's presidency. This was the home of the Adams family until 1927.
The United First Parish Church and Adams Crypt which is the burial place of two presidents and their wives. In the crypt are the tombs of John and Abigail Adams and Jon Quincy and Louisa Catherine Adams. The congregation, formed in 1639, was in the forefront of the movement for separation of church and state and freedom of religion.
The Hancock Cemetery. Buried here are Henry Adams, d.1646, the first Adams in Quincy and ancestor of John Adams; Colonel John Quincy, for whom the city is named; Josiah Quincy, the patriot; and the Rev. John Hancock, pastor of the First Parish Church. The oldest original stone, dated 1641, is at the grave of Rev. Thompson.
Col. Josiah Quincy House. This Georgian country mansion, the home of political activist Josiah Quincy and his successors, was built in 1770, just as the new nation of America was beginning to chafe at the bit for its freedom. This lovely estate was the "in" place for the social and political powers that be for 100 years. Legend has it that Col. Quincy looked out from his top floor onto the British fleet threatening Boston, and reported their movements to Gen. George Washington.
Abigial Adams Cairn. Just up the hill from the Adams Birthplaces. This is the spot from which Abigail and her son, John Quincy Adams, watched Charlestown burn and heard the roar of the guns and cannons during the Battle of Bunker Hill in 1775.
Milestone Marker. This stone marks 712 miles to Boston via the Neponset Turnpike (now Hancock Street). When this road opened, it gave travelers a new, shorter route to Boston than the old Boston-to-Plymouth Highway. The journey had been a full 10 miles via the old highway. Laid out in 1639, the Boston-to-Plymouth Highway is one of the oldest roads in the United States.
First Church Episcopal. In the 1600s, followers of the Church of England worshiped in their homes, away from the watchful eye of the Puritan religious authorities (just as the Puritans had done back in England). As religious law liberalized, they founded their parish in 1704, the oldest in Massachusetts, and built their first church in 1727. The parish moved to this location in 1833.
Come and visit us! :o)
Best wishes,
Goody Sandy