Boston Stone facts for kids
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The Boston Stone is a special stone located in Boston, Massachusetts. It's a small, interesting spot that many tourists like to see. You can find it on Marshall Street, a narrow alley named after Thomas Marshall, who used to run a ferry in the late 1600s.
The stone itself is like a flattened ball, about 2 feet (0.6 meters) wide. One side is hollowed out. It's built into the bottom part of a building in the Blackstone Block Historic District. Below the stone, there's a small stand or base that says "Boston Stone 1737." There isn't much more information there, and the stone doesn't have any official importance.
What is the Boston Stone?
The Boston Stone is a round, flat stone that was once used as a millstone. Millstones are big, heavy stones used to grind things like grain or, in this case, paint pigments. This particular stone was brought to America from England a long time ago, either in 1635 or 1700, by a painter named Tom Childs.
Where can you find it?
You can see the Boston Stone on Marshall Street in Boston. It's part of the foundation of a building. Even though it's not a huge landmark, it's a cool piece of Boston's past that you can easily visit.
Its History
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The Boston Stone was originally used to grind paint. It was brought over from England in the 1600s or early 1700s. In 1836, workers found the stone while digging the foundations for the building that stands there today. They decided to place it right into the brick wall, where it has been ever since.
Fun Facts and Myths
There's a popular story that the Boston Stone was once the exact center of Boston. People believed that in colonial times, surveyors used it as the starting point to measure distances to other towns. This would be similar to the London Stone in England.
However, this story is probably not true. There are no old records that say the Boston Stone was used this way. For example, the milestones (distance markers) from Boston to Springfield, Massachusetts, from 1767, were not based on this stone. It's more likely that the Old State House would have been used as a central measuring point.
Some people think that the idea of the Boston Stone being the "zero point" was actually a clever advertising trick. In the 1800s, an inn called the Marshall House might have made up this story to attract more visitors. Even so, a travel guide from 1921 suggested that the stone was probably put there to help people find nearby shops, just like the London Stone.
No matter its true purpose, the Boston Stone remains a small but interesting part of Boston's long history!
