Old State House

Homestalgia Archive

Community memory · 1713–today · Aug 7, 2026

Verified

Built in 1713, this is the oldest surviving public building in Boston. British troops fired into a crowd directly beneath its east end on March 5, 1770, killing five men including Crispus Attucks — the Boston Massacre, marked today by a stone circle outside. Approximately six years and four months later, on July 18, 1776, the Declaration of Independence was read to the city from the balcony on that same wall, and the crowd tore the royal lion and unicorn down and burned them. The building later served as Boston's city hall and even a commercial block before being saved in 1881.

Source: National Park Service, Boston National Historical Park, Old State House and Boston Massacre histories; Revolutionary Spaces, Old State House history