Old South Meeting House Lectures

Boston, MA

The Colorful Politician, James Michael Curley
William Bulger
January 20, 2010
00:41:58
William Bulger, who served as president of both the Massachusetts Senate and the University of Massachusetts, author of James Michael Curley: a Short Biography, explains why the "rascal" politician James Michael Curley was such and inspiration to the generation that followed him.
Stimulating Beverages: Tea, Coffee, and Chocolate in Early America
Amanda Lange
January 7, 2010
00:42:39
Amanda Lange, curator at Historic Deerfield, explains how tea, coffee, and chocolate--originally prescribed as cures for ailments ranging from headaches and depressions--became counted among the necessities of daily life.
Belinda Rathbone: Tea with Miss Rose
Belinda Rathbone
December 17, 2009
00:35:31
Belinda Rathbone, co-author of Tea with Miss Rose, talks about the life and times of Rose Nichols, the Bostonian spinster who gathered a regular crowd at her townhouse on Beacon Hill in the 1950s to discuss art, politics, and world affairs over a cup of Hu-Kwa.
Teapot in a Tempest: The Boston Tea Party of 1773 (Part 2)
Benjamin Carp
December 10, 2009
00:52:37
The Boston Tea Party lives on in history and memory in a variety of ways. The term "Boston Tea Party" doesn't appear for 50 years after the event. No one spoke openly about who had boarded the tea ships until the 1820s and 1830s.
Teapot in a Tempest: The Boston Tea Party of 1773 (Part 1)
Benjamin Carp
December 3, 2009
00:47:32
The Boston Tea Party was about more than taxes, and it was part of a movement that was larger than Boston.
Diary From Great Brewster Island: Girls Night Out in the 1890s
Stephanie Schorow
November 19, 2009
00:36:50
Author Stephanie Schorow explores the lives of four remarkable women who, on a hot July day in 1891, set off for 10 days of "roughing it" on Great Brewster Island and kept a diary of their summer adventure on their "enchanted isle." Now in the collection of the Schlesinger Library at Harvard Univers
Audio-only
Atlantic Pirates in the Golden Age
Marcus Rediker
June 25, 2004
00:48:42
Marcus Rediker discusses his book, Villains of All Nations: Atlantic Pirates in the Golden Age, an unprecedented social and cultural history of pirates and their democratic, egalitarian and multiethnic society.
American Protest Literature
Zoe Trodd
November 15, 2006
01:28:26
Author Zoe Trodd discusses how her book celebrates an American literature that holds the nation to its highest ideals, castigating it when it falls short and pointing the way to a better collective future. Adoyo Owuor reads the Emancipation Proclamation, Timothy Patrick McCarthy reads Eugene V.
Poland Spring and Victorian Summer Hotel Culture
David L. Richards
January 24, 2008
David L. Richards chronicles the rise of Victorian summer hotel culture and one of the most enduring brands of mineral water, the eponymous Poland Spring.
Audio-only
Jazz Age: From New Orleans to Chicago
Eric Jackson
January 29, 2004
00:52:04
Eric Jackson, who has been heard nightly on WGBH 89.7 FM for more than 20 years, discusses the rise of this beloved and uniquely American music form in the wild decade of the 1920's. Jackson, host of WGBH's Eric in the Evening, has been called the dean of Boston jazz radio.
Not So Sweet: Baker Chocolate Factory
Anthony M. Sammarco
March 20, 2003
00:41:01
Author and historian Anthony M. Sammarco tells the fascinating and not always sweet tale of the Boston chocolate mill's roots, which date back to the 1700s. When one thinks of chocolate, the name "Baker's Chocolate" comes to mind, with its trademark chocolate woman.
Masquerade: Deborah Sampson, Continental Soldier
Alfred F. Young
September 29, 2004
01:42:55
Historian Alfred Young, author of Masquerade, and Pulitzer Prize-winning historian Laurel Thatcher Ulrich examine Americans' public memory of Deborah Sampson and other Revolutionary-era women.

Since it was built in 1729, the Old South Meeting House has been a gathering place for debates, discussion, revolution and celebration. Today, this nonprofit museum and National Historic Landmark continues its tradition of free speech and assembly through a full spectrum of thought provoking programs for all ages. Located in the heart of downtown Boston, the Old South Meeting House is an important resource for more than 80,000 children, parents, teachers, visitors and citizens each year. Through museum exhibits, educational programs and collaborations, the Old South Meeting House stands as a living symbol of our country's quest for freedom and justice.
Old South Meeting House