Boston has been a favorite backdrop for novels, films and television series, but some of the best stories about the city are true ones. Historian Ted Clarke explores these stories both the familiar and the obscure that have earned Boston such epithets as 'the epicenter of American crime fiction', 'the cradle of liberty' and 'the ice cream capital of the world'. The fifteen-foot tidal wave of molasses that roared down Commercial Street in 1919 is one of the more famous legends. Lesser known, but equally stunning, is the case of Albert Tirrell, who in 1845 murdered his mistress in a Boston...

Venture back to the Boston of the 1800s, when Back Bay was just a wide expanse of water to the west of the Shawmut Peninsula and merchants peddled their wares to sailors along the docks. Witness the beginning of the American Industrial Revolution, learn how a series of cultural movements made Boston the focal point of abolitionism in America, with leaders like William Lloyd Garrison, and see the golden age of the arts ushered in with notables Longfellow, Holmes, Copley, Sargent and Isabella Stewart Gardner. Travel with local historian Ted Clarke down the cobbled streets of Boston to discover...

In its 400 years of recorded history, the Charles River has run from Hopkinton to Boston just as marathoners do every April. In that time it has served as the route of settlement for places like Charlestown, Cambridge, Watertown, and Waltham. This book shows the Charles' historic role as a major source of waterpower, transportation, and recreation for the 23 towns and cities along its route. The story of the Charles includes many notable American figures including John Smith, Frederick Law Olmsted, and the inventors of the Stanley Steamer automobile. There are even accounts of the river's...

Take an expertly guided tour of Boston's historic landmarks and epic past. Follow the history of the Boston Marathon and the architectural gems that grace the Copley Square/Back Bay area where the race ends. Take a deep dive into the subway dig. Learn how fabled landscape architect Frederick Law Olmsted figured out how to put a salt marsh inside the city to prevent flooding, paving the way for today's green ribbon of parks. Interwoven with anecdotes about landmarks such as the Boston Common, the Boston Red Sox Fenway Park, and the Esplanade are observations about the character of a city that...