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Edward Everett Gives Gettysburg Address
Edward Everett Gives Gettysburg Address
On this day in 1863, Edward Everett spoke at the dedication of Gettysburg's National Cemetery, giving what is remembered today as the other Gettysburg Address. The Boston orator was the obvious choice for the occasion....
The Fortune Sails from Plymouth for England
The Fortune Sails from Plymouth for England
On this day in 1621, the ship Fortune set sail from Plymouth Colony. The arrival of the vessel two weeks earlier — sent by the English investors who had funded the Mayflower colonists— should have...
First YMCA in the United States Organized in Boston
First YMCA in the United States Organized in Boston
On this day in 1851, a group of evangelicals from several Boston churches founded the first Young Men's Christian Association in the United States. Modeled on the YMCA in London, the chapter intended to safeguard...
Abner Kneeland Prints Blasphemous Letter
Abner Kneeland Prints Blasphemous Letter
On this day in 1833, religious and social reformer Abner Kneeland printed a letter deemed so blasphemous by a Massachusetts court that it landed the former clergyman in jail. Kneeland capped 30 years of increasingly...
Alice Freeman and George Palmer Marry
Alice Freeman and George Palmer Marry
On this day in 1887, Alice Freeman, charismatic president of Wellesley College, wed Harvard professor George Palmer, to the consternation of many Boston intellectuals. In her six years as president, Freeman had transformed the fledgling...
Harvard Shakers Record Spiritual Visit
Harvard Shakers Record Spiritual Visit
On this day in 1841, the Shakers in Harvard reported a spiritual visit by their long-dead founder Mother Ann, "Holy Angels," and "ancient Saints and departed spirits." Shaker communities across New England were receiving such...
Boston Abolitionists Await Emancipation Proclamation
Boston Abolitionists Await Emancipation Proclamation
On this day, New Year's Eve 1862, William Lloyd Garrison, publisher of the abolitionist paper The Liberator, delayed printing the latest edition as he waited for news from Washington. At midnight, his son and daughter...
Worcester Becomes a City
Worcester Becomes a City
On this day in 1848, the Governor of Massachusetts signed a charter giving the once-sleepy village of Worcester the legal status of a city. For over a century, Worcester's isolated location in the hilly center...