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Eli Whitney Patents the Cotton Gin
Eli Whitney Patents the Cotton Gin
On this day in 1794, Westborough native Eli Whitney applied for a patent on the cotton gin. Raised on a farm in Massachusetts, he invented a machine that made growing cotton so profitable that the...
Legislature Guarantees Access to Public Schools
Legislature Guarantees Access to Public Schools
On this day in 1845, the Massachusetts legislature guaranteed that every child in the state would have access to a public school. One source of pressure on the lawmakers was a petition submitted by a...
Boston Minister Tried for Inciting a Riot
Boston Minister Tried for Inciting a Riot
On this day in 1855, the case against Boston minister Theodore Parker came to trial. Charged with inciting an abolitionist riot, he defended himself by describing the horrors of slavery. He told the dramatic story...
Boston Mourns Martin Luther King, Jr.
Boston Mourns Martin Luther King, Jr.
On this day in 1968, Boston crackled with tension. African Americans, enraged by the assassination of Martin Luther King, Jr. in Memphis, took to the streets. Community leaders urged calm, police showed restraint, and while...
W.E.B. DuBois Returns to Harvard
W.E.B. DuBois Returns to Harvard
On this day in 1904, W.E.B. DuBois gave a lecture on "the race question" at Harvard, where nine years before he had been the first black person to receive a Ph.D. From his childhood in...
The Birth of a Nation Sparks Protest
The Birth of a Nation Sparks Protest
On this day in 1915 Boston's African American community protested the showing of the racist film The Birth of a Nation. When 800 black women gathered at a Baptist church, one speaker suggested that "if...
Activists Erect Tent City in Boston
Activists Erect Tent City in Boston
On this day in 1968, hundreds of demonstrators occupied a parking lot in Boston's South End. Houses on the site had recently been demolished, and their occupants displaced. To protest this kind of "urban renewal,"...
Celtics Coach Red Auerbach Retires
Celtics Coach Red Auerbach Retires
On this day in 1966, Red Auerbach retired as head coach of the Boston Celtics after leading the team to 11 championships in 16 years. The Brooklyn native was a genius at acquiring talented players...
Agrippa Hull Enlists
Agrippa Hull Enlists
On this day in 1777, Agrippa Hull, a freeborn black man from the Berkshire County town of Stockbridge, signed on to serve in the Continental Army for the duration of the Revolutionary War. The 18-year-old...
Sarah Remond Ejected from Boston Theater
Sarah Remond Ejected from Boston Theater
On this day in 1853, Sarah Parker Remond and two other African Americans entered a Boston theater intending to enjoy a Mozart opera. When the manager discovered they were people of color, he directed them...