A Visit to Boston – Day Two – Old State House

by Posted in Buildings/Structures, History Leave a comment
bostonday2oldstatehouse-1-of-3

The Old State House is a historic building in Boston, Massachusetts, built in 1713. It was the seat of the Massachusetts General Court until 1798. It is located at the intersection of Washington and State Streets and is one of the oldest public buildings in the United States.

“It is one of the landmarks on Boston’s Freedom Trail and is the oldest surviving public building in Boston. It now serves as a history museum that was operated by the Bostonian Society through 2019. On January 1, 2020, the Bostonian Society merged with the Old South Association in Boston to form Revolutionary Spaces. The Old State House was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1960 and a Boston Landmark by the Boston Landmarks Commission in 1994”. (Wikipedia)

bostonday2oldstatehouse-2-of-3

bostonday2oldstatehouse-3-of-3

Taken with a Sony A6000 and 18-135mm f3.5-5.6 OSS

A Visit to Philipsburg Manor – Re-enactors

by Posted in Buildings/Structures, History, People Leave a comment
PhilipsburgManorreenactors-1-of-4

Costumed interpreters re-enact life in pre-Revolutionary times, doing chores, milking the cows, and grinding grain in the grist mill. They also act as guides.

The current tour was in the manor house, and they were waiting for them to emerge. This gave me a chance to go over and chat with them. I work with Briarcliff Manor-Scarborough Historical Society, which is only 6 miles away from the manor. They had an extensive knowledge of local history (one of them was a retired history teacher) so we didn’t have difficulties finding things to discuss.

PhilipsburgManorreenactors-2-of-4

PhilipsburgManorreenactors-3-of-4

This guy was baking cookies.

PhilipsburgManorreenactors-4-of-4

Taken with a Fuji X-E3 and Fuji XC 16-50mm f3.5-5.6 OSS II

A Visit to Philipsburg Manor – Tenant Farmers House

by Posted in Buildings/Structures, History Leave a comment
PhilipsburgManorTenantFarmerHouse-1-of-3

Philipse’s trading center has been restored to its appearance in 1750 when, in addition to the two dozen African slave it was home to several hundred tenant farmers. Their homes looked something like this. I can’t really say more because it wasn’t possible to see the interior. So, you see what I saw.

PhilipsburgManorTenantFarmerHouse-2-of-3

PhilipsburgManorTenantFarmerHouse-3-of-3

Taken with a Fuji X-E3 and Fuji XC 16-50mm f3.5-5.6 OSS II

A Visit to Philipsburg Manor – The Slave Garden

by Posted in Buildings/Structures, Gardens, History Leave a comment
PhilipsburgManorSlaveGarden-1-of-2

In colonial America, it was common for enslaved men and women in rural areas to keep a provisioning garden to grow vegetables they most wanted to eat.

At Philipsburg Manor, which interprets an 18th-century provisioning plantation operated by 23 enslaved Africans, the slaves’ garden is full of plants African gardeners would have preferred – vegetables like black-eyed peas and sweet potatoes – as well as herbs.

Africans had an intimate knowledge of plants and other natural materials that they used to cure all sorts of ailments. So the herbs in a garden like this one served as an apothecary as well as a spice rack. (A Colonial Drugstore: Philipsburg Manor’s Herb Garden)

PhilipsburgManorSlaveGarden-2-of-2

Taken with a Fuji X-E3 and Fuji XC 16-50mm f3.5-5.6 OSS II