Wednesday, February 27, 2008

Nurse's Hall


Built largely of Pavonazzo marble, this room in the State House is called Nurses' Hall because of the statue of an Army war nurse. Sculpted in 1914 by Bela Pratt, it was the first statue erected in honor of the women of the North after the Civil War.

Tuesday, February 26, 2008

House of Representatives


Chamber of the Massachusetts State House. It is in this room that the larger of the two legislative bodies conducts its business. The Speaker of the House is elected by the representatives and presides from the elevated chair behind the podium. Representatives can vote electronically by pushing a green "yea" or a red "nay" button on their desks. The results of the vote appear next to each representative's name on the boards in the front of the room.

The room is paneled in Honduras mahogany. Behind the Speaker's podium are the Albert Herter murals, "Milestones on the Road to Freedom." The names on the ceiling cornice commemorate men who made important contributions to the commonwealth and the nation prior to 1895.

Monday, February 25, 2008

Massachusetts State House


The Bulfinch State House was completed on January 11, 1798 and was widely acclaimed as one of the more magnificent and well-situated buildings in the country. Its dome dominated the Boston skyline until the advent of the skyscraper.

In 1713 the seat of the Massachusetts government was the old State House at the corner of King (now Washington) and State streets.

The site chosen for the new State House, close to the summit of the south side of Beacon Hill overlooking Boston Common and the Back Bay, originally served as a cow pasture for the Revolutionary patriot and governor John Hancock. Charles Bulfinch was chosen to design the building. He later contributed to the plans of the Capitol in Washington.
______________
More information on this week's posts about the Massachusetts State House can be found here.

Sunday, February 24, 2008

Saturday, February 23, 2008

Salem Custom House


Built in 1818, the Custom House is typical of the Federal style of building. However, the building is more noted for one of its employees, Nathaniel Hawthorne, the author of the Scarlet Letter and The House of the Seven Gables.

Friday, February 22, 2008

If it's Friday ... it must be a door


In homage to Isadora's Wednesday series, here is the doorway of the Stephen Daniels Guest House in Salem, Massachusetts.

Thursday, February 21, 2008

Old West Church


Old West Church on Cambridge Street, at the foot of Beacon Hill. It was in this church that the phrase, "No taxation without representation" was first coined. You can read a history of the church from its own website here.

Tuesday, February 19, 2008

Sunday, February 17, 2008

Friday, February 15, 2008

Wednesday, February 13, 2008

Brewer Fountain


The first piece of public art on the Common was the Brewer Fountain, donated by Gardner Brewer in 1868. The fountain is a bronze replica of a French original that won a gold medal at the 1855 Paris World’s Fair. The figures represent mythological figures associated with water: Neptune, Amphitrite, Asis, and Galatea.

Sunday, February 10, 2008

Downer


I saw a tree being removed from the Public Garden this week. I don't know whether it was diseased, or damaged in a recent storm, but it was a little shocking to see one of those magnificent trees chopped down.

Sunday, February 3, 2008

Arlington Street Church


This is a view of the Arlington Street Church on Arlington Street, just across the street from the Public Garden.

The present Arlington Street Church-building was constructed between 1859-1861 on newly filled land in Boston's Back Bay by members of the historic Federal Street Church. The church is noted for its Tiffany windows.

Saturday, February 2, 2008