The African Meeting House

Tucked away in a corner of Beacon Hill lies the African Meeting House, along with the Museum of African American History. In honor of Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, I ventured out to visit both. In truth, the museum was much smaller than I imagined it to be, but I was struck by the loveliness of the meeting house, which was originally built in 1806. A recent, $9.5-million-dollar project has restored the meeting house to its 1855 appearance and I found it both warm and inviting. 

The meeting house was actually home to a number of different activities. First, it served as a church (to which it bears the title of the oldest black church edifice still standing in the country today). Secondly, the space was used for private educational classes. But most importantly, it was the site of anti-slavery meetings and discussions. It was here that the most famous of abolitionists conducted much of their business, abolitionists like William Lloyd Garrison and Frederick Douglass. Before today, I had no idea that the north slope area of Beacon Hill, where the meeting house is located, was home to the all-free black community of Boston. 

The African Meeting House is just one stop of many along the Black Heritage Trail. 

Other landmarks include:

-Robert Gold Shaw and 54th Regiment Memorial

-George Middleton House

-The Phillips School

-John J. Smith House

-Charles Street Meeting House

-John Coburn House

If you're exploring the Freedom Trail, consider visiting the stops along the Black Heritage Trail as well and most especially this beautiful, newly restored African Meeting House.