Boston Timeline. . , 1600 , 1632: The first windmill to operate in the Colonies moves to Copp's Hill from Cambridge, when it would grind corn only in a westerly wind. , 1641: The 160-ton Trial is launched. This first full-size ship built in Boston, it is later credited with initiating Boston's foreign trade. The Trial sails for Bilbao, Spain with a cargo of fish in 1643, and returns, via the West Indies, laden with "wine, fruit, oil and wood," on March 23, 1644. , 1650: Second Church (Old North Meeting House) opens in North Square. Samuel Mather and John Mayo are the first pastors. Their successors include Increase and Cotton Mather. , 1656: An ordinance names "the bridge to the North End" (now Hanover Street) as the only place where butchers might "throw their beasts' cutrails and garbage, without penalty of fine.", 1700 , 1721: Dr. Zabdiel Boylston first uses inoculation to combat smallpox in Boston. Rev. Cotton Mather is the leading proponent of his experiment. Opponents set fire to Mather's home and nearly lynch Boylston, but the experiment is a success. While over 800 people die of smallpox, only six of the 247 people Boylston inoculates succumb to the disease. , 1765: Thomas Hutchinson's house in North Square is sacked by a mob as part of the Stamp Act uprising. He later becomes the royal governor. , 1775:"One if by land, and two if by sea…" On April 18, Robert Newman hangs two lanterns in the steeple of Old North Church, signaling the Redcoats' movement up the Charles River to Cambridge and on to Lexington and Concord. Paul Revere, William Dawes and Samuel Prescott set out to warn the colonists of the approaching British troops. The American revolution begins the following day with "the shot heard 'round the world." , 1786: The original Charles River Bridge, America's first long (1,503 feet) deep-water bridge opens on June 17, connecting the North End to Charlestown. The event attracts 20,000 spectators , more than the entire population of Boston. , 1797: The USS Constitution ("Old Ironsides") launches from Edmund Hart's shipyard on the site of today's U.S. Coast Guard base in the North End. Designed by Joshua Humphrey, the Constitution wins all 42 of her battles. Now the oldest commissioned ship in the U.S. Navy, she rests in Charlestown Navy Yard., 1800 , 1821: The William Underwood Company opens as a tinsmith at 530 Atlantic Avenue. Later located at 52 Fulton Street, the Underwood Company develops food business and preserves its products in tin cans. Underwood Deviled Ham is distributed worldwide. , 1847: Father Edward Thompson Taylor, called the "Sailor's Preacher," founder of the Marine's House with the Boston Port and Seaman's Aid Society. He builds the North Square bethel as a safe place for sailors to stay when they were ashore, where they could avoid temptations of too much grog and not worry about being robbed while off their ship. Today, it provides short-term residence and meals for active and retired sailors. , 1851: Eben Jordan and Benjamin L. Marsh go into business together selling dry goods for wholesale. Their partnership results in Jordan Marsh, one of the first "departmentalized" stores. Jordan Marsh continues business in Boston until 2005. , 1874: Luigi and son Pietro Pastene turn their produce into a grocery and fruit store specializing in imported Italian products. Over time the Pastene Corporation grows to become a multi-national company. , 1881: Pauline Agassiz Shaw and other women rent the Boston Seaman's Friends Society building at 39 Bennet Street and turn it into a vocational training school for the poor and immigrants. It becomes the North Bennet Street Industrial School in 1885. , 1882: Solomon and Jennie Rubinowicz (later Rabb) open a grocery store at 134 Salem Street. Called the "Greenie Store," it operates at this location until 1908. The family founds the Stop and Shop supermarket chain in 1914. , 1889: The Hebrew Industrial School opens next door to the North Bennet Street Industrial School. Founded by Mrs. Jacob (Lina) Hecht, the school teaches immigrant Jewish girls needlework skills. It later becomes the Hecht Neighborhood House in honor of its founder. , 1892: The Benevolent Fraternity of Unitarian Churches opens the North End Union at 20 Parmenter Street, with a goal of helping young boys move directly into jobs after graduation. The North End Union has the first printing and plumbing school in the country, and offers many trade classes with the support of local industry. The North End Union Board of Directors vote to dissolve in the fall of 1998. , 1895: Garden Court resident John F. Fitzgerald is elected to the U.S. House of Representatives after serving in the Massachusetts Senate. He later becomes Mayor of Boston. He is often seen strolling down Hanover Street singing "The Dear Old North End.", 1900 , 1912: The Prince Macaroni Company, founded by Gaetano LaMarca, Giuseppe Seminara, and Michele Cantella, manufactures "Italian Style" macaroni at 82-92 Prince Street. , 1919: At 12:30 p.m. on January 15, a 50-foot high, 90-foot diameter tank of molasses owned by the Purity Distilling Company at 529 Commercial Street collapses, releasing a 15-foot tall wave of molasses containing over two million gallons. The wave has so much force that 21 people and dozens of horses die, 150 people are injured and buildings are destroyed. , 1927: On August 23, Nicola Sacco and Bartolomeo Vanzetti are executed for a 1920 robbery and murder. The men claim to be victims of prejudice against radicals and immigrants. Many prominent intellectuals campaign unsuccessfully for a retrial. One hundred thousand people visit the bodies at Langone Funeral Home on Hanover Street. In 1977, Governor Michael Dukakis exonerates them, proclaiming that the case should be pondered "by all who cherish tolerance, justice and human understanding." , 1947: John Deferrari, a former fruit peddler from the North End, donates three million dollars, establishing a trust fund at the Boston Public Library to inspire young Bostonians to realize, as he did, the American dream of success. , 1950: A 9-member gang commits The Brinks Robbery on January 17 at 1600 Commercial Street. During the largest robbery in United States history to date, thieves wearing Halloween masks rob the company's counting house of $2,775,395.12 in cash, checks, securities and money orders., 2004: , Thirteen years of "Big Dig" construction culminates with the dismantling of the elevated Central Artery. Traffic is moved underground to the Thomas P. O'Neill, Jr. Tunnel, and nearly 30 acres of land are cleared for development and for the Rose Kennedy Greenway. , 1952: Stores, businesses and homes on this site are demolished to make way for the John Fitzgerald Expressway (the Central Artery), an elevated six lane highway that separates the North End from downtown Boston. the roadway is designed for 75,000 vehicles per day. By the time of its removal it carries 190,000 vehicles per day. , 1955: At the Boston Garden on April 1, Tony DeMarco of the North End beats Johnny Saxton with a 14th round knockout to win the world welter weight title., 2000
1600
1632: The first windmill to operate in the Colonies moves to Copp's Hill from Cambridge, when it would grind corn only in a westerly wind. 1641: The 160-ton Trial is launched. This first full-size ship built in Boston, it is later credited with initiating Boston's foreign trade. The Trial sails for Bilbao, Spain with a cargo of fish in 1643, and returns, via the West Indies, laden with "wine, fruit, oil and wood," on March 23, 1644. 1650: Second Church (Old North Meeting House) opens in North Square. Samuel Mather and John Mayo are the first pastors. Their successors include Increase and Cotton Mather. 1656: An ordinance names "the bridge to the North End" (now Hanover Street) as the only place where butchers might "throw their beasts' cutrails and garbage, without penalty of fine."
1700
1721: Dr. Zabdiel Boylston first uses inoculation to combat smallpox in Boston. Rev. Cotton Mather is the leading proponent of his experiment. Opponents set fire to Mather's home and nearly lynch Boylston, but the experiment is a success. While over 800 people die of smallpox, only six of the 247 people Boylston inoculates succumb to the disease. 1765: Thomas Hutchinson's house in North Square is sacked by a mob as part
Click or scan to see this page online
of the Stamp Act uprising. He later becomes the royal governor. 1775:"One if by land, and two if by sea…" On April 18, Robert Newman hangs two lanterns in the steeple of Old North Church, signaling the Redcoats' movement up the Charles River to Cambridge and on to Lexington and Concord. Paul Revere, William Dawes and Samuel Prescott set out to warn the colonists of the approaching British troops. The American revolution begins the following day with "the shot heard 'round the world." 1786: The original Charles River Bridge, America's first long (1,503 feet) deep-water bridge opens on June 17, connecting the North End to Charlestown. The event attracts 20,000 spectators — more than the entire population of Boston. 1797: The USS Constitution ("Old Ironsides") launches from Edmund Hart's shipyard on the site of today's U.S. Coast Guard base in the North End. Designed by Joshua Humphrey, the Constitution wins all 42 of her battles. Now the oldest commissioned ship in the U.S. Navy, she rests in Charlestown Navy Yard.
1800
1821: The William Underwood Company opens as a tinsmith at 530 Atlantic Avenue. Later located at 52 Fulton Street, the Underwood Company develops food business and preserves its products in tin cans. Underwood Deviled Ham is distributed worldwide. 1847: Father
Edward Thompson Taylor, called the "Sailor's Preacher," founder of the Marine's House with the Boston Port and Seaman's Aid Society. He builds the North Square bethel as a safe place for sailors to stay when they were ashore, where they could avoid temptations of too much grog and not worry about being robbed while off their ship. Today, it provides short-term residence and meals for active and retired sailors. 1851: Eben Jordan and Benjamin L. Marsh go into business together selling dry goods for wholesale. Their partnership results in Jordan Marsh, one of the first "departmentalized" stores. Jordan Marsh continues business in Boston until 2005. 1874: Luigi and son Pietro Pastene turn their produce into a grocery and fruit store specializing in imported Italian products. Over time the Pastene Corporation grows to become a multi-national company. 1881: Pauline Agassiz Shaw and other women rent the Boston Seaman's Friends Society building at 39 Bennet Street and turn it into a vocational training school for the poor and immigrants. It becomes the North Bennet Street Industrial School in 1885. 1882: Solomon and Jennie Rubinowicz (later Rabb) open a grocery store at 134 Salem Street. Called the "Greenie Store," it operates at this location until 1908. The family founds the Stop & Shop supermarket chain in 1914. 1889:
The Hebrew Industrial School opens next door to the North Bennet Street Industrial School. Founded by Mrs. Jacob (Lina) Hecht, the school teaches immigrant Jewish girls needlework skills. It later becomes the Hecht Neighborhood House in honor of its founder. 1892: The Benevolent Fraternity of Unitarian Churches opens the North End Union at 20 Parmenter Street, with a goal of helping young boys move directly into jobs after graduation. The North End Union has the first printing and plumbing school in the country, and offers many trade classes with the support of local industry. The North End Union Board of Directors vote to dissolve in the fall of 1998. 1895: Garden Court resident John F. Fitzgerald is elected to the U.S. House of Representatives after serving in the Massachusetts Senate. He later becomes Mayor of Boston. He is often seen strolling down Hanover Street singing "The Dear Old North End."
1900
1912: The Prince Macaroni Company, founded by Gaetano LaMarca, Giuseppe Seminara, and Michele Cantella, manufactures "Italian Style" macaroni at 82-92 Prince Street. 1919: At 12:30 p.m. on January 15, a 50-foot high, 90-foot diameter tank of molasses owned by the Purity Distilling Company at 529 Commercial Street collapses, releasing a 15-foot tall wave of molasses containing over two million gallons.
The wave has so much force that 21 people and dozens of horses die, 150 people are injured and buildings are destroyed. 1927: On August 23, Nicola Sacco and Bartolomeo Vanzetti are executed for a 1920 robbery and murder. The men claim to be victims of prejudice against radicals and immigrants. Many prominent intellectuals campaign unsuccessfully for a retrial. One hundred thousand people visit the bodies at Langone Funeral Home on Hanover Street. In 1977, Governor Michael Dukakis exonerates them, proclaiming that the case should be pondered "by all who cherish tolerance, justice and human understanding." 1947: John Deferrari, a former fruit peddler from the North End, donates three million dollars, establishing a trust fund at the Boston Public Library to inspire young Bostonians to realize, as he did, the American dream of success. 1950: A 9-member gang commits The Brinks Robbery on January 17 at 1600 Commercial Street. During the largest robbery in United States history to date, thieves wearing Halloween masks rob the company's counting house of $2,775,395.12 in cash, checks, securities and money orders.
2004: Thirteen years of "Big Dig" construction culminates with the dismantling of the elevated Central Artery. Traffic is moved underground to the Thomas P. O'Neill, Jr. Tunnel, and nearly 30 acres of land
are cleared for development and for the Rose Kennedy Greenway. 1952: Stores, businesses and homes on this site are demolished to make way for the John Fitzgerald Expressway (the Central Artery), an elevated six lane highway that separates the North End from downtown Boston. the roadway is designed for 75,000 vehicles per day. By the time of its removal it carries 190,000 vehicles per day. 1955: At the Boston Garden on April 1, Tony DeMarco of the North End beats Johnny Saxton with a 14th round knockout to win the world welter weight title.
2000
Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in this topic list: Notable Events. In addition, it is included in the Unitarian Universalism (UUism) series list. A significant historical date for this entry is January 15, 1600.
Location. 42° 21.745′ N, 71° 3.354′ W. Marker is in Boston, Massachusetts, in Suffolk County. It is in North End. Marker is at the intersection of Hanover Street and Cross Street, on the left when traveling west on Hanover Street. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 191 John F Fitzgerald Surface Rd, Boston MA 02113, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker. Tony DeMarco (within shouting distance of this marker); a different marker also named Boston Timeline (within shouting distance of this marker); Rose Fitzgerald Kennedy Greenway
Credits. This page was last revised on May 10, 2023. It was originally submitted on February 4, 2023, by Devry Becker Jones of Washington, District of Columbia. This page has been viewed 112 times since then and 29 times this year. Photos:1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6. submitted on February 4, 2023, by Devry Becker Jones of Washington, District of Columbia.
