by Perhaps the strongest contender for the most Irish city in America as it is best known, Beantown has a good case for being the most British place.
For the history buffs among us, this probably won’t come as a surprise. Massachusetts, of course, was one of the 13 colonies, and was ruled by Britain for 150 years before America gained independence in 1776. In fact, it was here that the moment widely credited with the Revolution took place. American encouragement.
Exactly 250 years ago this weekend – on a winter’s night in December 1773 – political activists made a plan to rebel against a tea tax passed by the British Parliament, which they believed violated their right to “no taxation without representation “. Boarding three ships loaded with British East India Company tea, the activists managed to dump 340 chests (large 46 tons) of the precious cargo into Boston harbor in protest before the fight took place. With the Boston Tea Party, a warning shot was fired for American independence.
Not surprisingly, tea fell out of favor with Bostonians soon after, and coffee became my pick-up. Even the leader of the American Revolution (and eventual US president), John Adams, switched the brew for the bean at the time, writing to his wife, Abigail: “I drank coffee every evening since, and suffered I like it very well. Tea must be universally abandoned.”
But 150 years is a long time, and Britishness is still woven into the fabric of Boston, making its presence felt – I’m told – in thousands of tiny avenues across the city. Eager to judge for myself, I decided to spend a day looking for them.
A promising Google tour suggested that tea is firmly back in favor in the Massachusetts capital, with dozens of places offering full menus of loose-leaf blends and even afternoon teas. Accordingly, my first stop was Abigail’s Tea Room, to taste the five teas that were thrown overboard on that fateful night. The tea room is part of the Boston Tea Party Ships and Museum, which hosts an immersive experience that guides visitors through the city’s political history, represented in part by some of the event’s most famous historical figures.
It starts you off in a jeering courtroom before taking you aboard a restored tea ship to collect a few tea chests into the harbor and, finally, on to see some artefacts and taste the tea itself.
Elizabeth Macintosh – one of several characters clad in bonnets and coats – pointed to one of the five large copper tea dispensers on display in the bustling tea room. “In 1773, Boston is the biggest tea drinker in the colonies,” she explained. “As a British colony, we want to emulate our British brothers and sisters.”
I suspected this was no longer the case, but it was nice to know I wouldn’t struggle to get a decent cuppa during my visit anyway.
The full tasting, I came out onto the streets of downtown Boston, immediately struck by how familiar they felt; the gridless roads, twisting and bending all over the place with wild abandon. Boston prides itself on its mobility and, like Britain, is rich in urban parks and green spaces – which, during my late autumn visit, were a glorious collage of burnt orange, red and mustard yellow.
As a result, there are several good walking tours available, one of the most popular being the 2.5 mile Freedom Trail, which starts at Boston Common and passes 15 historic sites and landmarks, including the designed King’s Chapel by a Georgian, whose architect, Peter Harrison, was instructed to design a church “equal to any in England”. I’ll let you make up your own mind about that. No need to join a group, just pick up an $8 guidebook at the trailhead and follow the red bricks that lead the way.
If you get thirsty (or homesick) on the way, fear not – there are plenty of boozers with homey touches (wood paneling, leather bar stools and dodgy carpet – all essential) where you can grab a pint, with their including the Elephant & Castle pub, which prides itself on being “British themed”. I made an obligatory stop there and was pleasantly (briefly) deluded into thinking I was 3,000 miles away.
As the evening wore on, I took a cab to the Brighton neighborhood (there’s also Cambridge, Dorchester, Hyde Park and Chelsea) which, like its British name, has independent breweries, restaurants and bars. I settled in one such place – Birds of Paradise, which serves travel-inspired cocktails – and contemplated a successful day’s search. Indeed, from its leafy breweries to its hot beer and winding streets, Boston may not be charter British anymore, but its soul certainly is.
Fundamentals
Robyn Wilson was a guest at Meet Boston. Doubles from £290 per night at Omni Boston Hotel at the Seaport (001 617 476 6664). United Airlines flies from London to Boston for £580 return.
