Posts Tagged ‘American Revolution’
The Washington Elm fell near 100 years ago, living symbol of liberty and site of reverence
What was the Washington Elm, and how did it attain such a powerful hold over the popular imagination over generations in Cambridge and well beyond?
Read MoreThe Revolution’s 250th anniversary approaches, demanding answers to how we commemorate
Does the American Revolution matter? What, if anything, can it teach us today? Who and what has been left out of previous commemorations, and how can we ensure that we tell a more complete version for all of Cambridge?
Read More‘Reading Frederick Douglass Together’ events mark the Fourth poignantly and powerfully
Public readings of “What to the Slave is the Fourth of July?” have become increasingly widespread and popular as an American celebration of how far we have come and contemplation of how much we have left to do.
Read MoreFort Washington History Hub
Fort Washington Park is the last remaining fortification from the Revolutionary War in Cambridge, but the park and neighborhood hold rich histories beyond the Revolutionary era. This History Hub contains materials that details the eras of the park
Read MoreFort Washington has history (and mystery), including rumors about Washington’s horse
A broader history of Fort Washington Park in Cambridgeport will be explored in a virtual History Cafe on May 3 with local historians and artists.
Read MoreSeptember 9 Event Recap: How Should Fort Washington Park Evolve?
Thanks to all who came out for our Fort Washington event! We received meaningful feedback on the park, its uses, and suggestions for improving it.
Read MoreHistory Cambridge looks back at 2022
As 2022 comes to a close, History Cambridge is looking back on a year filled with events and collaborations that have helped us to live into our mission to collect and share the stories of all Cantabrigians. Our theme for 2022 was “Who Are Cambridge Workers?” Many of our programs focused on the history of labor in the city, but we also held events and created partnerships in other areas of Cambridge history, including our temporary art installation honoring the lives of the enslaved people who lived and worked on Brattle Street.
Read MoreSelf-Guided Tour: The Work of Revolution in Cambridge
Introduction For many, the first image that comes to mind when thinking of Cambridge during the Revolutionary Era is that of General George Washington taking command of the Continental Army on Cambridge Common in July of 1775, under what would come to be known as the Washington Elm. Although we now know that this tale…
Read MoreHistory Café: Harriet Jacobs and the World of Abolitionist Cambridge Women
Harriet Jacobs is best known for her autobiography, Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl, in which she chronicles her enslavement in North Carolina, her subsequent period in hiding in a tiny attic garret, and her eventual escape north to freedom. But Jacobs was also for many years a resident of Cambridge, where she ran…
Read MoreMercy Scollay and the Lifelong Work of Mending
By Katie Turner Getty, Independent Researcher and Writer When Mercy Scollay’s presumptive fiancé, Dr. Joseph Warren, was killed at the Battle of Bunker Hill in June of 1775, she was thrust into emotional and financial turmoil that would both parallel and outlast the political upheaval of the American Revolution. As the caretaker and surrogate mother…
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