Event Category: Special Series

Jordan E. Taylor, author of Misinformation Nation: Foreign News and the Politics of Truth in Revolutionary America, led a fascinating virtual talk about “fake news” in the Revolutionary era. America’s Founding Fathers are often praised for their wisdom and discernment. But like Americans today, they faced a mountain of misinformation. Their political choices, from resisting British…

Established in 1732, Old North Church’s crypt has received the mortal remains of wealthy aristocrats, revered clergy, and military heroes, along with those of ordinary citizens, and persons otherwise forgotten to history. 2023 marked the completion of an extensive preservation and restoration project in this historic crypt, which included the removal and restoration of sealed…

Just a few years after the end of the American Revolution, another earth-shaking revolution erupted in France. When a Parisian crowd stormed the Bastille in July of 1789, it triggered the overthrow of the French monarchy and the birth of a new society. What sparked this momentous event? In this online talk, the celebrated historian…

A great work of historical fiction transports audiences back in time in a uniquely human way. At its best, historical fiction makes the struggles of the past feel raw and emotional in the present, sheds light on those left out of the dominant historical narrative, and challenges us to consider multiple perspectives. How do writers…

Did you know that Massachusetts was at the center of the national struggle for women’s rights? Or that this struggle was intertwined with the abolitionist movement? Barbara Berenson, the author of Massachusetts in the Woman Suffrage Movement: Revolutionary Reformers, delivered a history talk about the Bay State’s prominent role in women’s fight for the vote. Long before…

From the moment the Separatists and Puritans made contact with the Indigenous People of what is now known as Massachusetts, the Commonwealth has had a history steeped in revolution. With the establishment of Boston, Governor John Winthrop proclaimed it “a city upon a hill. The eyes of all people will be upon us.” While it…

In 1791, the eruption of the Haitian Revolution shook the world. It was the only revolt of enslaved people to abolish slavery and create a free and independent Black nation in the Americas. Enslaved women represented nearly half of colonial Haiti’s plantation populations and performed much of the same physical labor as their male counterparts.…

In June, Boston artist Ifé Franklin led an Egun Ancestor Procession at Copp’s Hill Burying Ground, steps away from Old North Church. Egun Ancestor Processions are, in the words of the artist, “beautiful community rituals that honor the lives of the enslaved whose burial sites are often forgotten. Each journey offers a healing balm to…

When we think about Americans who changed the course of history, we rarely think about children. In the popular imagination, young people usually stand on the sidelines of history, sheltered and coddled by the adults who really make things happen. In reality, however, children have played a vital part in American politics and culture since…

For thousands of years, women cooked over open fires or hearths — using simple tools, a limited list of local seasonal ingredients, and without printed recipes for guidance. In the 1800s, the Industrial Revolution dramatically transformed almost every aspect of what we eat and how we prepare it. In this online talk, author and historian…