Quincy Adams Shaw
Quincy Adams Shaw was a Brahmin who was born in West Boston. After youthful travels, he became a major donor of artwork to the MFA, a successful businessperson, and a notable philanthropist.
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Era: West Boston(~1780-1880)
Black Community on Beacon Hill, Brahmins on the flat
Charles Bulfinch
Charles Bulfinch is regarded as the first American-born architect. He rose to prominence designing public buildings, including the Boston State House and US Capitol Building, and was a West Boston native whose designs still dominate the historic portions of the West End today.
Population Over Time in the West End
A report on the population of the West End from the late colonial period through the modern day.
Harrison Gray Otis and Sally Foster Otis
Harrison & Sally Otis Harrison Grey Otis was a major political and business figure in Boston during the Federalist Period. He is best known as a supporter of Charles Bulfinch, as Boston’s third mayor, and as a leader of the Hartford Convention. His wife, Sally, was a skilled socialite and hostess, who provided significant support for…
The Many Founders of Mass General Hospital
Massachusetts General Hospital was built in the early nineteenth century on four acres of land in the old West End called Prince’s Pasture. Many doctors and prominent citizens of Boston can be counted among its founders.
The West End Woman Suffrage League
The West End Woman Suffrage League connected African-American leaders in the old West End to the larger movement for women’s suffrage in Boston, the rest of New England, and the country as a whole.
The Williams Sisters
The Williams Sisters occupied the Otis House in the mid 19th century, operating the grand Bulfinch Mansion as a boarding house.
David Walker
David Walker, an African-American abolitionist who lived on the north slope of Beacon Hill, published a prominent book of the anti-slavery movement after traveling to many parts of the United States.