Boston Continued

At the Old North Church, actually called Christ Church, we were prodded throught like a herd of cattle. The interior is tight. Rather than a center aisle, there are two narrow side aisles that have no outlet. I am surprised fire code allows for this, to be honest.

In the day, the pews were rented by families. Each family had a boxed in seating area for warmth more than anything else. In the winters, the closed pew kept the heat in. Heated bricks and other foot warmers were brought to church and placed on the floor of the enclosed pew. The walls kept the heat in rather than allowing it to escape. In addition, each family would add personal touches by decorating their box pew. Below is the plaque inside the Revere family pew. It is still "all in the family."

Of course, the fame of the church is due to the signal system Revere put in place as a warning to colonists. As mentione earlier, the steeple of the Old North Church was the highest location in the city. Once local colonists knew how the British were departing Boston, Sexton Newton was given the task of taking the two lanterns to the steeple. He was given the laterns. He gave up his keys to the church and was locked in. Then trudged up to his destination and history was made. Yet, the story continues. Not only did the colonists see the sign, but the British noticed it as well. With an intent to capture the traitor, the church was stormed. Sexton Newton escaped through this window.Eventually, the redcoats took the sexton into custody, but they were unable to prove his guilt. The only way into the church was with keys and he had none in his possession.

The church also houses a bust of Washington that seems to be the best likeness of our first president.

The balcony organ is fronted by a clock, the story of which I do not recall and 4 four angels. Apparently, the angels were created in Flanders and stolen by colonists off of a ship. The thief generously donated them to the church, thus, the Old North Church owns stolen goods.We continued up the Freedom Trail to visit the Cobbs Hill Cemetary, the second burial sight in the city. From here, a great vantage point of the Leonard P. Zilkam Bunker Hill Bridge. It is apparently the widest cable-stayed bridge in the world. It is named after Lenny Zilkam, a civil rights activist and the colonists who fought the British at Bunker Hill.

http://www.leonardpzakimbunkerhillbridge.org/

We then headed back to the train station by way of the Old Corner Book Shop. Delbert was very accommodating because I wanted to see this historical marker for two reasons. It related to books and it once was the publishing house for authors such as Alcott, Thoreau, Hawthorne, Longfellow, Emerson and Stowe. Of course, I did not read the guide book closely and was disappointed to find that the 1712 building, though very well preserved, was now a jewelry store.

From here, we headed back to Delbert's gorgeous house in Lynn to prepare for a bright night.