Old North Church & Historic Site

Our original play "Revolution's Edge" received a wonderful review in Theater Mirror! The play, produced by Plays in Place, is running Wednesday - Saturday through August 10.

Check out the review here: www.theatermirror.net/?p=7721

It's hard to beat the views from the pews!

We're excited to share that Old North Church has received a Tripadvisor Travelers' Choice Award for 2024! That means we're among the top 10% of things to do worldwide. 🥳

Today in 1779, a 44-ship American naval armada set sail from Boston for the upper Penobscot Bay in Maine. Paul Revere led a 100-man artillery detachment.

It was the largest American naval expedition of the Revolutionary War and the U.S.’s worst naval defeat until Pearl Harbor.

Did you know that when you take a tour with the Freedom Trail Foundation, you're helping to preserve Old North Church and the other sites along the trail? The Freedom Trail® Preservation Fund has helped support the restoration of our crypt, masonry work on the Clough House, and the repointing of the walls of our Washington Garden.

Learn all about the Freedom Trail® Foundation's fantastic walking tours on their website! www.thefreedomtrail.org/tours

We loved hosting these sailors from USS Constitution!

How cool is this?

Archaeologists in Concord, MA found five musket balls they say were fired on April 19, 1775 at Minute Man National Historic Park during the event famously known as "The Shot Heard Round the World."

250-year-old musket balls from "Shot Heard Round the World" found in Concord, Massachusetts Archaeologists in Concord, Massachusetts found five musket balls they say were fired during the event famously known as "The Shot Heard Round the World."

On this day in 1976, Queen Elizabeth and the Duke of Edinburgh visited Old North Church in celebration of the Bicentennial. In a speech at the Old State House during her visit to Boston, the Queen said:

“If Paul Revere, Samuel Adams, and other patriots could've known that one day a British monarch would stand behind the balcony of the Old State House from which the Declaration of Independence was first read to the people of Boston, and be greeted by the mayor and others in such kind and generous words, well I think they would be extremely surprised. But perhaps they would have been pleased. Pleased to know that eventually we came together again as free peoples and friends and defended together the very ideals for which the American Revolution was fought. At Old North Church last year, your President lit a third lantern dedicated to America’s third century of freedom and to renew faith in the American ideals. May its light never be dimmed.”

Mourning doves nesting at Old North!

We’re thrilled to share that Old North Illuminated has been selected to receive a 2024 Leadership in History Award of Excellence from the American Association for State and Local History.

Our award-winning project, "Expanding History at Old North Church," encompasses the major additions to our programming that we have made over the past two years:
- Illuminating the Unseen, a web series about Black and Indigenous history at Old North
- Sparking Revolutions, a new permanent exhibit that tells our complex history over 300 years
- The Old North Audio Guide, a 35-minute audio tour with new research and stories

A huge thank you to everyone who has visited Old North, engaged with our online programming, or donated to our education fund. We couldn't have done it without you!

We hope everyone had a great 4th! It was a blast at Old North.

Happy Independence Day from Old North! Join us for special festivities throughout the day and come see our original play Revolution's Edge at 6pm. www.oldnorth.com/events

On this day in 1776, the Second Continental Congress voted to approve a motion for independence from Great Britain.

In a letter to his wife Abigail, John Adams predicted that July 2nd ⁠— not July 4⁠th — would be the day that Americans would remember and celebrate for years to come!

Come and celebrate Independence Day at Old North Church! This year’s festivities will include:
– Guided tours of the crypt
– Ringing of the oldest set of change-ringing bells in the U.S.
– Dramatic readings of Longfellow’s “Paul Revere’s Ride” poem
– Live music played on period instruments by the 19th century-style musical duo Tripp and Toddy, who will stage a “duel to the death” at the end of their final performance
– Children’s story time sessions
– A performance of the original play Revolution’s Edge

See the full schedule and get tickets here: www.oldnorth.com/events

Wow! A few days ago, we had some intense thunderstorms, and a local captured this incredible photo of a lightning strike behind Old North. We're just glad it didn't hit our steeple!

Thank you to yungScooter30 on Reddit for letting us share your picture.

On this day in 1813, Rachel Walker Revere, the second wife of Paul Revere, passed away. Paul met Rachel soon after the death of his first wife, Sarah, and the two were married for 41 years. Rachel cared for the six surviving children from Paul’s first marriage and gave birth to eight more children.

This portrait of Rachel by Gilbert Stuart was completed weeks before her death.

Many people ask us about the two sentinel stone lions who keep watch over our gift shop. The short answer is that our gift shop used to be a chapel for Italian Protestant immigrants living in the North End. The chapel was designed in the Italian Renaissance style, and the lion is a frequent symbol used in Christian aesthetics.

As you can see in this photo, our canine friend is fond of the lions, too! (Although the lion looks less enthused by Huckleberry’s presence.)

Our friend Paul Revere couldn't make it to the Boston Celtics Parade today, but he is sporting some green!

Congratulations, Boston! 🍀

The word of the day is "scorcha."🔥🔥🔥

On Saturday, Boston artist Ife Franklin (Ifearts) led an Egun Ancestor Procession at Copp's Hill Burying Ground, steps away from Old North Church. This beautiful community ritual honored the lives of enslaved people whose burial sites are often forgotten.

We were proud to sponsor this meaningful event with the Mayor's Office of Arts & Culture Boston, Boston National Historical Park, Proverb, and HUB History.

Today is the 249th anniversary of the Battle of Bunker Hill. The battle was a tactical victory for the British, but it proved to be a sobering experience for them. They incurred many more casualties than the Americans had sustained, including many officers.

Major John Pitcairn, a British military hero, was shot four times in the battle and died hours later. He was buried in the crypt of the Old North Church.

Stormy days make for dramatic photos! Here is the view from Old North.

Some of our Educators recently visited Boston’s Custom House Tower…and the views of Old North’s steeple were superb!

On this day in 1809, Edgar Allan Poe was born in Boston.

Poe had a love-hate relationship with the city, writing, “The Bostonians are very well in their way. Their hotels are bad. Their pumpkin pies are delicious. Their poetry is not so good.”

Nevertheless, Poe was honored with a statue by the Common in 2014.