The Old State House, a photo from Massachusetts, Northeast

Photographer's Note

The Old State House is an historic government building located at the intersection of Washington and State Streets in Boston, Massachusetts, USA. Built in 1713, it is the oldest surviving public building in Boston, and the seat of the state's legislature until 1798. It is now a history museum operated by the Bostonian Society, a nonprofit organization whose primary focus is the museum. It is one of many historic landmarks that can be visited along the city's Freedom Trail.

Today's brick Old State House was built in 1712–13, possibly designed by Robert Twelves. the previous building, the wooden Town House of 1657, had burned in the fire of 1711. One notable feature of the building was the pair of seven-foot tall wooden figures depicting a lion and a unicorn; The Lion and the Unicorn are symbols of the British monarchy.

The building housed a Merchant's Exchange on the first floor and warehouses in the basement. On the second floor, the east side contained the Council Chamber of the Royal Governor while the west end of the second floor contained chambers for the Courts of Suffolk County and the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court. The central portion contained the chambers for the elected Massachusetts Assembly. This chamber is notable for including public galleries, the first known example of such a feature being included in a chamber for elected officials in the English-speaking world.

In 1761, James Otis argued against the Writs of Assistance in the Royal Council Chamber. Though he lost the case, Otis influenced public opinion in a way that contributed to the American Revolution; John Adams later wrote of that speech, "Then and there... the child independence was born."

On July 18, 1776, the Declaration of Independence was proclaimed from the east side balcony to jubilant crowds by Col. Thomas Crafts (one of the Sons of Liberty). At one o'clock Col. Crafts rose in the Council Chamber and read it to the members. Then, fellow patriot Sheriff William Greenleaf attempted to read it from the balcony, but he could only muster a whisper. Col. Crafts then stood next to the sheriff and read it from the balcony in a stentorian tone. For most people, it was a festive occasion, as about two-thirds of Boston residents supported the revolution. The lion and the unicorn on top of the building were removed and burned in a bonfire in King street.

After the American Revolution, the building served as the seat of the Massachusetts state government before its move to the present Massachusetts State House (shown in a previous posting) in 1798.

The original shot was made using Agfachrome slide film in September 1985 Apologies for any technical shortcomings and lack of sharpness as a result of aging and the transfer to digital.

papagolf21, tedesse, COSTANTINO, COSTANTINO, ikeharel, jlbrthnn, Graal, pierrefonds, Sonata11, Noel_Byrne has marked this note useful

Critiques | Translate

papagolf21 (76515) 2013-02-03 0:38

Bonjour, cher Stephen,
J'aime voir cette composition datant de 1985 qui n'a rien perdu de son charme.
L'église semble bien esseulée à proximité de ces immeubles de grande hauteur.
Très bonne numérisation.
Amitiés.
Philippe

tedesse (22116) 2013-02-03 0:43

Hello! today's neighbor to the TE.
Excellent POV and the prospect of showing the beauty of this historic building. Nice colors and light. Well done scan.
Have a nice Sunday
Tadeusz

carlo62 (12550) 2013-02-03 0:51

Buongiorno Stephen
questa architettura sembra soffocare immersa nei palazzi che la circondano.
Un'altra foto storica riproposta in bello stile.
Buona domenica
Carlo

COSTANTINO (42744) 2013-02-03 0:58

Hello
simple capture with symmetrical lines
the chosen point of view is the correct
and shows the details of those buildings
in the best way,nice pov
regards
have a nice Sunday
Costantino

lousat (57610) 2013-02-03 1:33

Hi Steph,une prise de vue tres bien etudiee' pour creer ce contrast parmi les differents styles des architechtures,la vieille maison d'etat semble tres tres petite face a geant en arrier plan..ehehe...parfaite qualite' comme d'habitude.Mes compliments et bon Dimanche,Luciano

dkmurphys (36759) 2013-02-03 1:50

Bonjour Stephen,
A fine combination of different styles of architecture. Well taken, I also like the pleasant mood of the street.
Have a fine Sunday.

Daniel

ikeharel (37280) 2013-02-03 2:58

Good morning Stephen,
Old picture scanned well.
I like how the white tower placed against the modern sky-scraper in good contrast. alo, the horses statues on the corners adorned the famous building in town.
Have a nice sunday afternoon.
Ike

JFS (32107) 2013-02-03 3:22

Excellent composition, it is very very appealing, i like the mixture of architectures so typical in Boston. good work Stephen! Thanks!
Cheers,
Juan

jlbrthnn (79773) 2013-02-03 3:54

Bonjour Stephen,
La beauté de cette bâtisse ancienne est mise en valeur par l'austérité des constructions modernes. Le cadrage est habile. La qualité est très bonne. La présence des promeneurs est agréable. Bravo.
Bon dimanche
Amicalement
Joël

npecanhuk (53889) 2013-02-03 4:07

Hi Stephen!
Beautiful building!
Attractive architecture picture!
I really like the chosen pov, vertical format and composition!
TFS - congrats,
Cheers,
Neyvan

Fis2 (73084) 2013-02-03 5:57

Witaj Stephen!
Interesting building, beautiful tower.
I like vertical frame and delcate colours.
Sharpness...
Have a nice afternoon
Krzysztof

Nicou (97637) 2013-02-03 6:04

Hello

quel contraste de construction une merveille l'ancien au milieu du moderne quelle maison et image avec le drapeau au vent fantastique captage et image.
Bravo et amitié
Nicou

Sergiom (39184) 2013-02-03 6:37

Bonjour Stephen,

Tu es présentement dans une des plus belles parties de Boston, là ou le vieux rencontre le neuf dans une belle harmonie. Les passants sont par contre un peu flous.

Amicalement

Serge

ACL1978 (5773) 2013-02-03 7:15

Amazing that so little has changed from this spot in the past 30 years, Stephen - the same buildings surround the Old State House now as they did then, and this view could just as easily have been taken yesterday. The choice of vertical format here works well, emphasizing the surroundings as well as the gorgeous old building, one of my favorites in the city (and one that I've posted shots of recently as well - like here). Thanks!

Andrew

saxo042 (31794) 2013-02-03 7:17

Hi Stephen,
A very interesting building! I wonder what the builders would think if they could see this house today, surrounded by all these skyscrapers. It must have been very impressive as new, now it looks quite dwarfed.
Kind regards
Gunnar

Graal (88852) 2013-02-03 10:18

Hi Stephen,
nice photo from your archive. Interesting old architecture of State House in Boston. Amazing compare old and new in BG. Well scan and photowork.
Have a nice evening.
Aleksander

Silvio1953 (98093) 2013-02-03 11:07

Ciao Stephen, lovely composition with great contrast between new and old building, splendid light and wonderful natural colors, very well done, my friend, ciao Silvio

pierrefonds (48335) 2013-02-03 13:53

Hi Stephen,

The highrise buildings are framing well the smaller one. The 3/4 point of view is showing a double perspective of the architecture of the old sate building. It is clear and sharp. Have a nice day.

Pierre

Sonata11 (28289) 2013-02-03 21:05

Hi Stephen,
wonderful composityion of State House building. Wonderfully executed and great presentation. I really love it and I like your POV and DOF as well. TFS.
All the best,
Barbara

wolf38 (28166) 2013-02-04 8:45

Hi Stephen. This photo lives on the contrast betwee the little old building and the tower behind it. Yes, that times are changing. Nice that these old buildings have survived the time.
Rgds, Wolfgang.

Noel_Byrne (7329) 2013-02-04 9:36

hi Stephen,
Wondeful background on the building, and it looks superb among the newer towers of glass and steel, and the older high rise buildings directly behind it. It is a stand out building, notably its beautiful colour. Red brick seems to have a real charm. The look like interesting sculptures on the roof too.

I think I placed this building in a game of Sim City many years ago, it certainly looks familiar! Great angle to show the depth and length.
All the best
Noel

fabbs99 (5407) 2013-02-04 10:54

Hi Stephen

Lovelysight .great shot of the old state building.-

Cheers
Farhat

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