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159-703: Franklin Smith was born into a prominent Beacon Hill family in Boston, Massachusetts on October 9, 1826. His father, Benjamin, was the Tax Collector for the Port of Boston , and his great-grandfather, Urian Oakes , was president of Harvard University . Benjamin and Mary Oakes Smith were his mother and father, and he was the younger brother of Mary O. (Loud) and Benjamin G. Smith, who became his partner in Smith Brothers & Company ,

318-552: A 1950s urban renewal project renovated the area. To prevent urban renewal projects of historically significant buildings in Beacon Hill, its residents ensured that the community obtained historic district status: south slope in 1955, Flat of the Hill in 1958, and north slope in 1963. The Beacon Hill Architectural Commission was established in 1955 to monitor renovation and development projects. For instance, in 1963, 70-72 Mount Vernon Street

477-549: A barbarous community and a civilised community can constitute one state. I think we must get rid of slavery, or we must get rid of freedom." Conversely, Brooks was praised by Southern newspapers. The Richmond Enquirer editorialized that Sumner should be caned "every morning" and Southerners sent Brooks hundreds of new canes in endorsement of his assault. Southern lawmakers made rings out of the cane's remains, which they wore on neck chains to show solidarity with Brooks. Historian William Gienapp has concluded that Brooks's "assault

636-502: A cannoneer ramming down cartridges", while Sumner himself said that "you might as well look for a joke in the Book of Revelation ." Following the annexation of Texas as a slave state in December, Sumner took an active role in the anti-slavery movement. In 1847, he denounced the declaration of war against Mexico with such vigor that he was recognized as a leader of the " Conscience " faction of

795-613: A champion of civil rights for blacks. He co-authored the Civil Rights Act of 1875 with John Mercer Langston and introduced the bill in the Senate on May 13, 1870. The bill passed a year after his death, in February 1875, and President Grant signed it into law on March 1. It was the last civil rights legislation for 82 years until the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1957 . The Supreme Court ruled it unconstitutional in 1883 when it decided

954-473: A civilian contractor questioned their integrity and embarrassed them by appearing before Congress and documenting the charges. Instead of eliminating the dishonesty in their subordinates, they targeted the Smith Brothers. Every transaction with the company was examined, and justification was demanded for every error or imperfect item supplied by the company. Despite the scrutiny, Smith was always able to provide

1113-503: A compilation of villas described in Edward Bulwer-Lytton's novel, The Last Days of Pompeii . The structure was 75 feet (23 m) wide and 200 feet (61 m) deep, for a total of 15,000 square feet (1,400 m). It was completed in 1889 and named Pompeia , or House of Pansa and furnished in the style of that era, 79 A.D. Smith commissioned artists and historians to copy the architecture, statues and paintings that would present

1272-535: A controversial and divisive legacy for many years after his death, but in recent decades, his historical reputation has improved in recognition of his early support for racial equality. Sumner began his political activism as a member of various anti-slavery groups, leading to his election to the U.S. Senate in 1851 as a member of the Free Soil Party ; he soon became a founding member of the Republican Party . In

1431-401: A convincing explanation. In January 1864, a Senate committee chaired by John Parker Hale formed to investigate naval contract fraud. The Navy brass despised Hale since he helped convince Congress to ban flogging in 1850 and grog rations in 1862. Hearings lasted almost four months, with the Smith brothers providing key testimony. The committee's report was not released until June 29, but it

1590-613: A fierce defense of the American position in the dispute over the Maine-Canada boundary , circulated by Minister to France Lewis Cass . In 1840, at age 29, Sumner returned to Boston to practice law but devoted more time to lecturing at Harvard Law, editing court reports, and contributing to law journals, especially on historical and biographical themes. Sumner developed friendships with several prominent Bostonians, particularly Henry Wadsworth Longfellow , whose house he visited regularly in

1749-478: A former mafioso. While home to a Paulist chapel, Beacon Hill is currently one of only two neighborhoods in Boston that does not contain a Catholic parish church . Beacon Hill is predominantly residential, known for old colonial brick row houses with "beautiful doors, decorative iron work, brick sidewalks, narrow streets, and gas lamps". Restaurants and antique shops are located on Charles Street. Louisburg Square

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1908-533: A group of cases known as the Civil Rights Cases . When Johnson was impeached , Sumner voted for conviction at his trial. He was only sorry that he had to vote on each article of impeachment, for as he said, he would have rather voted, "Guilty of all, and infinitely more." Throughout March 1867, Secretary William H. Seward and Russian representative Edouard de Stoeckl met in Washington, D.C., and negotiated

2067-452: A hardware business in Boston. Smith was a moral and religious man and served as Sunday-school superintendent at his Baptist church, Tremont Temple , which he also helped renovate after a fire. When Smith was young, his family's wealth permitted him to travel abroad. At age 25, he attended The Great Exhibition in London, where he marveled at the examples of architecture and culture from around

2226-482: A large audience among whom I noticed two or three blacks, or rather mulattos—two-thirds black perhaps—dressed quite à la mode and having the easy, jaunty air of young men of fashion...." They were "well received" by the other students after the lecture. He continued: They were standing in the midst of a knot of young men and their color seemed to be no objection to them. I was glad to see this, though with American impressions, it seemed very strange. It must be then that

2385-692: A legislator. He was largely excluded from work on the Thirteenth Amendment , in part because he did not get along with Illinois Senator Lyman Trumbull , who chaired the Senate Judiciary Committee and did much of the work on it. Sumner introduced an alternative amendment that combined the Thirteenth Amendment with elements of the Fourteenth Amendment . It would have abolished slavery and declared that "all people are equal before

2544-470: A less radical candidate. The impasse was broken after three months and Sumner was elected on a parliamentary technicality by a one-vote majority on April 24, 1851, in part thanks to the support of Senate President Henry Wilson . His election marked a sharp break in Massachusetts politics, as his abolitionist politics contrasted sharply those of his best-known predecessor in the seat, Daniel Webster , one of

2703-671: A like-minded man in Massachusetts Senator George Frisbie Hoar , who presented Smith's petition to Congress on February 12, 1900. It was identified as Senate document number 209 by the 56th Congress, First Session, and 5,000 copies were printed. Unfortunately for Smith, the United States was engaged in the Philippine–American War , and Senator Hoar was one of President William McKinley 's strongest critics. The majority of politicians were so preoccupied with

2862-521: A loyalty requirement the following year; Sumner was strongly supportive. Sumner was a friend of Samuel Gridley Howe and a guiding force for the American Freedmen's Inquiry Commission , started in 1863. He was one of the most prominent advocates for suffrage for blacks, along with free homesteads and free public schools. His uncompromising attitude did not endear him to moderates, and his arrogance and inflexibility often inhibited his effectiveness as

3021-468: A majority of these households included children under 18 present. According to the 2012–2016 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, the largest ancestry groups in ZIP Codes 02108 and 02114 are: The first European settler was William Blaxton , also spelled Blackstone. In 1625 he built a house and orchard on Beacon Hill's south slope, roughly at the location of Beacon and Spruce street. The settlement

3180-559: A maniac may sometimes be dangerous, but the barking of a puppy never did any harm." Sumner's outspoken opposition to slavery made him few friends in the Senate. On May 19 and 20, 1856, during the civil unrest known as " Bleeding Kansas ," Sumner denounced the Kansas–Nebraska Act in his "Crime against Kansas" speech. The long speech argued for Kansas's immediate admission as a free state and denounced " Slave Power "—the political power of

3339-508: A member of the military and was subject to court-martial. Once again, the Massachusetts Congressional delegation talked to Welles, but got nowhere. They appealed to President Abraham Lincoln , who read a tribute to Smith's reputation that Senator Sumner had written and the other congressmen had endorsed, then scanned the testimonial to Smith's business integrity, signed by ninety prominent Boston merchants. Lincoln offered to have

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3498-657: A picture of the lifestyle of a Roman nobleman nearly two thousand years ago. Many of the artifacts and sculptures he purchased in Europe were displayed in the Pompeia. The structure became a popular attraction for visitors, drawing over 60,000 people in the first four years. Smith wanted all schools in the region to visit Pompeia each year. His plan for the Acropolis and National Galleries was refined during his time there. Franklin Smith travelled Europe extensively during his lifetime, studying

3657-618: A pledge of loyalty to our institutions; and where is the peril in such vows? They are peaceful and industrious; how can their citizenship be the occasion of solicitude?" He accused legislators promoting anti-Chinese legislation of betraying the principles of the Declaration of Independence : "Worse than any heathen or pagan abroad are those in our midst who are false to our institutions." Sumner's bill failed, and from 1870 to 1943, and in some cases as late as 1952, Chinese and other Asians were ineligible for naturalized U.S. citizenship. Sumner remained

3816-518: A profound impression. His platform presence was imposing. He stood 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) tall, with a massive frame. His voice was clear and powerful. His gestures were unconventional and individual, but vigorous and impressive. His literary style was florid, with much detail, allusion, and quotation, often from the Bible as well as the Greeks and Romans. Longfellow wrote that he delivered speeches "like

3975-527: A prosperous man, Smith enjoyed traveling throughout Europe, North Africa and the Middle East, studying architecture and the history of past civilizations. During his lifetime, he took more than a dozen trips across the Atlantic, and purchased numerous works of art and artifacts. Smith's in-laws were Quakers , but they were financially able to construct and travel to a winter home near St. Augustine, Florida after

4134-450: A protracted trial by courtmartial, damaging their good name, destroying their peace, breaking up their business, and subjecting them to untold expense—when, at the slightest touch, the whole case vanishes into thin air, leaving behind nothing but the incomprehensible spirit in which it had its origin. Of course, the findings and sentence of the Court ought, without delay, to be set aside. But this

4293-668: A protégé of Joseph Story and an enthusiastic student of jurisprudence . After graduating in 1834, Sumner was admitted to the bar and entered private practice in Boston in partnership with George Stillman Hillard . A visit to Washington decided him against a political career, and he returned to Boston resolved to practice law. He contributed to the quarterly American Jurist and edited Story's court decisions as well as some law texts. From 1836 to 1837, Sumner lectured at Harvard Law School. In 1837, Sumner visited Europe with financial support from benefactors, including Story and Congressman Richard Fletcher . He landed at Le Havre and found

4452-482: A rally in Boston on November 3 in a letter to Anna Alcott: "Eight hundred gentlemen on horseback escorted him and formed a line up Beacon St. through which he rode smiling and bowing, he looked pale but otherwise as usual. The only time Sumner rose along the route was when he passed the Orphan Asylum and saw all the little blue aproned girls waving their hands to him. I thought it was very sweet in him to do that honor to

4611-755: A reminder of the incident, which polarized the nation as the Civil War approached. During the war, Sumner led the Radical Republican faction, which was critical of President Abraham Lincoln for being too moderate toward the South. As chair of the Foreign Relations Committee, Sumner worked to ensure that the United Kingdom and France did not intervene on behalf of the Confederate States . After

4770-608: A treaty for the annexation and sale of the Russian American territory of Alaska to the United States for $ 7,200,000. President Johnson submitted the treaty to Congress for ratification with Sumner's approval, and on April 9, his foreign relations committee approved and sent the treaty to the Senate. In a three-hour speech, Sumner spoke in favor of the treaty on the Senate floor, describing in detail Alaska's imperial history, natural resources, population, and climate. Sumner wanted to block British expansion from Canada, arguing that Alaska

4929-552: A virtual retirement community serving the neighborhood's elderly. The Club of Odd Volumes , a historic organization on Mount Vernon Street, serves as a Bibliophiles club, library, and archive. The Headquarters House , also known as William Hickling Prescott House, is a museum run by the Society of Colonial Dames . The country's oldest legal organization, the Boston Bar Association , is on Beacon Street. Beacon Hill Village

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5088-447: A volunteer advocacy organization focused on improving quality of life in the neighborhood. It was first founded to fight city plans to replace the neighborhood's brick sidewalks. Since then its efforts have been instrumental in preserving Beacon Hill as a historic district, and have expanded to include such initiatives as: working to become the first neighborhood to receive resident parking permits, streamlining trash service, and creating

5247-490: Is "the most prestigious address" in Beacon Hill. Its residents have access to private parking and live in "magnificent Greek Revival townhouses." Nearby is Acorn Street, often mentioned as the "most frequently photographed street in the United States." It is a narrow lane paved with cobblestones that was home to coachmen employed by families in Mt. Vernon and Chestnut Street mansions. The Harrison Gray Otis House on Cambridge Street

5406-466: Is evident it means to do, you will personally review the case. Lincoln agreed and pledged, "If I find that men have been pursuing the Smiths, I will lay my long hand upon them, no matter who they are." He then ordered that the court-martial be conducted in Boston and asked Navy Secretary Welles to send him the trial record at the conclusion for his review. Welles was told to delay execution of the sentence until

5565-676: Is included as well. Beacon Hill has three sections: the south slope, the north slope and the "Flat of the Hill", which is a level neighborhood built on landfill, located west of Charles Street and between Beacon and Cambridge streets. Located in the center of the Shawmut Peninsula , the area originally had three hills, Beacon Hill and two others nearby, Pemberton Hill and Mount Vernon, which were leveled for Beacon Hill's development. The name trimount later morphed into "Tremont", as in Tremont Street. Between 1807 and 1832, Beacon Hill

5724-600: Is located at the African Meeting House , adjacent to the Abiel Smith School . The meeting house is the oldest surviving Black church built by African Americans. The Robert Gould Shaw Memorial and the 54th Massachusetts Regiment Memorial are located at Beacon Street and Park Street, opposite the Massachusetts State House. The Massachusetts State House , located on Beacon Street, is the home of

5883-404: Is located just north of Boston Common . The historic buildings along today's Black Heritage Trail were the homes, businesses, schools and churches of the black community. Charles Street Meeting House was built in 1807, the church had seating that segregated white and black people. The Museum of African American History , New England's largest museum dedicated to African American history,

6042-415: Is often described as arising from domestic workers in the homes of white residents on the south slope of the Hill, property records indicate that the black community on the north slope was already well-established by 1805, before the filling-in of the south slope was completed, and so before that slope of Beacon Hill came to be considered an affluent area. Many blacks in the neighborhood attended church with

6201-458: Is only the beginning of justice. Some positive reparation should be made to citizens who have been so deeply injured. After reflection, the president wrote his decision to Welles, the court-martial board and the Navy: I am unwilling for the sentence to stand and be executed, to any extent, in this case. In the absence of a more adequate motive than the evidence discloses, I am wholly unable to believe in

6360-548: The London Board of Aid to Land Ownership became the primary investors in the Tennessee project and renamed the colony Rugby . Smith thought that the key to growth was to become a resort, where guests would buy land and settle there. Hughes disagreed and refused to spend time or money on tourist endeavors. When Smith realized that his ideas was being ignored, he divested himself of the project in 1880 and took another trip abroad. As

6519-645: The American Civil War , he was a leading American advocate for the abolition of slavery . He chaired the Senate Foreign Relations Committee from 1861 to 1871, until he lost the position following a dispute with President Ulysses S. Grant over the attempted annexation of Santo Domingo . After breaking with Grant, he joined the Liberal Republican Party , spending his final two years in the Senate alienated from his party. Sumner had

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6678-526: The Bill of Rights . The basic constitutional rights of habeas corpus , a jury of peers , and a grand jury hearing before being charged, were not accorded those facing military court-martial. The 1862 Military Contractor Court-Martial act that was the basis for Smith's trial was declared unconstitutional by a federal circuit court in Kentucky in 1866 when considering a case similar to that of Franklin Smith. Finally,

6837-647: The Boston Advertiser in 1877, and the Boston Board of Aid to Land Ownership was formed that year "to divert workers from surplus in manufacturing to Tillage of the Earth—the basis of all industries, and the primary source of all wealth". The board selected a committee to investigate possible locations for a settlement. After learning that the Cincinnati Southern Railroad was constructing a rail line to

6996-504: The Civil War . Following a trip to Florida to visit his wife's family, Smith decided to build his own winter residence there, but wanted his house to stand out, both in design and composition. On his next tour abroad in 1882, Smith traveled through southern Spain and found his inspiration when he toured the 12th-century Moorish Alhambra Palace in Granada, Spain . The remainder of the excursion

7155-658: The Fugitive Slave Act . Though both major party platforms affirmed every provision of the Compromise of 1850 as final, including the Fugitive Slave Act, Sumner called for its repeal. For more than three hours, he denounced it as a violation of the Constitution, an affront to the public conscience, and an offence against divine law . After his speech, a senator from Alabama urged that there be no reply: "The ravings of

7314-611: The Massachusetts General Court abolished school segregation in 1855. In 1851, a coalition of Democratic and Free Soil legislators gained control of the Massachusetts General Court. In exchange for Free Soil support for Democratic governor George Boutwell , the Free Soil Party named Sumner its choice for U.S. Senate. Despite the private agreement, conservative Democrats opposed his candidacy and called for

7473-564: The Massachusetts Historical Commission , the historic districts "appear to have stabilized architectural fabric" of Beacon Hill. Beacon Hill was designated a National Historic Landmark on December 19, 1962. Wealthy Boston families continue to live at the Flat of the Hill and south slope. Inhabitants of the north slope include Suffolk University students and professionals. The Boston African American National Historic Site

7632-869: The Massachusetts House of Representatives from 1806 to 1807 and from 1810 to 1811, and he had a moderately successful legal practice. Throughout Sumner's childhood, his family teetered on the edge of the middle class. Charles Pinckney Sumner hated slavery and told his son that freeing the slaves would "do us no good" unless society treated them equally. He was a close associate of Unitarian leader William Ellery Channing . Expanding on Channing's argument that human beings had infinite potential to improve themselves, Sumner concluded that environment had "an important, if not controlling influence" in shaping people. Thus, if society gave precedence to "knowledge, virtue and religion", then "the most forlorn shall grow into forms of unimagined strength and beauty." Moral law, he believed,

7791-904: The Nichols House Museum . The Nichols House "offers a rare glimpse inside [the] Brahmin life" of Rose Standish Nichols , a landscape artists. Suffolk University and its Law School are adjacent to the Massachusetts State House and the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court . The Suffolk University Law School was founded in 1906. Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) subway stations in Beacon Hill are: MBTA bus , MBTA commuter rail , and ferry services are also available. Beacon Hill has been home to many notable persons, including: Highstyle Federal brick townhouses, two and three stories tall with elliptical porticoes, pilasters and balustrades,

7950-505: The Panic of 1893 and depression that followed forced Smith to delay his plan until the world's economies began to recover in 1898. Smith took every opportunity to talk about his grand scheme wherever he was, and he travelled constantly. He was a charming, enthusiastic speaker, and he made his lectures interesting. He was able to persuade many influential people to endorse his vision, and gained widespread support. Smith insisted that all he needed

8109-686: The Woodward & Lothrop department store chain, financed the construction at 1312 New York Avenue. It was built as an example of the historical and cultural displays that Smith advocated in his "Design and Prospectus". The Halls of the Ancients opened on February 4, 1899, with the entrance based on Great Hypostyle Hall, Karnak . Besides Egypt, the museum contained Greek and Roman sections that included furnishings and works of art that were historically accurate reproductions. The New York Times called it "A novel, artistic and educational institution". Smith found

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8268-532: The cathedral at Rouen striking: "The great lion of the north of France … transcending all that my imagination had pictured." He reached Paris in December, studied French , and visited the Louvre . He mastered French within six months and attended lectures at the Sorbonne on subjects ranging from geology to Greek history to criminal law. In his journal for January 20, 1838, Sumner noted that one lecturer "had quite

8427-515: The 1830s, residential homes were built for wealthy people on Chestnut and Mt. Vernon Streets. Some affluent people moved, beginning in the 1870s, to Back Bay with its "French-inspired boulevards and mansard-roofed houses that were larger, lighter, and airier than the denser Beacon Hill." In the early 19th century, there were "fringe activities" along the Back Bay waterfront, with ropewalks along Beacon and Charles Streets. The south slope "became

8586-421: The 1840s. Longfellow's daughters found his stateliness amusing; he would ceremoniously open doors for the children while saying " In presequas " ("after you") in a sonorous tone. Sumner embarked on a public political career in 1845, when he emerged as one of the most prominent critics of slavery in the city of Boston and the state of Massachusetts, a hotbed of abolitionist sentiment. On July 4, Sumner delivered

8745-490: The 19th century waterfront landmarks, such as the Charles Street Meeting House , are found far from the water due to the filling that has taken place since then. The north slope was the home of African Americans, sailors and Eastern and Southern European immigrants. The area around Belknap Street (now Joy Street) in particular became home to more than 1,000 blacks beginning in the mid-1700s. While this community

8904-476: The 5,411 households in Beacon Hill, 27.3% were family households and 72.7 were non-family households (with 55.7% of those female householders). Of the 1,479 family households 81.6% were married couple families. 36.6% of married couple families were with related children under the age of 18 and 63.4% were with no related children under age 18. Other family types make up 18.4% of Beacon Hill's population, with 90.8% being female householders with no husband present and

9063-576: The Beacon Hill Association was formed in 1922. Into the 1940s there were attempts to replace brick sidewalks, but the projects were abandoned due to community resistance. Banks, restaurants and other service industries moved into the "Flat of the Hill", with a resulting transformation of the neighborhood. Red-light districts operated near Beacon Hill in Scollay Square and the West End until

9222-422: The Beacon Hill area. Chappelle was a popular, well-liked politician and was covered by many of the black newspapers in the United States. Blacks migrated to Roxbury and Boston's South End after the Civil War . In the latter part of the 19th century, Beacon Hill absorbed an influx of Irish , Jewish and other immigrants. Many homes built of brick and wood in the early 19th century were dilapidated by

9381-506: The Boston Independence Day oration, The True Grandeur of Nations . His speech was critical of the move toward war with Mexico and an impassioned appeal for freedom and peace. Sumner considered the conflict a war of aggression but was primarily concerned that captured territories would expand slavery westward. He soon became a sought-after orator for formal occasions throughout Boston. His lofty themes and stately eloquence made

9540-703: The Committee on Foreign Relations in March 1861. As chair, he renewed his efforts for diplomatic recognition of Haiti . Haiti had sought recognition since winning independence in 1804 but faced opposition from Southern senators. In their absence, the United States recognized Haiti in 1862. On November 8, 1861, the Union Navy warship USS  San Jacinto intercepted the British steamer RMS  Trent . Two Confederate diplomats aboard were placed into port custody. In response to

9699-445: The Commonwealth's government. The gold-domed state capitol building was designed by Charles Bulfinch and was completed in 1798. Many of the country's state capitol buildings were modeled after the State House. The Beacon Hill Civic Association has a long history as a community resource for the Beacon Hill neighborhood. Founded in 1922 by neighbors with the goal of preventing home building and other construction, today it continues as

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9858-503: The Grant administration, Sumner fell out of favor with his party. He supported the annexation of Alaska but opposed Grant's proposal to annex Santo Domingo . After leading senators to defeat the Santo Domingo Treaty in 1870, Sumner denounced him in such terms that reconciliation was impossible, and Senate Republicans stripped him of his power. Sumner opposed Grant's 1872 reelection and supported Liberal Republican Horace Greeley . He died in office less than two years later. Charles Sumner

10017-410: The Lincoln administration from embarrassment. On December 25, 1861, at Lincoln's invitation, Sumner addressed the cabinet. He read letters from prominent British political figures, including Richard Cobden , John Bright , William Ewart Gladstone , and the Duke of Argyll as evidence that political sentiment in Britain supported the envoys' return to the British. Lincoln quietly but reluctantly ordered

10176-532: The Massachusetts Whig Party . He declined the Whig nomination for the United States House of Representatives in 1848, instead helping organize the Free Soil Party and becoming chairman of the state party's executive committee, a position he used to advocate for abolition and build a coalition that included anti-slavery Whigs and Democrats. Sumner also took an active role in other social causes. He worked with Horace Mann to improve Massachusetts's system of public education, advocated prison reform , and represented

10335-467: The Meeting House. It became a "hotbed and an important depot on the Underground Railroad ." Blacks and whites were largely united on the subject of abolition . Beacon Hill was one of the staunchest centers of the anti-slavery movement in the Antebellum era . One of the earliest black Republican legislators in the United States was Julius Caesar Chappelle (1852–1904), who served as a legislator in Boston from 1883 to 1886 and whose district included

10494-430: The National Government. Sumner verbally attacked authors of the Act, Stephen A. Douglas of Illinois and Andrew Butler of South Carolina: The senator from South Carolina has read many books of chivalry, and believes himself a chivalrous knight with sentiments of honor and courage. Of course he has chosen a mistress to whom he has made his vows, and who, though ugly to others, is always lovely to him; though polluted in

10653-452: The Radicals passed two Confiscation Acts in 1861 and 1862 that allowed the military to emancipate confiscated slaves whom the Confederate military had impressed into service. On January 1, 1863, Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation , abolishing slavery in all Confederate territory. The Thirteenth Amendment subsequently abolished the practice of chattel slavery. After the withdrawal of Southern senators, Sumner became chair of

10812-401: The Senate chamber and beat him severely on the head, using a thick gutta-percha cane with a gold head. Sumner was knocked down and trapped under the heavy desk, which was bolted to the floor. Blinded by his own blood, he staggered up the aisle and collapsed into unconsciousness. Brooks continued to beat the motionless Sumner until his cane broke, at which point he continued to strike Sumner with

10971-493: The Senate chamber served as a powerful symbol of free speech and resistance to slavery. When Sumner returned to the Senate in 1857, he was unable to last a day. His doctors advised a sea voyage and "a complete separation from the cares and responsibilities that must beset him at home." He sailed for Europe and immediately found relief. During two months in Paris in the spring of 1857, he renewed friendships, especially with Thomas Gold Appleton , dined out frequently, and attended

11130-419: The Senate included Zachariah Chandler and Benjamin Wade . After the fall of Fort Sumter in April 1861, Sumner, Chandler and Wade repeatedly visited President Abraham Lincoln at the White House to discuss slavery and the rebellion. Gilbert Osofsky argues that Sumner saw the war as a "death struggle" between " two mutually contradictory civilizations ," and his solution was "to 'civilize' and 'Americanize'

11289-441: The Senate permanently. Though fellow Republicans advised a less strident tone, he answered: "When crime and criminals are thrust before us, they are to be met by all the energies that God has given us by argument, scorn, sarcasm and denunciation." He delivered his first return speech, "The Barbarism of Slavery," on June 4, 1860. He attacked attempts to depict slavery as a benevolent institution , said it stifled economic development in

11448-427: The Senate, he devoted his efforts to opposing the " Slave Power ," which in 1856 culminated in a vicious beating , almost to the point of death, by Representative Preston Brooks on the Senate floor. Sumner's severe injuries and extended absence from the Senate made him a symbol of the anti-slavery cause. Though he did not return to the Senate until 1859, Massachusetts reelected him in 1857 , leaving his empty desk as

11607-629: The South" by conquest, then forcibly mold it into a society defined in Northern terms, as an idealized version of New England . Throughout the war, Sumner had been the special champion of black Americans, being the most vigorous advocate of emancipation, of enlisting blacks in the Union Army, and of the establishment of the Freedmen's Bureau . The Radicals desired the immediate emancipation of slaves and persistently lobbied for it as wartime policy, but Lincoln

11766-487: The South, and that it left slaveholders reliant on "the bludgeon, the revolver, and the bowie-knife". He addressed an anticipated objection on the part of one of his colleagues: "Say, sir, in your madness, that you own the sun, the stars, the moon; but do not say that you own a man, endowed with a soul that shall live immortal, when sun and moon and stars have passed away." Even allies found his language too strong, one calling it "harsh, vindictive, and slightly brutal". He spent

11925-566: The Spring of 1890, noted architect James Renwick Jr. was in Florida working on the bell tower design for the Cathedral Basilica of St. Augustine . One evening, he and his wife listened to Smith deliver a speech to garner support for his Design and Prospectus for a National Gallery of History of Art at Washington . Renwick endorsed the idea and offered to provide drawings, plans and illustrations for

12084-585: The Union government's primary objective was to end it. Sumner argued that Lincoln could command the Union Army to emancipate slaves under color of martial law . In the conservative press, Sumner's speech was denounced as incendiary . Conservative Massachusetts newspapers editorialized that he was mentally ill and a "candidate for the insane asylum," but the Radicals fully endorsed Sumner's speech, and he continued to advance his argument publicly. As an intermediate measure,

12243-400: The Union won the war and Lincoln was assassinated, Sumner and Thaddeus Stevens led congressional efforts to grant equal civil and voting rights to freedmen and to block ex-Confederates from power so they would not reverse the gains derived from the Union's victory in the war. President Andrew Johnson 's persistent opposition to these efforts played a role in his impeachment in 1868. During

12402-462: The area, they chose the Cumberland Plateau in Tennessee. Smith, who was president of the board, travelled to Tennessee in 1878 and selected a site, engaged a surveyor to plot the town, and an architect to design a hotel there. The location, which Smith named Plateau City , was the most beautiful he found. It overlooked river gorges, contained broad hills and had sweeping mountain vistas, but it

12561-529: The backslope of Beacon Hill. Beacon Street was established in 1708 from a cow path to the Boston Common . John Singleton Copley owned land on the south slope for pasture for his cows and farmland. In 1787 Charles Bulfinch designed the Massachusetts State House . Its construction was completed in 1795, replacing the Old State House in the center of Boston. The Mount Vernon Proprietors group

12720-494: The banks foreclosed on his properties in St. Augustine, Washington, D.C., and Saratoga Springs. Smith died in anonymity and poverty five years later, disowned by his family and residing with his older sister Mary in Boston. He was buried in the Smith family plot of Mount Auburn Cemetery at Cambridge, Massachusetts . The Halls of the Ancients eventually was demolished and the site became a parking garage. During Prohibition , Villa Zorayda

12879-413: The bill to be argued in the federal courts. The bill failed, but Sumner revived it in the next Congress, and on his deathbed begged visitors to see that it did not fail. Sumner repeatedly tried to remove the word "white" from naturalization laws. He introduced bills to that effect in 1868 and 1869, but neither came to a vote. On July 2, 1870, Sumner moved to amend a pending bill in a way that would strike

13038-563: The captives' release to British custody and apologized. After the Trent affair, Sumner's reputation improved among conservative Northerners. As one of the Radical Republican leaders in the post-war Senate, Sumner fought to provide equal civil and voting rights for freedmen on the grounds that "consent of the governed" was a basic principle of American republicanism . Sumner's radical legal theory of Reconstruction proposed that nothing beyond

13197-565: The capture, the British government dispatched 8,000 troops to the Canada–United States border and sought to strengthen the Royal Navy . Secretary of State William Seward believed the diplomats were contraband of war, but Sumner argued the men did not qualify as such because they were unarmed. He favored their release along with an apology from the U.S. government towards Britain. In the Senate, Sumner suppressed open debate in order to save

13356-408: The case dismissed. Senator Sumner replied, Mr. President, we trust you will do nothing of the sort. To do that would leave a stigma on a good man's name. Smith Brothers want it never to be said that this charge was fixed up through influence. They challenge the fight but want protection against a conspiracy and a court chosen by their enemies. We only come to ask you that when the court convicts, as it

13515-489: The center of these events: The first was control of the military. The secretary of the Navy is a civilian, but he was manipulated by his assistant secretary, a career officer, into persecuting an innocent man, thereby allowing the military to follow its own agenda. Lincoln's actions shifted the power back to civilian control. Second was the attempt by Congress to suspend the constitutional rights of individual citizens in defiance of

13674-680: The city. He wrote to the chairman of the House Naval Affairs Committee in 1863 and testified before a Senate committee, resulting in the passage of a law simplifying honest bidding and making manipulation difficult. Smith identified the names of clerks who accepted bribes and created an Analysis of Certain Contracts for the United States Secretary of the Navy . The report showed how specific contractors were able to consistently bid low. The naval bureau chiefs were angered that

13833-422: The community. The Vilna Shul was established in 1898, and the African Meeting House was converted into a synagogue . Better transportation service to the suburbs and other cities led a boom to the city's economy at the beginning of the 20th century. New buildings, "compatible with the surroundings", were built and older buildings renovated. To ensure that there were controls on new development and demolition,

13992-567: The confines of the Constitution, read in light of the Declaration of Independence, restricted Congress's treatment of the rebelling states. Though not as radical as Thaddeus Stevens , who considered the Confederate states "conquered provinces," Sumner argued that by declaring secession , the state governments had committed felo de se (state suicide) and could be regulated as territories that should be prepared for statehood, under conditions set by

14151-437: The contractors should attempt a fraud which at the most could profit them only one or two hundred, or even one thousand dollars, is to my mind beyond the power of rational belief. That they did not, in such a case, strike for greater gains proves that they did not, with guilty or fraudulent intent, strike at all. The judgment and sentence are disapproved and declared null, and the accused ordered to be discharged. Lincoln never got

14310-829: The control of Congress. By federal law, Native Alaskan tribes, including the Inuit , the Aleut , and the Athabascan , were entitled only to land that they inhabited. According to treaty, native Alaskan tribes were excluded from U.S. citizenship, but citizenship was available to Russian residents. Creoles , persons of Russian and Indian descent, were considered Russian. Sumner said the new territory should be called by its Aleutian name, Alaska , meaning "great land." He advocated for free public education and equal protection laws for U.S. citizens in Alaska. Personal achievements in 1867 included his election as

14469-430: The curtain, and then with a few dozen more cheers the crowd dispersed. I was so excited I pitched about like a mad woman, shouted, waved, hung onto fences, rushed thro crowds, and swarmed about in a state of rapterous insanity till it was all over and then I went home hoarse and worn out." More than a million copies of Sumner's "Crime against Kansas" speech were distributed. Ralph Waldo Emerson remarked, "I do not see how

14628-558: The defendants, who were sentenced to two years in prison and fined $ 25,000. The judgment and sentence were approved by the Secretary of the Navy; all that remained was a presidential sanction. Charles Sumner again met with President Lincoln on the Smiths' behalf. The president asked Sumner to review the lengthy report from the Navy Secretary which identified the key elements in the court-martial, then render an opinion. Senator Sumner studied

14787-519: The development of Florida. His Great Floridian plaque is located at the Casa Monica Hotel in St. Augustine. Beacon Hill, Boston Beacon Hill is a historic neighborhood in Boston , Massachusetts , United States. It is also the location of the Massachusetts State House . The term "Beacon Hill" is used locally as a metonym to refer to the state government or the legislature itself, much like Washington, D.C.'s Capitol Hill does at

14946-744: The distance between free blacks and whites among us is derived from education, and does not exist in the nature of things. Sumner decided that Americans' predisposition to see blacks as inferior was a learned viewpoint, and he determined to become an abolitionist upon returning to America. Over the next three years, Sumner became fluent in Spanish , German , and Italian , and met with many leading European statesmen. In 1838, he visited Britain, where Lord Brougham declared that he "had never met with any man of Sumner's age of such extensive legal knowledge and natural legal intellect". Though he often praised British society as more refined than American, Sumner published

15105-550: The document overnight and wrote an opinion which summarized the treatment of Franklin Smith: It is hard that citizens enjoying a good name, who had the misfortune to come into business relations with the Government, should be exposed to such a spirit; that they should be dragged from their homes, and hurried to a military prison; that, though civilians, they should be treated as military offenders; that they should be compelled to undergo

15264-460: The end of the Civil War and were razed for new housing. Brick apartment buildings, or tenements , were built. Yellow brick townhouses were constructed, generally with arched windows on the first floor and a low ceiling on the top, fourth floor. Residential homes were also converted to boarding houses. The north slope neighborhood transitioned as blacks moved out of the neighborhood and immigrants, such as Eastern European Jews, made their homes in

15423-595: The event. The function was spectacularly successful, and the YMCA of Boston was the first chapter of the organization in the United States. Smith was elected their first president in 1855. Smith joined other abolitionists including Anson Burlingame to organize the Republican Party in Massachusetts. He supported the 1860 election of Abraham Lincoln, and attended the inauguration on March 4, 1861, with his wife on their honeymoon. Laura Bevan had been born in Baltimore, Maryland and

15582-427: The existence of criminal or fraudulent intent on the part of one of such well-established good character as is the accused. If the evidence went as far toward establishing a guilty profit of one or two hundred thousand dollars, as it does of one or two hundred dollars, the case would, on the question of guilt, bear a far different aspect. That on this contract, involving from one million to twelve hundred thousand dollars,

15741-417: The exterior, all composed of poured concrete and coquina. The flagpole in the center of the building serves a dual purpose: it is also a lightning rod. The hotel contained 138 guest rooms, including 14 suites. Several suites are located in the towers, with up to 3 bedrooms, and occupy 2 to 4 floors. The hotel opened on January 1, 1888, but Smith had financial troubles and was forced to sell it to Flagler after

15900-440: The fatherless and motherless children. A little child was carried out to give him a great bouquet, which he took and kissed the baby bearer. The streets were lined with wreaths, flags, and loving people to welcome the good man back....and tho I was only a 'love lorn' governess I waved my cotton handkerchief like a meek banner to my hero with honorable wounds on his head and love of little children in his heart. Hurra!! I could not hear

16059-401: The federal level. Federal-style rowhouses , narrow gaslit streets and brick sidewalks run through the neighborhood, which is generally regarded as one of the more desirable and expensive in Boston. As of the 2010 U.S. Census, the population of Boston's Beacon Hill neighborhood was 9,023. Like many similarly named areas, the neighborhood is named for the location of a former beacon atop

16218-407: The foremost supporters of the Compromise of 1850 and its Fugitive Slave Act . For the first few sessions, Sumner did not promote any of his controversial causes. On August 26, 1852, he delivered his maiden speech , despite strenuous efforts to dissuade him. This oratorical effort incorporated a popular abolitionist motto, "Freedom National; Slavery Sectional," as its title. In it, Sumner attacked

16377-516: The free states with their tentacular grip and gradually siphoning off the breath of democracy-loving citizens." In addition to head trauma , Sumner suffered "psychic wounds," now understood to be post-traumatic stress disorder . When he spent months convalescing, his political enemies ridiculed him and accused him of cowardice for not resuming his duties. The Massachusetts General Court reelected him in November 1856, believing that his vacant chair in

16536-415: The great architectural achievements and art from bygone eras. For one hundred years, the United States had directed its efforts toward industrial and commercial development while neglecting cultural development. Because America had no equivalent to the great national museums abroad, Smith began to form a plan for Washington, D.C., that would include the best work from eight major civilizations in history. In

16695-569: The highest point in central Boston. The beacon was used to warn the residents of an invasion. Beacon Hill is bounded by Storrow Drive , and Cambridge, Bowdoin , Park and Beacon Streets . It is about 1/6 of a square mile in size, and situated along the riverfront of the Charles River Esplanade to the west, just north of Boston Common and the Boston Public Garden . The block bound by Beacon , Tremont and Park Streets

16854-406: The law." During Reconstruction, he often attacked civil rights legislation as inadequate and fought for legislation to give land to freed slaves and to mandate education for all, regardless of race, in the South. He viewed segregation and slavery as two sides of the same coin. He introduced a civil rights bill in 1872 to mandate equal accommodation in all public places and required suits brought under

17013-430: The march of the mind, Yankee shrewdness, and New England exclusiveness." Literary salons and publishing houses were founded in the 19th century. "Great thinkers" lived in the neighborhood, including Daniel Webster , Henry Thoreau and Wendell Phillips . Development began in the early 19th century. Single family homes often had stores on the first floor for retailers, carpenters and shoemakers. Today, many of

17172-512: The masons on the mixing and pouring techniques he used on Zorayda. Henry Flagler sold Smith the land on which Smith built the Casa Monica Hotel in 1887. The Casa Monica is an impressive five-story structure, 400 feet (120 m) wide with towers on each end rising 100 feet (30 m), topped with tiled roofs. There are architectural features including turrets , balconies, parapets , ornate railings, cornices , arches, and battlements on

17331-585: The most ambitious of them free standing and Bulfinch-designed, were built along the crest of Beacon Hill and on Cambridge Street. Other imposing brick rowhouses were constructed around the Common. Substantial but less pretentious middle-class housing, three story, brick sidehall Federal rowhouses with side and fanlit entrances, filled in the lower slopes of Beacon Hill and the South End along Washington Street while modest sidehall brick houses, three stories tall, were built in

17490-402: The national government. Sumner emerged as an idealist and a champion for civil rights through this turbulent and controversial period. He joined fellow Republicans in overriding President Andrew Johnson 's vetoes, though his most radical ideas were not implemented. Sumner favored partial male suffrage with a literacy requirement for all Southerners in order to vote. Instead, Congress imposed

17649-452: The next morning; they were questioned and released. The business was forced to close because the company's books and papers had been taken. When family members went to post bail, they were told that bail had not been set. Next, no one claimed authority to accept bail for a military charge. When bail was finally set, it was an unbelievable half a million dollars. However, Smith was so highly regarded by his fellow businessmen that nearly $ 1 million

17808-520: The opera. His contacts there included Alexis de Tocqueville , poet Alphonse de Lamartine , former French Prime Minister François Guizot , Ivan Turgenev , and Harriet Beecher Stowe . Sumner toured several countries, including Prussia and Scotland , before returning to Washington, where he spent only a few days in the Senate in December. Both then and during several later attempts to return to work, he found himself exhausted just listening to Senate business. He sailed once more for Europe on May 22, 1858,

17967-437: The opportunity to "lay my long hand upon them" who pursued the Smiths. A few short weeks after the president vacated the sentence, he was killed by an assassin's bullet . After he was freed by Lincoln, Smith spent some time restoring his business. When the city mourned the death of the president, Smith was asked to lead the gathering at Tremont Temple. He then decided to go abroad and left for Europe. There were three issues at

18126-569: The plaintiffs in Roberts v. City of Boston , which challenged the legality of racial segregation in public schools. Arguing before the Massachusetts Supreme Court , Sumner noted that schools for blacks were physically inferior and that segregation bred harmful psychological and sociological effects—arguments made in Brown v. Board of Education over a century later. Sumner lost the case, but

18285-521: The plan for the neighborhood. Four years later the hills were leveled, Mount Vernon Street was laid, and mansions were built along it. One of the first homes was the Harrison Gray Otis House on Cambridge Street. Construction of homes began in earnest at the turn of the century, such as: freestanding mansions , symmetrical pairs of houses, and row houses . Between 1803 and 1805, the first row houses were built for Stephen Higginson . In

18444-495: The population of Boston's Beacon Hill neighborhood is 9,023. This reflects a slight (0.3% or 29 individuals) decrease from the 2000 Census. The racial/ethnic make-up of the neighborhood's population is as follows: 86.8% of the population is white, 2% black or African American, 4.1% Hispanic or Latino, 0.1% American Indian or Alaska Native, 5.3% Asian, 0.4% some other race/ethnicity, and 1.3% two or more races/ethnicities. According to 2007–2011 American Community Survey estimates, of

18603-481: The president gave his approval. The trial began September 15, 1864 and lasted four months, with the Navy questioning fewer than a dozen transactions among 12,554 items totalling $ 1.2 million in government purchases from the Smith Brothers. Only one article—a delivery of Revely Tin metal was supplied instead of the Banca variety—shorted the Navy, by $ 100–200. Predictably, the trial ended in judgment against

18762-464: The president upheld the rights of an individual against the nearly unlimited resources and power of a federal government agency, which Lincoln called, "a fight between a department and a citizen, and the citizen has no fair show". Lincoln was protecting an honest man from retribution by those in power. The Long Depression of 1873–79 resulted in the unemployment of thousands of former industrial workers. Smith authored four articles which were published in

18921-617: The project. Smith gratefully accepted and the firm of 'Renwick, Aspinwall & Russell' spent six months completing their contribution. In 1891, Smith paid to print his Design and Prospectus... and distributed it widely at major cities in the northeast. Smith delivered a series of lectures, beginning at the Boston Art Club , then the Maryland Institute College of Art at Baltimore, Philadelphia's Drexel Institute , and finally New York University on December 17, 1892. However,

19080-449: The remaining piece. Several other senators attempted to help Sumner, but were blocked by Laurence Keitt , who brandished a pistol and shouted, "Let them be!" The episode became a symbol of polarization in the antebellum period; Sumner became a martyr in the North and Brooks a hero in the South. Thousands attended rallies in support of Sumner throughout the North. Louisa May Alcott described

19239-626: The results, they began to construct the Villa Zorayda cast in courses ten inches (254 mm) tall. After 48 hours, the concrete had hardened enough to pour the next course. The process was repeated until the desired height was reached, and the resulting structure was nearly monolithic . The material grew harder with age; after one month, it was as hard as building stone. The outside of the Villa Zorayda appears as three separate sections. To maintain structural integrity, there are railroad rails within

19398-555: The seat of Boston wealth and power." It was carefully planned for people who left densely populated areas, like the North End. The residents of opulent homes, called the Boston Brahmins , were described by Oliver Wendell Holmes as a "harmless, inoffensive, untitled aristocracy". They had "houses by Charles Bulfinch , their monopoly on Beacon Street, their ancestral portraits and Chinese porcelains, humanitarianism, Unitarian faith in

19557-755: The second anniversary of Brooks's attack. In Paris, prominent physician Charles-Édouard Brown-Séquard diagnosed Sumner's condition as spinal cord damage that he could treat by burning the skin along the spinal cord. Sumner chose to refuse anaesthesia, which was thought to reduce the effectiveness of the procedure. Observers both at the time and since doubted Brown-Séquard's efforts were of value. After spending weeks recovering from these treatments, Sumner resumed his touring, this time as far east as Dresden and Prague and south to Italy twice. In France he visited Brittany and Normandy, as well as Montpellier. He wrote his brother: "If anyone cares to know how I am doing, you can say better and better." In 1859, Sumner returned to

19716-498: The seed of St. Augustine's and Florida's future in Flagler's mind. Flagler returned to St. Augustine in 1885 and made Smith an offer. If Smith could raise $ 50,000, Flagler would invest $ 150,000 and they would build a hotel together. Perhaps fortunately for Smith, he couldn't come up with the funds, so Flagler began construction of the 540-room Ponce de León Hotel by himself, but spent several times his original estimate. Smith helped train

19875-463: The sight of the world, is chaste in his sight—I mean the harlot, slavery. For her his tongue is always profuse in words. Let her be impeached in character, or any proposition made to shut her out from the extension of her wantonness, and no extravagance of manner or hardihood of assertion is then too great for this senator. Two days later, on the afternoon of May 22, Representative Preston Brooks , Butler's first cousin once removed, confronted Sumner in

20034-470: The slave owners. Their motivation, he alleged, was to spread slavery even to free territories: Not in any common lust for power did this uncommon tragedy have its origin. It is the rape of a virgin Territory, compelling it to the hateful embrace of slavery; and it may be clearly traced to a depraved desire for a new Slave State, hideous offspring of such a crime, in the hope of adding to the power of slavery in

20193-454: The speeches at the State House so I tore down Hancock St. and got a place opposite his house. I saw him go in, and soon after the cheers of the horsemen and crowd brought him smiling to the window, he only bowed, but when the leader of the cavelcade cried out 'Three cheers for the mother of Charles Sumner!' he stepped back and soon appeared leading an old lady who nodded, waved her hand, put down

20352-530: The summer rallying the anti-slavery forces for the election of 1860 and opposing talk of compromise. After the Civil War began, Sumner was among the Radical Republicans who advocated immediate abolition of slavery and the destruction of the Southern planter class. Although like-minded on slavery, the Radicals were loosely organized and disagreed on issues such as the tariff and currency. Other Radicals in

20511-642: The walls that extend the entire width of the erection. The Zorayda was not a copy of the Alhambra; it was an amalgamation of Moorish style. Moorish Revival architecture became the style of choice in St. Augustine. Across the country, building construction utilizing poured concrete became all the rage and replaced more costly brick in many applications. In 1883, Henry Morrison Flagler and his new, young wife traveled to St. Augustine for their honeymoon and were impressed with Villa Zorayda. Flagler offered to buy it for his bride, but Smith would not sell. However, he planted

20670-411: The war that they paid scant attention to an issue of culture. When Hoar died in 1904, Smith's plan died with him. With no lawmaker to shepherd the legislation, it never made it out of committee. Laura Smith separated from her husband during the 1890s. In the 1900 census, Franklin Smith's marital status was listed as "widowed", but Laura Smith did not die until 1915. The year 1906 ended Smith's dreams when

20829-591: The war's primary objective. He believed that military necessity would eventually force Lincoln's hand and that emancipation would give the Union higher moral standing, which would keep Britain from entering the Civil War on the Confederacy's side. In October 1861, at the Massachusetts Republican Convention in Worcester, Sumner openly expressed his belief that slavery was the war's sole cause and that

20988-492: The whites but did not have a vote in church affairs and sat in segregated seating. A Baptist congregation, built the African Meeting House in 1806 and by 1840 there were five black churches. The African Meeting House on Joy Street was a community center for members of the black elite . Frederick Douglass spoke there about abolition, and William Lloyd Garrison formed the New England Anti-Slavery Society at

21147-480: The winter season ended for $ 325,000. Smith built a shopping arcade across from the hotels where the hotel guests could spend money. After selling the Casa Monica, Smith left St. Augustine and moved to Saratoga Springs, New York . He wanted to create something educational to add culture to the town instead of gambling and horse racing for which it was known. Beginning in 1888, Smith built a full-scale reconstruction of

21306-488: The word "white" wherever in all Congressional acts pertaining to naturalization of immigrants. On July 4, 1870, he said: "Senators undertake to disturb us … by reminding us of the possibility of large numbers swarming from China; but the answer to all this is very obvious and very simple. If the Chinese come here, they will come for citizenship or merely for labor. If they come for citizenship, then in this desire do they give

21465-586: The working class neighborhoods of the North End , the north slope of Beacon Hill and the West End . 42°21′30″N 71°03′58″W  /  42.3583°N 71.0661°W  / 42.3583; -71.0661 Charles Sumner Charles Sumner (January 6, 1811 – March 11, 1874) was an American lawyer, politician, and statesman who represented Massachusetts in the United States Senate from 1851 until his death in 1874. Before and during

21624-507: The world. Upon his return home, he was asked to raise funds for a new organization, the Young Men's Christian Association . With the memory of his trip still fresh, he planned a world bazaar, which was staged at the Tremont Temple. Facades of famous buildings around the world were constructed and staffed by well-known local residents who dressed in authentic costumes and sold items imported for

21783-511: Was $ 10 million and 70 acres (280,000 m) of land. He lobbied both the House and the Senate, and made certain every member had a copy of his Design and Prospectus . He kept a file of 225 newspaper articles from 51 cities in 25 states that endorsed his plan. Another file held letters of support from politicians, educators, businessmen, scholars, museums and architects. Smith designed a museum in Washington, D.C., and Samuel Walter Woodward, founder of

21942-474: Was a speakeasy with casino gambling, but today it is a museum. Pompeia was partially destroyed by a fire in 1926, became a Shriners Hall, and today is occupied by an advertising agency. The Casa Monica Hotel was purchased in 1997, renovated to its original grandeur, and re-opened in 1999. In 2000, Franklin Smith was designated a Great Floridian by the Florida Department of State for his contributions in

22101-541: Was a "preformal arrangement". In 1630 Boston was settled by the Massachusetts Bay Company . The southwestern slope was used by the city for military drills and livestock grazing. In 1634 a signal beacon was established on the top of the hill. Sailors and British soldiers visited the north slope of Beacon Hill during the 17th and 18th centuries. As a result, it became an "undesirable" area for Boston residents. " Fringe activities " occurred on "Mount Whoredom",

22260-562: Was also able to provide higher education for his children; the young Charles attended Boston Latin School, where he befriended Robert Charles Winthrop , James Freeman Clarke , Samuel Francis Smith , and Wendell Phillips . In 1830, he graduated from Harvard College , where he lived in Hollis Hall and was a member of the Porcellian Club . He then attended Harvard Law School , where he became

22419-468: Was as important for governments as it was for individuals, and legal institutions that inhibited personal progress—like slavery or segregation—were evil. The family's fortunes improved in 1825, when Charles Pinckney Sumner became Sheriff of Suffolk County ; he held the position until his death in 1838. The family attended Trinity Church , but after 1825, they occupied a pew in King's Chapel . Sumner's father

22578-487: Was born on Irving Street in Boston on January 6, 1811. His father, Charles Pinckney Sumner , was a Harvard -educated lawyer, abolitionist , and early proponent of racial integration of schools, who shocked 19th-century Boston by opposing anti- miscegenation laws. His mother, Relief Jacob, worked as a seamstress before marrying Charles. Both of Sumner's parents were born in poverty and were described as exceedingly formal and undemonstrative. His father served as Clerk of

22737-554: Was built in 1796. Charles Bulfinch designed this house, and two additional houses, for the businessman and politician who was instrumental in Beacon Hill's development and Boston becoming the state capital. The Otis House also houses the headquarters of Historic New England , previously known as Society for the Preservation of New England Antiquities. Other notable houses are the Francis Parkman House and an 1804 townhouse, now

22896-502: Was finally released on July 1, two weeks after his arrest and two days after the Hale report was submitted to Congress. At the time, he still had not been charged with a specific crime, just "fraud upon the United States" and "wilful neglect of duty as a contractor" with the Navy. However, his bond was lowered to $ 20,000. Smith expected to be tried in United States federal courts . Instead, he

23055-455: Was formed to develop the trimount area, The name trimount later morphed into "Tremont", as in Tremont Street. when by 1780 the city's neighborhoods could no longer meet the needs of the growing number of residents. Eighteen and a half or 19 acres of grassland west of the State House was purchased in 1795, most of it from John Singleton Copley. The Beacon Hill district's development began when Charles Bulfinch, an architect and planner, laid out

23214-508: Was geographically and financially strategic, especially for the Pacific Coast States. He said Alaska would increase America's borders, spread republican institutions, and represent an act of friendship with Russia. The treaty won its needed two-thirds majority by one vote. The 1867 treaty neither formally recognized, categorised, nor compensated any native Alaskan Eskimos or Indians, referring to them only as "uncivilized tribes" under

23373-418: Was obvious from testimony that it would confirm Smith's accusations and dismiss the Navy's allegations against the Smith brothers. On June 17, 1864, two weeks after the conclusion of the Hale hearings and two weeks before the report was to be made public, both the Smith brothers were arrested. The timing was not an accident; having the principal witnesses in jail would tend to discredit the Senate report when it

23532-463: Was of critical importance in transforming the struggling Republican party into a major political force." Theological and legal scholar William R. Long characterized the speech as "a most rebarbative and vituperative speech on the Senate floor", which "flows with Latin quotations and references to English and Roman history." In his eyes, the speech was "a gauntlet thrown down, a challenge to the 'Slave Power' to admit once and for all that it were encircling

23691-506: Was ordered to report to a military general court-martial in Philadelphia, 266 miles (428 km) distant. During the Civil War, such a surprising number of dishonest contractors had taken advantage of the Army and Navy's need for war material that a legal provision was enacted by Congress on July 17, 1862, which stated that any civilian who supplied material under contract to the military became

23850-427: Was pledged in less than two days. Even then, Smith was denied counsel and visitors. The Massachusetts Congressional delegation, including Charles Sumner , Henry Wilson , Henry L. Dawes , George S. Boutwell , William B. Washburn , Thomas D. Eliot , John Denison Baldwin and John B. Alley went to the office of Navy Secretary Welles and offered to guarantee Smith's court appearance personally, but to no avail. Smith

24009-458: Was reduced from 138 feet in elevation to 80 feet. The shoreline and bodies of water such as the Mill Pond had a "massive filling", increasing Boston's land mass by 150%. Charles Street was one of the new roads created from the project. Before the hill was reduced substantially, Beacon Hill was located just behind the current site of Massachusetts State House . According to the 2010 U.S. Census,

24168-471: Was released. Early in the morning, a detail of marines grabbed Franklin and dragged him to a waiting boat, where he was transported across the harbor to Georges Island and Fort Warren . They had no warrant, only a telegraphed order from Gideon Welles , Secretary of the Navy. The marines broke down the door of Smith Brothers & Company, seizing records and correspondence, then did the same at his residence. Company clerks were arrested when they arrived for work

24327-499: Was resistant, since the slave states Delaware , Maryland , Kentucky , and Missouri would be encouraged to join the Confederacy . Lincoln instead adopted a plan for gradual emancipation and compensation to slavers, but consulted Sumner frequently. Despite their disagreements, Lincoln called Sumner "my idea of a bishop" and an embodiment of the American people's conscience. In May 1861, Sumner counseled Lincoln to make emancipation

24486-601: Was seven long miles from the railroad. By this time, the depression was ending, and unemployment was falling. A few Bostonians were reconsidering their investment in the venture, so Smith found additional investors through Thomas Hughes , the English social reformer. Hughes wanted to establish a utopian settlement for younger sons of English gentry which was classless, because class conventions in England prevented those born into high society from becoming tradesmen or farmers. In 1879,

24645-401: Was several years younger than he. They had three children who lived to adulthood: George Stuart, born in 1863; Lillian, born in 1865; and Nina , born in 1877. Smith Brothers did considerable trade with the military. Whenever Franklin observed dishonesty, he felt compelled to report it to authorities, then wrote an account of each offense, had it printed, and distributed the pamphlets throughout

24804-532: Was spent searching Spain, Egypt and Morocco for decorations and furniture. On Lake Geneva in Switzerland, Smith observed the construction of a Château which used sand from the lake bottom to make concrete; thus he solved his question of building material. In December 1883, Smith engaged a Boston mason to come to Florida to help build a special structure. They experimented making concrete blocks that used crushed coquina along with Portland cement. Satisfied with

24963-576: Was the first formal Elder Village in the United States. Religious organizations include the Vilna Shul , an Orthodox Jewish synagogue, and the Unitarian Universalist Association headquarters. Church of the Advent is a Victorian Gothic Church, faced in brick with 8 massive carillon bells and a 172-foot spire. The Park Street Church , nicknamed "Brimstone Corner" in the 19th century,

25122-530: Was to be demolished for the construction of an apartment building. A compromise was made to maintain the building and its exterior and build new apartments inside. In 1955, state legislation Chapter 616 created the Historic Beacon Hill District. It was the first such district in Massachusetts, created to protect historic sites and manage urban renewal. Supporting these objectives is the local non-profit Beacon Hill Civic Association. According to

25281-618: Was used to store gunpowder during the War of 1812 . Samuel Francis Smith first sang his song America the Beautiful at this church in 1831. Two years earlier William Lloyd Garrison spoke to the congregation about abolishing slavery. One of the few outposts of the small Protestant group the Swedenborgian Church is on Bowdoin Street, and was embroiled in controversy in 2013 over alleged extortion by

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