One if by land, two if by sea was the phrase coined by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow in his famous poem about the American revolutionaries. It described the signal Paul Revere was to give to indicate the means by which the British were coming. One lantern hanging in the Old North Church meant they were coming over land; and two lanterns hanging in the church’s tower meant they were coming over the water.

Even though I have come to Boston perhaps a dozen times, it has been 22 years since I have come as a tourist. I invited former chorister Vreni Griffith to come along with me to the Boston Early Music Festival and since it is her first trip ever to Boston, we decided to play tourist and booked a trolley tour.

Those of you who know us know we like visiting churches, so of course we had to stop at the historic Old North Church. What I find fascinating are the box pews which wealthy families would purchase as a symbol of status. The guide told us these boxes would be decorated with fine furnishings and tapestries, and the wealthiest families would buy boxes closest to the altar.

 

Of course I had to take a picture of the organ which I found out was built by Dr. Josiah Leavitt.

 

Here is what Wikipedia had to offer:

Dr. Josiah Leavitt (1744–1804) was an early Massachusetts physician and inventor. Possessed of an early love for mechanical movements and for music, Dr. Leavitt eventually gave up his medical practice and moved to Boston, where he became one of the earliest manufacturers of pipe organs in the United States.