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One of America’s great walking cities, Boston is best explored by following the 2.5-mile self-guided Freedom Trail that unfolds through its historic neighbourhoods. Laid out in 1958, the trail connects 16 important sites, extending all the way across Boston Harbor to Charlestown.

The sign-posted path is a line of red paint or red brick (or both) that runs down the middle of the street. It begins at Boston Common, the nation’s oldest park (1640), and runs past Colonial and Revolutionary War-era landmarks such as churches, graveyards or ‘burying grounds’, monuments, and houses of government, as well as the USS Constitution, better known as Old Ironsides, the oldest commissioned U.S. Navy warship (1797).

The sign-posted path is a line of red paint or red brick (or both) that runs down the middle of the street. It begins at Boston Common, the nation’s oldest park (1640), and runs past Colonial and Revolutionary War-era landmarks such as churches, graveyards or ‘burying grounds’, monuments, and houses of government, as well as the USS Constitution, better known as Old Ironsides, the oldest commissioned U.S. Navy warship (1797).

The Paul Revere House, constructed of wood around 1680 and purchased by the legendary silversmith (of ‘Midnight Ride’ fame) in 1770, is the oldest dwelling in downtown Boston. Revere’s church is on the Freedom Trail, too. Still an active congregation, the ‘one if by land, two if by sea’ Old North Church has stood in the North End since 1723 and makes a fascinating stop. Another famous house of worship is the Old South Meeting House, where disgruntled Bostonians gathered on a cold night in December 1773 and wound up throwing the so-called Boston Tea Party.