At Liberty Along the Freedom Trail
It’s rare that a town draws up a specific plan to guide you through its historic district. More often, someone at the Chamber of Commerce takes out a map, circles a few points of interest, and wishes you good luck.
In Boston, however, not only do they have the major sites laid out for you. They’ve also got a red line running down the sidewalk just to make sure you can find them all.
The project is called the Freedom Trail, and it’s been part of the Boston landscape for half a century. Conceived by Boston Herald-Traveler editorial writer William Schofield in the 1950s, the two-and-a-half mile path connects sixteen of Boston’s most historic landmarks from the period up to, including, and immediately following the American Revolution.
Boston, you may recall, was a pretty lively place back in Revolutionary days. Its meeting halls and churches resounded with the voices of speakers such as Samuel Adams and James Otis rousing the rabble, who in turn instituted boycotts, started riots, and engaged in sundry other rebellious acts to demonstrate their displeasure with the British Crown. Tensions mounted to the point that the British decided to shut down the port, curtail town meetings, and implement martial law. Bad idea, as it turned out.
Today, the Freedom Trail provides a window into this world, and does so with a remarkable degree of flexibility. While some individual sites charge admission, the Trail itself is free, and can be explored from any point and at any pace. How much you see therefore is entirely up to you. A lot will depend on your interests and your particular travel style.
If you’re the type of person who likes to be guided, there are walking tours available that cover many of the downtown sites. The Park Service offers a free one that lasts 90 minutes and begins at the Boston NHP Downtown Visitor Center. The Freedom Trail Foundation gives 90-minute tours also, with costumed guides taking on the personas of various Revolutionary War characters.
Unfortunately, neither of these tours will show you the entire Trail. If you want to visit all sixteen sites, you’re going to have to employ a different strategy.
One option is to take . . . the trolley. Old Town Trolley offers narrated tours that go all over Boston and stop at several points along the Trail. A one- or two-day pass allows unlimited boarding, so you can get off, explore the sites at your leisure, then hop back on. This isn’t a bad option, especially if you have kids, who, if they’re twelve or under, get to ride for free.
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