The Old State House

Built in 1713, the Old State House was the seat of government of the Province of Massachusetts Bay, where the Royal Governors, the Colonial Courts, and the Provincial Assembly met before the Revolution, and where the government of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts continued after independence. In the Council Chamber James Otis argued forcefully and eloquently against the Writs of Assistance in 1761. In Representatives Hall John Hancock and Samuel Adams denounced the right of taxation by Parliament. Though no longer extant, the world's first gallery from which the public could watch their government in action was built as the result of a motion by James Otis and Samuel Adams in 1766. On July 18, 1776, the Declaration of Independence was read for the first time to the citizens of Boston from the eastern balcony.

Cambridge, Massachusetts · United States