On the Brigham Trail

From Dave Brigham:

I've known for quite a few years that some of my ancestors spent significant time in Marlborough, Mass. My seventh great-grandfather, Thomas Brigham, was the first to come to America, from Jolly Old England. He died in Cambridge, Mass., in 1653. His widow, Mercy Hurd, remarried and moved to Sudbury, bringing my sixth great-grandfather, Samuel, and his siblings along. Mercy was widowed again and married anew and moved to Marlborough. Samuel died in Marlborough in 1713.

One of Samuel's brothers, Thomas, also went to Sudbury and then Marlborough when their mother remarried. Upon turning 18 (I think) he began buying farmland near Williams Pond. Located in the southwest part of town, the pond (now called Williams Lake) was the site of the Williams Tavern, the first version of which was erected in 1665. It was destroyed by Indians 11 years later, rebuilt and managed by the Williams family until 1829, per the sign in the photo below. The sign also tells us, "Here the circuit courts convened, stage coaches changed horses and historic personages tarried." I'm guessing a few Brighams bent their elbows at this place.

The tavern was torn down in 1947.

Thomas Brigham the younger was also one of the purchasers of the old plantation known as Ockoocangansett, which had been reserved for the Indians out of the ancient boundaries of Marlborough, and "which many contended they forfeited by their perfidy during Philip's War," per the web site for the Ramage Family history. "Certain leading men of Marlboro (sic), including the Brighams of the day, obtained, without the consent of the General Court, title to this plantation of 5800 acres and formed a company. The amount paid never can be known, because of the subsequent disappearance of the deed, but the sum doubtless was nominal," the Ramage web site continues.

Unfortunately, that's just the way the colonists did things back then. I suppose things haven't changed much in the ensuing 350 years.

Prior to dying in Marlborough, Samuel Brigham fought against Native American tribes in Queen Anne's War and represented Marlborough in the Massachusetts General Court. He also is considered the father of the city's tanning and shoe making businesses, according to The History of the Brigham Family by W.I. Tyler Brigham. "The first tannery in the town was erected by Samuel about 1700, near his dwelling house on present East Main Street, one-quarter of a mile east of the old Village Academy," per the Brigham book. "This tannery...[was] said to have been the first west of Charlestown [now part of Boston - ed.]," and was in business until the early 1850's.

"Tanning is the process of treating skins and hides of animals to produce leather," per Wikipedia. "Before tanning, the skins are unhaired, degreased, desalted and soaked in water over a period of 6 hours to 2 days. Historically this process was considered a noxious or 'odoriferous trade' and relegated to the outskirts of town."

While Samuel Brigham is given credit for also founding the shoe making business in the town, the first shoe manufacturing business was opened by Samuel Boyd in 1836, according to Wikipedia. I'm assuming this was a larger scale operation than whatever Samuel Brigham was doing. Marlborough eventually became known for its shoe-making, "producing boots for Union soldiers, as well as footwear for the civilian population," per Wikipedia. "Marlborough became so well known for its shoes that its official seal was decorated with a factory, a shoe box, and a pair of boots when it was incorporated as a city in 1890."

Tanning hides and making shoes are not glamorous businesses. But there's something to be said for being first to market in any endeavor, and the Brigham clan gets the credit for founding one, and perhaps both, of these in Marlborough. One of Samuel's sons, my direct ancestor, Jedediah, took over the business. Jedediah's son, Stephen, another of my direct ancestors, however, did not follow in those footsteps. Rather, he moved 25 miles northeast to Princeton, where he was "one of the earlier planters," per the Brigham history book. From there, other generations moved north to New Hampshire and Vermont. So after three generations, my branch of the Brigham clan moved out of Marlborough.

But the family name lives on in many ways and places in the small city. On three occasions this past fall and spring, I explored several Brigham-related sites, which I detail here, as well as many other locations of interest, which will be featured in a second post about Marlborough in the near future.

In the Old Common Cemetery, located directly behind the city's human services office on Main Street (the former high school), are buried at least two of my direct ancestors: the above-mentioned Samuel Brigham and his son, Jedediah. Let's take a look.

Here is Samuel's grave. In The History of the Brigham Family, author W.I. Tyler Brigham indicates that Samuel, the youngest of Thomas Brigham's children, is the "only one of the second generation of Brighams whose grave is marked." He says the headstone is "rather ornate," but I'm guessing perhaps he referred to an older stone that was replaced by the one in the photo above, which is fairly standard for the graveyard. The author indicates that Samuel's brother, Thomas, and mother, Mercy Hurd Brigham, are likely buried here as well, but the exact places are unknown.

Above is the gravestone for Lt. Jedediah Brigham, second oldest son of Samuel. He fought in Queen Anne's War, the second in a series of French and Indian wars that lasted from 1702 to 1713. In addition to inheriting his father's tannery business, Ol' Jed served as a selectman in Marlborough, as well as a petit juryman in the Concord Court. In addition to Marlborough, Jedediah owned land in Bolton, Lancaster and Princeton.

Jedediah married Bethiah Howe, and his father, Samuel, married Elizabeth Howe. Above are gravestones for that family. I'm not sure if those folks are direct ancestors of mine.

(Some random Brigham graves.)

(Headstone for Thankfull Brigham, who isn't directly related to me. I just love Colonial-era names like this.)

On a World War I monument in front of the former high school, facing Main Street, I found the name of one Brigham.

About a mile away, at the Rocklawn Cemetery on Steven Street, are buried a whole bunch of Brighams, none of whom, as far as I know, are directly related to me.

(Grave of Ashley and Mary Brigham.)

(Grave of Cyrus, Cynthia, Irvin, Edith and William Brigham.)

There are probably members of the Brigham clan buried in every Marlborough boneyard. But there is only one Brigham Cemetery. Located off West Main Street, near Crescent Street, the graveyard recorded its first burials in 1793: William and Lydia Brigham, victims of smallpox. The cemetery remained in the Brigham family until 1808, when it was given to the Unitarian Society, per Wikipedia. The last burial was in 1934. The first picture in this post is of the gate that leads to the cemetery.

(A whole bunch of expired Brighams at the former family cemetery.)

Again, I didn't find any graves of people I know are direct ancestors of mine, but obviously I have distant cousins, aunts and uncles in here somewhere.

(Abner Brigham's broken gravestone in Brigham Cemetery.)

(Alden and Laura Brigham's gravestone.)

(Gravemarker for Austin and Dorothy Brigham.)

In downtown Marlborough, in a small, triangular park at the intersection of Mechanic and Main streets, sits an eagle-topped, four-sided obelisk that memorializes the city's residents who fought and died in the Civil War. Some of my direct ancestors fought in both the Civil War and the Revolutionary War; the names from the Brigham clan on these memorials aren't familiar to me, but again, there are surely some distant relations here.

(Memorial to those who died in the Battle of Appomattox Court House, including Aaron Brigham and Capt. William F. Brigham. There are soldiers with the last names Howe and Keyes, which are names that appear in my genealogy.)

(Memorial to those who died in the Battle of Gettysburg, including W. Frank Brigham.)

(Just a short distance down Main Street from the war memorials is the Rice Building. I have no connection to this building, but my 7th great-grandmother, Mercy Hurd Brigham, married Edmund Rice, who was a founder of Sudbury, Mass., and who eventually moved to Marlborough.)

(The Temple Building, circa 1880. The hotel on the upper floors was converted to apartments. Ronald Brigham, not a direct ancestor of mine but surely somehow related, once ran a bookstore at the right side of the building.)

OK, I'm getting down to the dregs of this post.

The Brigham Business Park is, unfortunately, not where Brigham's Ice Cream is made. Founded in my adopted hometown of Newton, Mass., the ice cream company was based in Arlington, Mass., for decades before selling out to Hood LLC (see March 23, 2016, "I Seek Newton, Part III: Highlands," for current photos of and background on the original Brigham's location in Newton.) The Brigham Business Park is located along Brigham Street, which runs between Mill Street and Clover Hill Street.

Brigham Street passes by the Jericho Hill Recreation Area, a former ski hill that I explored and which will be among many things featured in the second installment of my Marlborough mini-series.

Birth of the Cool Father

From Dave Brigham:

Benjamin Franklin was quite likely the coolest of our Founding Fathers. A self-made polymath (he dropped out of school at age 10 to help in his father's soap-making business), he was an inventor (bifocals; the Franklin stove; the armonica, an instrument made of "singing" glasses that I'm a little bit obsessed with; the flexible catheter), a scientist, a diplomat and one of the guys who helped draft the U.S. Constitution. Like all the Founders, and, let's face it, all humans, Franklin was a complicated person. He was a slaveholder who freed his slaves after a relatively short time. He had a child out of wedlock, and moved to France for a decade without his wife, who died while he was gone.

He was born in Boston, on January 17, 1706, as this building facade on Milk Street announces to the world.

Franklin lived in a house on this spot for six years with his father Josiah, mother Abiah and his 16 siblings, per this web site. He was the 15th and youngest son. He lived with his family in Boston -- the last 11 years at the corner of Hanover and Union streets -- until 1723. He was 17 years old when he decided to leave for Philadelphia, mainly in an effort to escape a domineering older brother who was in charge of him at a printing shop.

The building where Franklin was born was destroyed by fire in 1811. The building currently at 17 Milk Street dates to 1874, and was designed by by Robert Peabody & Johnathan Stearns. This building and the adjacent Transcript Building are being incorporated into a new development known as One Milk Street, which, when completed, will feature new storefronts along Washington and Milk streets.

My final argument that Benjamin Franklin was the hippest Founding Father is the fact that the Beastie Boys name-check him in "Sounds of Science" from the Paul's Boutique album.

And here's your headline explainer:

From Scary Ann's to Mary Jane's?

From Dave "Binge Drinker" Brigham:

Mary Ann's in Boston's Brighton neighborhood is like a second home for Boston College students and alumni. This Cleveland Circle dive bar is so legendarily gross that it's known as Scary Ann's. Or should I say, was....I never set foot in Mary Ann's, which seems like it was Boston College's version of St. Elmo's, the bar from the Brat Pack touchstone movie, "St. Elmo's Fire." Except with less famous people and more vomit and urine stench.

The bar closed recently (it did have a sign, but although I've walked past this joint dozens of times in recent years while on subway rides with my son, I didn't ever think to take a picture until it was too late). I'm sure the legions of BC students and alumni (Go Eagles!!) are heartbroken -- there is no on-campus bar and no other place in the Cleveland Circle neighborhood that's as tawdry and disgusting as Mary Ann's evidently was. Sure it was gross, but it was their gross. How gross and disgusting was it?

From Yelp:

"There's no place like Scary Ann's: covered in beer, lacking in every kind of amenity (including windows), endowed with truly claustrophobic bathrooms that make you wonder if any obese person has entered MA's, and often so loud you can't hear yourself think," says Jess Y.

"It's also an awesome destination if the smell of urine, vomit, and cheap beer awakens your senses before finals. Otherwise, MA's is disgusting and can be packed like a can of sardines- if those sardines were drunk bros. (One wonders: don't capacity restriction laws exist?)," says George S.

I'm guessing that many in Cleveland Circle are happy that Mary's Ann's closed. I can only imagine the drunken idiocy that strutted around the neighborhood. Don't get me wrong: I did more than my fair share of drinking during college and for quite a few years afterward. But even in my boozing days, I had no tolerance for loutishness (is that a word?).

Some of those same people, however, are not happy about what might become of this former booze bunker. Where once neighbors and business owners had to step over pools of vomit and plug their nose to prevent wafts of urine entering their nasal passages, now they may have to deal with the sweet smell of cheeba and the fear coming face to face with Cheetos-covered wasteoids.

Yes, a shop selling Sweet Leaf is likely to open here in the near future.

As the Boston Globe reported in early January, Happy Valley Ventures, a purveyor of medical and recreational cannabis, agreed to buy the building, contingent upon its ability to secure permits and zoning approval to operate a Mary Jane dispensary.

In addition to Boston College's chief of police and its vice president of governmental and community affairs, some residents in the area feel Happy Valley is blowing smoke up their asses. "Property value, potential smoking in the area, potential creation of more black markets for selling weed, and the proximity of a dispensary to schools — most notably to BC’s campus — were other issues brought up by opponents over the course of the two hour meeting," according to this article in The Heights, the independent newspaper on BC's campus.

Reefer Madness, I tell ya!

Greater Boston Bar Co., which acquired Mary Ann's last year and entered the agreement to sell to Happy Valley, has indicated it may reopen the putrid joint after some renovations. If Happy Valley is unable able to secure its permissions, that may happen. But I'm sure it won't be the same sh*thole all those screaming Eagles loved. Stay tuned....

Walk Like a Cantabrigian

From Dave Brigham:

I've been through Central Square in Cambridge, Mass., approximately one million and seventy-eight times in my life, but recently I actually had a camera with me and snapped some random photos.

I don't want to bury the lead, so I'm gonna start with the most stunning building I saw on my short trip.

This is the former headquarters of the Cambridge Mutual Fire Insurance Company. I believe the completion date for this gorgeous edifice was 1890. On August 4, 1888, the Cambridge Chronicle published drawings and information about the yet-to-be-built headquarters. Located on the site of a former stable, the fire insurance building was constructed by Howard Coon & Company. The building now houses a coffee shop, an organic cafe and a hair salon, among other businesses. Cambridge Mutual was acquired in 1913 by The Andover Companies.

Almost directly across the street from the grand old fire insurance building is the Cantab Lounge, which, despite what its terrible-looking web site might lead you to believe, is actually still open. A dive bar that features a regular roster of dance bands, blues jams, poetry slams, bluegrass and folk music, the Cantab has been open since the dawn of time. Approximately.

A quick jog away from the Cantab is the Cambridge YMCA.

Built in 1905, the Y offers all sorts of health and wellness services, as well as a 128-unit, substance-free, affordable housing facility operated by Caritas Communities. Below is a shot of a window at the YMCA, with the organization's logo, which was adopted in 1896.

From the Greater Green Bay YMCA, here's some history about the logo:

"In 1878, the Eighth Conference of the World Alliance of YMCAs met in Geneva, Switzerland, and had on its agenda the creation of a 'distinctive international badge of the Associations.'... Three years later at the Ninth Conference in London, the alliance approved...[a] circle, depicting the oneness of mankind, divided at its outside edge into five segments bearing the names of five parts of the world as they were described at the time: Europe, Asia, Oceania, Africa and America: separated by small decorative scrolls called cartouches 'upon which can be read in many languages the initials of our title, YMCA.'

"Inside the circle are the first two letters of the word Christ. The Greek letters Chi and Rho (XP) form the ancient symbol that early Christians painted on the walls of the catacombs. It was used by the Y to remind all that Christ was at the center of the movement. Finally an open Bible was added 'both because this divine book is the weapon of warfare which St. John gives to young men, and because it's the distinguishing mark of the great Reformation.'

"[In 1891] Luther H. Gulick, who revolutionized sports and physical fitness at the YMCA, proposed a red equilateral triangle as a symbol.... It was adopted immediately by Springfield College. The sides of the triangle, Gulick said, stood for 'an essential unity: spirit, mind, and body: each being a necessary and eternal part of man, being neither one alone but all three.'

In 1895, the annual convention of the U.S. and Canadian Ys authorizes adding the triangle to the old World Alliance Insignia. In 1896, the logo is simplified and a second ring is added. It is said the second ring represents friendship and love without end among individuals. This remains the Y's official emblem."

The YMCA's housing is substance free, but the next two places on my walk are decidedly not.

The People's Republik is a "Russian Communist-themed bar decked out with bombs & propaganda posters & offering casual fare," according to Google. Here we see Comrade Elvis Presley.

Just up the street is the Dana Hill Liquor Mart, with this amazing sign.

My last stop on this short tour is Pill, Inc. Hardware. The store was incorporated in 1931, per this online document. I dig this sign, too.

I plan to visit Central Square again before too long to shoot some more.

UPDATE: Cashing Out (And Learning About Façadism)

From Dave "Cash Me Outside" Brigham:

While façadism may sound like a new form of dictatorship that Donald Trump is enamored of, the architectural technique is far less dangerous to society, but still controversial. Façadism is the process of preserving all or part of an old building's exterior while constructing a new internal structure behind it. This technique has become more common in recent years in Boston as the city's building boom continues and bumps up against preservationists' urgent desires to maintain some connections to the city's past.

In July 2012, I took a photo of just such a project in Boston's Chinatown neighborhood.

This is one of a handful of façades fronting the Hong Lok House project. Developed by Rogerson Communities, Hong Lok House includes 74 affordable apartments for low-income elders, community space, an adult day health program, a senior center and a green roof with tai chi deck (!), according to the developer's web site. The project replaced the original Hong Lok House, which was located in the former Normandy Lounge, which was bought by the Greater Boston Chinese Golden Age Center, according to Sampan.org.

So let's get to the point. Last fall I posted a photo and wrote a post about the former Lechmere National Bank in East Cambridge, Mass. (see November 1, 2018, "Cashing Out"). In that post I indicated that, after some back-and-forth between the developer and the City of Cambridge, the project would save two outer walls of the former bank for inclusion in a new CVS pharmacy.

Here's what the building looked like recently; it may be complete by now.

On the left you can see one of the walls of the former bank. The middle and right portions of this building are new construction.

"Architectural façades can be contentious," per this article on the blog of custom metal casting company Reliance Foundry. "If done poorly, façadism can appear as an architectural Frankenstein; tasteless, mismatched, and ostentatious." Writing in Arcade, Eugenia Woo agrees: "Stripped of everything but its facade, a building loses its integrity and significance, rendering it an architectural ornament with no relation to its history, function, use, construction method or cultural heritage."

The Reliance Foundry blog, however, argues that if such a project is undertaken correctly, "it is an effective bridge between the old and the new. The process retains the historic front of a structure, while renovating and reconstructing the building’s interior to match modern building practices."

I have mixed feelings about façadism. Is saving a portion of the outside of an old building better than knocking the whole thing down? Sure. Sometimes the structure is in bad shape and there's no way to save anything other than the exterior. Fair enough. Other times, the building, although it may look cool and have nice details, is deemed of no historical value by town or city officials, and the developers hash out an agreement with those officials, and preservationists, to save part of the building. More often than not, of course, developers just let fly the wrecking ball and nothing is left.

I'm not opposed to progress, and to shiny, new buildings entirely. But I just love the human scale of buildings under, say 10 floors, and especially ones with the types of attention to detail that you just don't see in modern architecture.

I recently took a picture of the former Littlest Bar building on Boston's Broad Street, which has been incorporated into the Folio Boston condo tower. In this case, I like the façadism that the developer agreed to. Frankly, the old fella is so classy looking, he makes his big, doofy neighbor look stupid.

(This building may or may not be home to Vintage Restaurant and Lounge. The sign is no longer there, and you can see a ghost sign for The Littlest Bar below the first floor windows.)

I wrote about this project more than two years ago, and learned that the building whose exterior was saved dates to 1805 and was once a warehouse for goods coming off nearby wharves (see November 21, 2016, "The Buildings That Time Forgot").

For more about Boston buildings that have undergone (suffered?) this treatment, read this article. And for a look at similar projects north of the border, read this article about Toronto.

So, what do you think of façadism?

Sweeping Through Bromfield Street

From Dave Brigham:

In what seems another lifetime, I used to walk the streets of Boston, much as I do now, except I did it for money. Wait, that doesn't sound right. I wasn't a hustler. I worked in the mailroom for a real estate publishing company, and then as a proofreader/mail guy for an accounting firm. In those capacities, I occasionally had to deliver documents or pick up paperwork in the city's financial district and environs. One of my favorite places to wander was Bromfield Street, a short thoroughfare that runs between Tremont and Washington streets. Today it still retains some of the old-world Boston charm that I fell in love with back in the 1990s, but gentrification is well under way. I recently walked along the street again. Here's what I found....

The building on the left with the lovely gold leaf detail is 45 Bromfield Street, home to the DrinkMaster Bartending School, Bromfield Jewelers and other businesses. On the right is the former Massachusetts Bible Society store, now home to Bosworth Place, which offers short-term office rentals. The Jenga-looking tower looming in the background is 45 Province, a luxury condo development with prices ranging from $725,000 to $4.25 million. Like just about every neighborhood in Boston, this one near Downtown Crossing is changing rapidly.

(The totally awesome front door to Bosworth Place, located on Bosworth Street.)

This is quite a juxtaposition: The Watch Hospital, which opened in the late 1950's, and the Amazing Intimates & Smoke Shop. The watch store, unfortunately, wound down last fall, due to rising rents and decreasing business. As the reporter in the Boston Globe article linked to in the previous sentence indicates, "But these days, with more people using smartphones as personal clocks, and the cost to keep the lights on climbing, the shop and its staff have cut back." I suspect the Amazing store will last at least a little while longer. You can't digitize personal pleasure products. Well, not entirely.

Despite the less-than-optimal quality of this picture, it tells the story of how Boston is changing. On the right edge of this photo is 32-36 Bromfield, home to Shed's BBQ and I'm not sure what else. Small office tenants, I reckon. This building, which I wish I'd shot more of, went up in 1870 as the headquarters of the Methodist Boston Wesleyan Association. Check out this photo from 1973.

The three-story building in the middle of the photo is a historical gem. This is 20-30 Bromfield, which, according to Wikipedia, is one of the few surviving 19th century commercial granite structures in downtown Boston.

The building originally had five sections, but the pair on the left side were torn down to make way for construction of the Washington Building next door. The building at 20-30 Bromfield was designated a Boston Landmark by the Boston Landmarks Commission in 1983.

Now, back to the photo above with the sleek modern tower piercing the airspace above Downtown Crossing. This is Millennium Tower Boston, which at 685 feet is the fourth tallest building in Boston. It occupies part of the space where local retail legend Filene's once stood. The initial project at the former retailer's site ran out of money, and the massive hole in the ground after demolition was completed left city officials and residents pissed off for years (see February 10, 2011, "Up From the Basement?"). This is what Boston has become: gleaming residential towers and hotels with no soul or personality lording their wealth and futuristic visions over the smaller, more human-scaled buildings in their midst.

Anyway...back to Bromfield Street.

Located between Shed's BBQ and the historic 20-30 Bromfield building is this gated passageway (above), which was created in 1880 when a former store was removed to ease access from the street to the back of the building, per a Boston Landmarks Commission document I found online.

Across from the 20-30 Bromfield building is this beauty (above), the former headquarters of Boston Casualty Co. On the corner of Bromfield, 42 Province Street is home to Colonial Trading Co., Bromfield Nails, Versus (an arcade bar) and Sam LaGrassa's sandwich shop, among other businesses.

On the corner of Province opposite the former Boston Casualty building is situated a competitor for Colonial Trading: Bay State Coin.

In business since 1981, Bay State Coin was previously home to John Dean Coin. I LOVE that the store pays cash for teeth. How long will this cozy little remnant of times gone by last at this spot?

Located above the coin shop is The Marliave (below), a French restaurant opened in 1885. It was closed at some point, but revived in 2008. I ate here once, near the end of my tenure at the previously mentioned accounting firm. I don't recall what I ate, and my recollection of the vibe of the restaurant is dim, but I recall feeling out of place in a dusty, fusty place that was perhaps past its prime. My boss, who I believe had strong French ancestry, insisted on taking me here when I announced I was taking another job.

I love the detail above this entrance to the Washington Building (below), home to Sidebar Boston, among other businesses.

Next to the Washington Building is the Diamond & Jewelers Building, with this elegant, yet shuttered, entryway (below).

The Diamond & Jewelers Building's heyday as home to numerous artisans trading in gold, silver, jewels and engraving is long past.

Across the street from the Diamond & Jewelers building, which is on the corner of Washington Street, sits this fetching entryway to a former jewelry and luggage store.

Most recently there was a City Sports store here. But it, too, closed. There's a good chance that this building and others along the north side of Bromfield (not including the old Boston Casualty building) will soon be torn down. New York City-based Midwood Investment & Development bought several parcels along Washington and Bromfield streets more than a decade ago, including the location of the erstwhile City Sports building, as well as the former locations of an AT&T store and Payless ShoeSource store and other businesses, including my friend Nancy's favorite store, Bromfield Pen.

Midwood has proposed a stunning, 700-foot-tall building featuring apartments, condos and retail options. Dubbed One Bromfield, the building would be one of the five tallest in the city, according to this 2016 report. If you want to see the plans, check out this web site. The plan is "under official review," according to the Bldup web site.

We travel now from the possible future to the distant past.

This plaque below The Marliave's outdoor patio memorializes Governor's Alley, a pre-American Revolution narrow street that led to the stables and rear grounds of the long-gone Province House, per the plaque. Built in 1679 for a merchant, the Province House was the home of governors of the province of the Massachusetts Bay Colony from 1715 until after the Revolution.

(The rear of 45 Bromfield, referenced above, along Bosworth Street.)

(The rear of 100 Tremont Street, on the corner of Bromfield. This building is home to, among other businesses, the Beantown Pub.)

Leaving the Greater Bromfield Area and heading toward Government Center, I saw a few more things of interest.

(I'm somewhat obsessed with getting a good shot of the Tremont Temple Baptist Church. This isn't that shot. Opened in 1896, the church features a large auditorium, ground-floor retail shops, and upper-story offices, per Wikipedia. I can never get good light when I walk by the church, and there isn't enough space on the opposite side of Tremont Street to get a good angle either. Below is a Google Maps image to give you a sense of the place.)

(Here we have a two-fer: the gold plaque at the top recognizes that on this site [School Street] from 1748-1844 stood the Boston Latin School. The school, founded in 1635, originally was located on the opposite side of the street; it has stood on Avenue Louis Pasteur in the Longwood area since 1922. The lower plaque notes that the Parker House [known now as the Omni Parker House] has operated on its corner of Tremont and School streets since 1856. "Among the illustrious patrons of the Parker House were Charles Dickens, Ulysses S. Grant and John F. Kennedy," the plaque says.)

(Located on the sidewalk outside the Omni Parker House, right below a window sign reminding passersby that the hotel is the birthplace of Boston Cream Pie, is this plaque about the infamous night of April 18, 1775 when Paul Revere saw two lights in the North Church and set out on his famous ride. "THIS VIEW PRESERVED FOR ALL FUTURE GENERATIONS BY CHARLES HILGENHURST AND COLLEAGUES OF THE BOSTON REDEVELOPMENT AUTHORITY IN THE YEAR 1960." If you can stand outside the Omni Parker and see what is now called Old North Church in the North End, I will eat my tri-cornered hat. OK, I like that last sentence, so I'm keeping it. Turns out, however, that you can still see the church, but it's difficult since the MBTA elevated the new head house of the Government Center T station.)

(Last, and certainly not least, is this plaque at 10 Tremont Street commemorating several events of historic significance. On this site in 1789, President George Washington stayed at Joseph Ingersoll's Inn, the plaque tells us. Also, in 1825, Daniel Webster -- Massachusetts Senator and U.S. Secretary of State -- practiced law in the same building, according to The Next Phase Blog. This is also the spot where S.S. Pierce & Co., a wholesaler and grocer, got its start in 1831. Of course, none of these things happened in the building that stands at this location now, which dates to the late 19th century.)