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lastly it is evident that the strictest Lawes wilbe of little force to suppresse drunkennesse except withall some Course be taken that beere and ale may be kept to that proportion of strength, as may be wholesome for our bodye, and not influencing to drunkenness, it being now the comon practice for everyone to strive to exceede other in the strength of their beere, that they may drawe the more customers to them: and this is one chiefe cause that Innes and Alehouses are so muche frequented, and that there is so excessive wast of Barlye, which might be imployed to the great good of the poore, and good of the whole kingdom.
Manuscript Map of Taverns in Braintree and Weymouth, Mass., Circa 1760

This is a manuscript map drawn by John Adams in 1760 when he was 25 years old. The map features locations of taverns in Braintree and Weymouth, Mass. Adams notes the names of the tavern proprietors, proximity to the taverns, and other facts about Braintree and Weymouth.

Adams was not yet married when he drew this map, and it perhaps shows evidence of what occupied his bachelor years. Besides reading and writing, he frequented many taverns, which was, and still is, a highly social activity, suggesting that he had an affable personality, unlike the stern, awkward character created from the writings of his political enemies.
 
The Object of History Podcast
New Episodes Released Monthly

The latest episode of the Object of History podcast is now live!

In episode 6, "A Petition for Rebecca Nurse" MHS staff look at the documentary record of the Salem Witch Trials. This disturbing tale of early America has fascinated generations and become a familiar story to many. But what was it like to witness this history firsthand? Hear experts take a close look at the story of Rebecca Nurse, a respected woman in her 70s who was accused of witchcraft. Listen to an exploration of Rebecca’s individual experience and the role her community played in both persecuting and defending her through original petition documents and printed trial records held in the MHS collections.

Listen to it now on the MHS website here, or anywhere you regularly listen to podcasts.
Massachusetts Civic Learning Week

Massachusetts Civic Learning Week is a week of programming hosted and organized by the Massachusetts Civic Learning Coalition, which seeks to empower all of us to see ourselves as participants and changemakers in our democracy.

The theme of this year’s Civic Learning Week, occurring 7–11 March 2022, is “Building Communities Through Civics.” Everyone is invited to attend and participate in Civic Learning Week events, including students, teachers, administrators, policymakers, parents, and the general public.

There is a number of ways to participate:
  • Students, educators, and members of the general public can register to attend the week’s events! Click “Sign Up” here to get a notification when all events go live in early February.
  • Students, teachers, and organizations from across Massachusetts can host events. To host an event during Civic Learning Week, complete this event proposal form by 31 January. 
  • We invite elected officials to submit a remote video to be shared with attendees (videos are due 21 February).
  • If you are a corporation, foundation, or individual interested in supporting Civic Learning Week, please see our sponsorship packages.
MHS’s online programs are held on the video conference platform Zoom. Registrants will receive an e-mail with a link to join the program.
The Emergence of the Marriage Market

On Tuesday, 18 January, at 5:15 PM, Lindsay Keiter, Pennsylvania State UniversityAltoona, presents The Emergence of the Marriage Market, with comment by Ellen Hartigan-O’Connor, University of CaliforniaDavis, a History of Women, Gender & Sexuality Seminar.

When did Americans begin using the term “the marriage market,” and what does it tell us about society at the time? This article-in-progress traces the emergence of the concept of marriage as a market subject to supply and demand during the early 19th century. Yet even as they referred to the marriage market, with its impersonal implications, many Americans resisted its complete commercialization. Marriage brokers—professional matchmakers—and matrimonial advertising attracted both clients and controversy. The metaphor of the marriage market reflected the entanglement of the sentimental home created by marriage and the competitive chaos of the expanding antebellum economy.

Exploring American Healthcare through 50 Historic Treasures

On Wednesday, 19 January, at 5:30 PM, Tegan Kehoe, Russell Museum of Medical History and Innovation at MGH, presents Exploring American Healthcare through 50 Historic Treasures.

Exploring American Healthcare through 50 Historic Treasures presents a history of health and medicine in the United States, tracing paradigm shifts such as the introduction of anesthesia, the adoption of germ theory, and advances in public health. The book showcases little-known objects that illustrate our complex relationship with health and highlights objects related to famous moments in medicine, ranging from “vitamin D beer” to the discovery of penicillin. Each artifact illuminates some piece of the social, cultural, and technological influences on how people approach fundamental questions about health. The program will look at a selection of these artifacts, with an emphasis on Massachusetts stories.

On Tuesday, 25 January, at 5:15 PM, Katrin Kleeman, German Maritime Museum–Leibniz Institute for Maritime History, presents Earthquakes in New England, 1600–1800: Extraordinary Natural Events and Timekeeping Practices in Early America, with comment by Lukas Rieppel, Brown University, an Environmental History Seminar.

On Wednesday, 26 January, at 5:30 PM, Seth Bruggeman, Temple University, presents Lost on the Freedom Trail: The National Park Service and Urban Renewal in Postwar Boston, with other experts, TBA.

On Thursday, 27 January, at 5:15 PM, Chad Williams, Brandeis University, presents In the Shadow of World War: Revisiting W. E. B. Du Bois’s Black Reconstruction, with comment by Adriane Lentz-Smith, Duke University, an African American History Seminar.

On Tuesday, 1 February, at 5:15 PM, Katie Moore, University of California, Santa Barbara, and Ann Daly, Mississippi State University, present The American Funding, with comment by Simon Middletown, The College of William & Mary, a Pauline Maier Early American History Seminar.


On Wednesday, 9 February, at 5:30 PM, Cynthia Cowan, Historic Newton; Stacen Goldman, Framingham History Center; Kyera Singleton, Royall House and Slave Quarters; and Barbara Brown, Hidden Brookline, present Challenging Assumptions in Telling Underrepresented History.

On Thursday, 10 February, at 6:00 PM, Sara Martin, current Editor in Chief of the Adams Papers, and Jim Taylor, former Editor in Chief of the Adams Papers, present Film Club: Amistad.

On Thursday, 17 February, at 5:30 PM, William Decker, Oklahoma State University, presents “Twas not long since I left my native shore”: Phillis Wheatley’s Celestial Cartography.

On Tuesday, 22 February, at 5:15 PM, A. Junn Murphy, Brandeis University, presents Back on the Clock: Labor Control in the Cold War Military’s New Workforce, with comment by Lauren Hirshberg, Regis University, a Malgeri Modern American Society & Culture Seminar.

On Wednesday, 23 February, at 5:30 PM, Jan Brogan presents The Combat Zone: Murder, Race, and Boston’s Struggle for Justice.

On Thursday, 24 February, at 5:15 PM, Julie Dobrow, Tufts University; Natalie Dykstra, Hope College; and Megan Marshall, Emerson College, present Talking Headstones: What Biographers Learn from Visiting Their Subjects’ Graves, a New England Biography Seminar.

On Monday, 28 February, at 5:00 PM, Neal Thompson presents The First Kennedys: The Humble Roots of an American Dynasty.
Interested in Viewing Past Programs?
If you missed a program or would like to revisit the material presented, please visit www.masshist.org/video or our YouTube channel. A selection of past programs is just a click away.
Visiting the MHS during COVID-19
Please note that all guests are required to show proof of COVID-19 vaccination to enter the building. Learn more about our COVID-19 protocols.
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