Boston is an old city with a lot of culture and history. While we may not be the oldest city in the United States or even the world, many things were established for the first time right here! Bostonian tour guides are always eager to tell you all about the city’s history and how it’s a “city of firsts.” Although some guides may be a little overzealous and make outrageous claims about the things that were invented in Boston.
So if you’re unsure about whether or not your tour guide was telling the truth, here is a list of “firsts” from the city of Boston:
- 1634: Boston Common becomes the first public park in America
- 1635: Boston Latin School is established as the first public secondary school. It is still operating.
- 1672: The first U.S. mail route is opened between Boston and New York.
- 1780: The first State Constitution is created.
- 1829: The first school for the blind is established as Perkins Institute.
- 1837: Samuel Morse invents the electric telegraph based on Morse Code, a simple pattern of dots and dashes.
- 1848: The Boston Public Library becomes the first publicly supported free municipal library in the world.
- 1896: Fannie Farmer publishes “The Boston Cooking-School Cook Book” – the first cookbook in America. Her cookbook provides scientific explanations of the chemical processes that occur in food during cooking and also helps to standardize the system of measurements.
- 1897: The Boston subway opens as the first underground metro in North America. Today it is affectionately known as the “T” and is run by the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority.
- 1897: The first Boston Marathon is run.
For more fun facts about the “firsts” established here in Boston, check out the full list at City of Boston.
source: City of Boston
