Federal semiquincentennial law named four leading cities; which one is in Massachusetts? The answer is Boston.
The United States Semiquincentennial Commission Act identifies Boston, Massachusetts, as one of four “leading cities” connected to the nation’s founding-era history. The other three are Philadelphia, New York City, and Charleston, South Carolina.
Boston’s inclusion reflects its central role in the American Revolution. The city was the site of the Boston Massacre in 1770, the Boston Tea Party in 1773, and the Siege of Boston at the beginning of the Revolutionary War. Nearby events, including the Battles of Lexington and Concord and the Battle of Bunker Hill, made the Boston region a crucial theater of the independence movement.
The wording can cause confusion because Salem is also in Massachusetts and has important colonial history, but it is not one of the four cities named in the federal law. Hartford and Providence are in Connecticut and Rhode Island, respectively. Boston’s commemorative planning has included Revolution 250, a coalition of local historical and civic organizations.