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Revolutionary Spaces

**Revolutionary Spaces ** connects people to the history and continuing practice of democracy through the intertwined stories of two of the nation’s most iconic sites—Boston’s Old South Meeting House and Old State House. We foster a free and open exchange of ideas, explore history, create gathering places, and preserve and steward historic buildings.

https://www.bostonhistory.org

The Great Molasses Flood Revisited: Immigrants in an Industrial Accident

Thu, Mar 14, 2019

The Great Molasses Flood of Boston is revisited in Part two of this series on the event that shaped Boston's North End. Speakers Stephen Puleo, Marylinn Johnson, Jim Vrabel, and moderator Peter Drummey, discuss the fallout of the event and its lasting effects on the Italian community in the North End of Boston at the time. Image Source: [Lecture Page](https://www.masshist.org/calendar/event?event=2768 "Lecture Page")

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The Great Molasses Flood: Misremembered Molasses

Thu, Jan 31, 2019

The Great Molasses Flood of 1919, when remembered, is often interpreted in a dismissive, comical manner. How does this case compare with other incidences of historical events that are interpreted or "curated" at the expense of accuracy and respect for human experience? How can we bring complexity back to events that have long been relegated to the realm of local folklore? Stephen Puleo, Allison Lange, Gavin Kleespies, and moderator Rev. Stephen T. Ayres discuss the question of misunderstood history by looking at the Great Molasses Flood, the fight for women's suffrage and Leif Erickson. Image: Public Domain

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The Great Molasses Flood Revisited: Labor and the Molasses Flood

Thu, Feb 28, 2019

One hundred years ago, a North End community was devastated by the rupture of a molasses tank that caused damage to the neighborhood and claimed twenty-one lives. Debate over the fallout of the flood remain in the folklore of Boston to this day. Questions on the matter pertaining to the role of big business taking responsibility for the flood damage and how reactions were handled by all involved still resonate. Stephen Puleo, author of the book Dark Tide, and a panel with first-hand knowledge of labor issues then and now, discuss these lingering questions and relate them to what's happening in Boston's service industry now. Image: Old South Meeting House

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Benjamin Franklin, The Writer

Fri, Jan 11, 2019

Scientist, inventor, diplomat, statesman, philanthropist - Benjamin Franklin’s long list of contributions to American history demonstrates the brilliance and public spirit that made him an enduring legend. Franklin also made his mark as a writer of poems and essays, even as a teenage printer-in-training, when he lived on Milk Street and attended church in the 1669 wooden meeting house on this site. Franklin scholar Robert Martello helps us peek over the shoulder of this literary founding father, born January 6, 1706 and baptized at Old South Meeting House. Experience the political controversies, pen names, wisdom, and humor that shaped not only Franklin’s career, but the identity of the young republic. Part of the Series Bibliophile Birthdays: Celebrating the Authors of Old South Meeting House Image: [Wikicommons](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Benjamin_Franklin#/media/File:Benjamin_Franklin_1767.jpg "Wikicommons")

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A Visit with Louisa May Alcott

Thu, Nov 29, 2018

Enjoy this living history experience to mark the 186th birthday of author Louisa May Alcott. Jan Turnquist, performer and director of Orchard House (the Alcott family's historic home in Concord, MA), brings to life Alcott's life in stories - from her unconventional upbringing in poverty, to the family love that inspired her to write the American classic _Little Women_. As an added feature, Jan shares stories from her own experience working as a research consultant and an extra on the forthcoming (2019) [Columbia Pictures version of Little Women](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt3281548/ "IMDB Little Women 2019"), starring Saoirse Ronan, Emma Watson, Florence Pugh, Eliza Scanlen, Timothée Chalamet, Laura Dern, Bob Odenkirk, Chris Cooper, and Meryl Streep. This event has been made possible with funding from the Lowell Institute.

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Frederick Douglass Prophet of Freedom

Mon, Oct 15, 2018

In this remarkable new biography of great American orator and abolitionist Frederick Douglass, historian David Blight has drawn on new information from both a private collection and recently discovered issues of Douglass newspapers. The first major biography of Douglass in a quarter century tells the fascinating story of Douglass's two marriages, his complex extended family, and his fierce support of the Republican party and black civil and political rights. An eloquent man and a thinker steeped in Biblical story and theology, Douglass became the most famed and widely traveled American orator of his time. [Old South Meeting House](https://osmhoct15-18.brownpapertickets.com/ "Old South Meeting House")

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Boston: then (1618) and now (2018)

Mon, Sep 10, 2018

It’s a coastal town with a South End, a Fens, a Boston College, and even a place called Cheers – as you might have guessed, it’s called Boston…but it’s 3,000 miles away from the one in Massachusetts! The Partnership of Historic Bostons was formed to recognize the unique relationship between Boston and its English namesake city. Join visiting dignitaries from Boston, England, for a panel discussion about our “parent” town and its challenges through the years. We’ll begin 400 years ago with the Great Migration of 1618-1640 and continue through to the intricacies of the upcoming Brexit. Image: From speaker's presentation

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100 Years Before Revolution: 17th-Century Resistance in MA Bay

Wed, Jun 20, 2018

In 1662 the newly restored king of England, Charles II, demanded that the Massachusetts Bay colony alter their laws to align with imperial priorities. Two years later, four royal commissioners arrived to enforce these demands. What followed was a season of extraordinary political activism, as colonial men and women mobilized to protect their liberties and local institutions. These Puritan activists believed that liberties were gifts from God, and relinquishing these freedoms amounted to shunning His gifts. Drawing from petitions, sermons, and letters of the day, historian Adrian Chastain Weimer will share the largely untold story of 17th-century New Englanders who fasted, prayed, and spoke out against the threat of arbitrary rule.

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Activating Historic Sites in Dorchester

Thu, May 31, 2018

Historic Boston Inc.'s Kathy Kottaridis talks about the ongoing efforts to green and revitalize Columbia Road in Dorchester, and the city as a whole. Then entrepreneur and local history activist Noah Hicks—a Dorchester native—shares his story of bringing new life to the 1912 Upham’s Corner Comfort Station, transforming it into the [Sip & Spoke Bike Kitchen](http://sipandspoke.com/ ""). The stucco and tile “mission style” building, adjacent to the historic Dorchester North Burying Ground, was built over a century ago to support Boston’s expanding streetcar system, and has been unused since 1977. Today, HBI is repurposing the comfort station to help preserve and tell the story of Dorchester’s urbanization and transportation growth in the early 20th century. This building will soon house Sip & Spoke, a neighborhood business and gathering place featuring bicycle repair services and cappuccinos! Hear how the rehabilitation of this historic building promises to contribute to an ongoing urban renaissance. Photo: [The Boston Calendar](https://www.thebostoncalendar.com/events/activating-historic-sites-in-dorchester-sip-spoke-bike-kitchen-and-more "The Boston Calendar")

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Music At The Meeting House: In Mo Yang

Fri, Apr 6, 2018

New England Conservatory Artist Diploma student, In Mo Yang, talks about the theme of Occupation. Yang describes how the pieces he chose to perform connect to not only the immigrant experience but also to his own country's story of being occupied. This is one in a 4-part series at Old South Meeting Hous presented as part of New England Conservatory's Community Performances & Partnerships Program, featuring performers from the school's prestigious Artist Diploma and Graduate Ensemble Training programs. This concert is part of the theme exploring historic and contemporary ideas of "Occupation" as Old South Meeting House marks the 250th anniversary of Boston's military occupation of 1768 Image: [Pexel]( https://www.pexels.com/photo/brown-violin-697672/ "Pexel")

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