Anthony Mitchell Sammarco

In 1659, the General Court of Massachusetts Bay Colony banned by law the celebration of Christmas as it was deemed to be a time of seasonal excess with no Biblical authority. Though repealed in 1681, it would not be until 1856 that Christmas Day became a state holiday in Massachusetts. In this book Christmas Traditions in Boston, Anthony Sammarco outlines the celebration (or lack thereof) of Christmas in the first two centuries after the city was settled in 1630. By the mid 19th century a German immigrant named Charles Follen introduced the Christmas tree to Boston, and shortly thereafter Louis Prang introduced his colorful Christmas cards, the first in Boston. During the next century, Boston would see caroling and hand bell ringing on Beacon Hill, a Nativity scene and other traditional New England displays on Boston Common and in the many department stores, as well as the once popular Enchanted Village of Saint Nicholas at Jordan Marsh, New England’s largest store. What could have been better than after a day seeing Santa, the seasonal displays and lights on Boston Common than to enjoy a hot fudge sundae at Bailey’s? Christmas Traditions in Boston revisits the memories of the past and brings together the shared tradition of how Bostonians celebrated the holiday season.

Oliver Wendell Holmes coined the Massachusetts State House as the "Hub of the Universe." In Boston: A Historic Walking Tour, readers are guided on a series of downtown walking tours that radiate out from this Boston landmark. Featuring different excursions that explore Boston's prominent neighborhoods and districts, visitors and natives alike will see how this city has become one of the country's oldest cultural destinations. Boston's growth and development in the 19th and 20th centuries has contributed to it becoming the unofficial "Capital of New England"; its economic and cultural impact on the entire New England region is far reaching. Although Boston is known for its notoriously crooked streets and narrow alleys, it is a mecca for walkers looking to take in historic sites and surround themselves with history. Walk along Tremont, Washington, Beacon, and Summer Streets to explore downtown Boston. Saunter down Beacon Street on Beacon Hill and Boylston Street in the Back Bay to take in the city's most beloved sites.

Learn more about the "Father of the Franchise Industry" in this illuminating history about the Howard Johnson restaurant franchise and the man behind it all. Howard Johnson created an orange-roofed empire of ice cream stands and restau

A few miles south of Boston, along the Neponset River, the small town of Dorchester grew from an industrial center into a thriving and inclusive neighborhood. This suburban community's booming population is supported by a network of railroads, streetcars and transit that has eased transportation in and out of Boston. The neighborhood has had many important residents, including Dr. James Baker, who supplied financial support to a local chocolate business that later became the Baker Chocolate Company, and Lucy Stone, an influential activist for women's rights and abolition. Noted historian Anthony Mitchell Sammarco compiles these and other insightful selections from his column in the Dorchester Community News, chronicling the rich and ever-evolving history of Dorchester.

Regardless of how the name came to be, many agree that Jamaica Plain is one of the loveliest areas of New England. Stories abound as to how Jamaica Plain derived its name; some trace it to the flow of rum shipments to the port of Boston following Oliver Cromwell's seizure of Jamaica in 1660, but whatever the true origin of the name, the area has a rich and colorful history that flows from its rural, pastoral beginnings in the 17th century and into the 21st. Jamaica Plain today is one of Boston's great suburban neighborhoods, but it has not always been connected to the city. Jamaica Plain first became a part of Roxbury, and later West Roxbury, and served as a summer playground for influential Bostonians before becoming part of Boston in 1874. The neighborhood's beauty has been protected by such visionaries as Benjamin Bussey, who bequeathed his estate to Harvard College for what is now the Arnold Arboretum, and Henry A. S. Dearborn, the former mayor of Roxbury who established the Forest Hills Cemetery. Today, the neighborhood is a bustling suburban spot that has preserved its natural beauty and resources.

Once a part of Roxbury, West Roxbury was originally known as Westerly. Located six miles from Roxbury's town center at Meeting House Hill, which was settled by Puritans in 1630, Westerly was composed of farms and large estates. In 1840, Brook Farm, a transcendental community striving to live and commune with nature, brought fame to the hamlet. In 1851, after years of agitation headed by the Honorable Arthur Austin, West Roxbury officially separated from Roxbury and became an independent town. Meanwhile, the Boston and Providence Railroad, with various depots, such as Bellevue, Highland, West Roxbury, and Spring Street, launched a building boom that continued unabated well into the twentieth century. New streets and houses soon fragmented the farms and large estates. West Roxbury chronicles the development of this desirable and well-regarded Boston neighborhood through vintage images from the collection of the West Roxbury Historical Society and modern photographs taken by Charlie Rosenberg.