This cache is part of the Historic Boston GeoTour, a series of twelve caches that will take you through the city’s 400 years of history. One of the twelve is a bonus cache which will require you to also complete the Freedom Trail Adventure Labs. Completing the GeoTour will earn you 57 smileys, a Historic Boston GeoTour geocoin, and a Historic Boston digital souvenir.
Often referred to as "the home of free speech" and the "Cradle of Liberty," Faneuil Hall hosted America's first Town Meeting. The Hall's vital role in revolutionary politics had not been part of its original plans, but it became home to an intricate collection of events that shaped the nation's history.
Built as a center of commerce in 1741, Faneuil Hall is where the Sons of Liberty proclaimed their dissent against Royal oppression. Faneuil Hall has served as an open forum meeting hall and marketplace for more than 270 years and has continued to provide a stage for debate on the most consequential issues of the day. It was at Faneuil Hall in 1764 that Americans first protested against the Sugar Act and the Stamp Act, setting the doctrine that would come to be known as "no taxation without representation." Gatherings to protest the Townshend Acts, the Redcoat occupation, and the Tea Act would follow. The most famous weathervane in Boston is Faneuil Hall’s golden grasshopper created by acclaimed craftsman Shem Drowne, whose weathervane also tops the Old North Church. Tradition has it that the weathervane was used during the War of 1812 to spot spies. Anyone who did not know the answer to the question "What is on top of Faneuil Hall?" in those days invited suspicion. Frequent naturaliztion ceremonies are held in the Great Hall at Faneuil Hall to swear in between 300 to 500 new citizens as they take the Oath of Allegiance. Quincy Center and Faneuil Hall Marketplace are located adjacent to historic Faneuil Hall and offers popular shopping and dining destinatations in restored 19th-century buildings.
While the first floor of Faneuil Hall has served as a market and the second floor served as the government hall, the top floor served as an armory for the town's protection. Boston had several militia companies, and many began storing their equipment in the attic of Faneuil Hall in the 1740s. When the hall was expanded in 1806, offices and a large assembly room on the top floor were specifically designed to permit the militia companies to continue to organize, meet, and drill. Of these companies which trained and met in Faneuil Hall for generations, the Ancient and Honorable Artillery Company is the oldest and the only unit who still calls the hall home. Today, the Ancients mantain an armory and museum on the top floor.
Interesting Tidbits:
The bell was repaired in 2007 by spraying the frozen clapper with WD-40 over the course of a week and attaching a rope. Prior to this repair, the last known ringing of the bell with its clapper was at the end of World War II, in 1945, though it had since been rung several times by striking with a mallet.
One Friday in early August 1890, one of the first black Republican legislators of Boston, Julius Caesar Chappelle, made a speech "At the Cradle of Liberty" in support of the Federal Elections bill that would help give Black people the right to vote. Chappelle was a Boston legislator from 1883–1886. The Faneuil Hall event was covered by the media in the United States, and the speech by Chappelle appeared in an August 9, 1890, article, "At the Cradle of Liberty, Enthusiastic Endorsement of the Elections Bill, Faneuil Hall again Filled with Liberty Loving Bostonians to Urge a Free Ballot and Fare Count..." on the front page of The New York Age newspaper on Saturday, August 9, 1890.
More recently this space has been used for prominent events separately by Sen. Edward M. Kennedy, John Kerry, Mitt Romney and Barack Obama. Boston Mayor Thomas Menino was laid in state at Faneuil Hall following his death on October 30, 2014.
To Claim this find:
Post with your log a photo of yourself showing a "thumbs up" with Faneuil Hall in the background. Showing your face is encouraged but not required. If you would rather not show your face, you may show just your thumbs up. Logs that do not include a photo showing a "thumbs up" with Faneuil Hall will be removed without warning. Please do NOT send me the photo in a message, it needs to be posted with your log.
The Historic Boston GeoTour
Virtual Rewards 3.0 - 2022-2023
This Virtual Cache is part of a limited release of Virtuals created between March 1, 2022 and March 1, 2023. Only 4,000 cache owners were given the opportunity to hide a Virtual Cache. Learn more about Virtual Rewards 3.0 on the Geocaching Blog.