Tag: Early Boston

Episode 59: Corn, Cotton, and Condos; 378 Years on the Mother Brook

Everyone knows the Charles River and the Neponset River, but have you ever heard of the Mother Brook?  It is America’s first industrial canal, built by Puritan settlers in the earliest days of Massachusetts Bay Colony, and vital to the development of Dorchester, Hyde Park, and Dedham.  Plus, by connecting the rivers on either side, it turns the landmass occupied by Newton, Brookline, and most of Boston into an island!

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Episode 44: Perambulating the Bounds

Since 1651, Boston has had a legal responsibility to mark and measure its boundaries every few years.  Despite advances in technology, the practice of “perambulating the bounds” means that someone has to go out and walk the town lines.  This law is one of the oldest still on the books, but when was the last time Boston perambulated its bounds?  Listen now!

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Episode 13: Katherine Nanny Naylor, Boston’s Original Nasty Woman

Boston in the 1600s was a theocracy, where the Puritan church ruled, and women were seen in many ways as the property of their husbands or fathers.  Against that backdrop, a woman named Katherine Nanny Naylor stands out.  She was able to win a divorce against her abusive and unfaithful husband, then spent the next 30 years as an entrepreneur.  She provided herself and her family with a prosperous lifestyle, while living her life independently.  Listen to this week’s episode, and celebrate Boston’s original nasty woman!

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Episode 6: The First Boston Revolution

Early one April morning, Boston rose up in revolt, overthrowing the widely hated royal governor.  A provincial militia surrounded the city, while the Royal Navy backed British authorities.  But this wasn’t Lexington or Concord.  This was the 1689 revolt against Governor Edmund Andros, 86 years to the day before Paul Revere’s ride.  Listen to this week’s episode to learn more!

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Episode 2: How Cotton Mather Saved Boston

When smallpox threatened Boston in 1721, Cotton Mather was a leading advocate of inoculation.  How did this influential Puritan, best known for his role in the Salem witch trials, become an advocate for scientific medicine?  Listen to this week’s episode to find out!

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Episode 1: Remember Remember the Fifth of November

Update: We revisited this subject in Episode 75, with better audio, better research, and better storytelling.  You should listen to that one instead!

How did early Boston “celebrate” on November 5th each year?  By drinking, brawling, and burning effigies of the Pope, of course.  Listen to this week’s episode to find out more!

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