What is America's most historic city? (state, better, largest, place)
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A list of America's most historic cities that includes Staunton, Lexington, and Roanoke (?) but does not include Richmond? Really?
Richmond, capital of the Commonwealth of Virginia in whose capitol (designed by Thomas Jefferson in 1788) resides America's longest ongoing legislature;
Richmond, where Patrick Henry delivered his famous "Liberty or Death" speech at Saint John's Church on the eve of the Revolutionary War;
Richmond, where, in 1800, Gabriel Prosser organized and almost carried out the largest slave revolt in American history;
Richmond, where Vice President Aaron Burr was tried for treason in 1807;
Richmond, capital of the Confederate States of America (1861-1865) and home today of the most important collections of Civil War memorabilia in the country;
Richmond, where the Richmond National Battlefield Park encompasses some of the bloodiest battlefields in American history;
Richmond, whose Hollywood Cemetery is the final resting place of Presidents John Tyler and James Monroe, CSA President Jefferson Davis, Generals J.E.B. Stuart and George Pickett, and 18,000 Confederate soldiers;
Richmond, home to many notable persons including Chief Justice John Marshall, Edgar Allan Poe, Robert E. Lee, several Pulitzer Prize winning writers, and L. Douglas Wilder, former Richmond mayor who, in 1990, was elected Governor of Virginia, the first African-American ever to be elected governor a state.
None of this is to say that Richmond is the most historic city in America (Philadelphia is) but that Richmond definitely belongs on a short list of such cities!
Really tired of the accepted opinion that "historic" basically refers to 6th grade Social Studies kind of "historic." ya ya Paul Revere, Ben Franklin, tea part, a whole bunch of vague things that people don't actually understand. Why is THAT the only history that matters?
Personally I think the histories of places like Detroit are much more fascinating.
Absolutely, it's all over the place in those two cities in regards to America's plight to gain independence, pre-1800s. However NYC and DC moved to the forefront in the mid to late 1800s with DC being the nation's capitol and NYC becoming the industrialized/financial center of the world.
Really tired of the accepted opinion that "historic" basically refers to 6th grade Social Studies kind of "historic." ya ya Paul Revere, Ben Franklin, tea part, a whole bunch of vague things that people don't actually understand. Why is THAT the only history that matters?
Personally I think the histories of places like Detroit are much more fascinating.
The thread isn't: "What are the only historic US cities?"
The thread is: "What are the MOST historic US Cities?"
Obviously, places like Detroit, San Francisco, etc. have history... the MOST historic would be the oldest in the country, where the most happened: i.e. Philadelphia, Boston, New York City, etc.
By this, I mean cities that have had a significant impact on American history and are filled with historical sights. The cities and towns that just ooz good old classic America and its history.
Hands down, it's Philadelphia.
It's not called the "Cradle of Liberty" because it's a good marketing slogan but because almost every significant decision and event related to the creation and establishment of the United States of America occurred in Philadelphia.
Arguably, without Philadelphia, the United States of America, would not exist.
Philadelphia is definitely number one not only because it's the Birthplace of America (conception) but it also has a very long list of firsts and inventions as well. Not to mention the metro area sites on top of that.
In addition to that, out of all the historic cities in the US, it is by far the best at preserving their history than others.
Boston is a very close second, but unfortunately, it's so gentrified that they favor the luxury condo over the historic building. I hope Philadelphia doesn't follow that route. Boston has become soulless and sacrificed it's character for the dollar bill.
The thread isn't: "What are the only historic US cities?"
The thread is: "What are the MOST historic US Cities?"
Obviously, places like Detroit, San Francisco, etc. have history... the MOST historic would be the oldest in the country, where the most happened: i.e. Philadelphia, Boston, New York City, etc.
But why is this what everyone is always talking about? I don't necessarily agree that it's the "most" anyway.
I have been a tour guide in boston. For the record, I find quite a lot of the actual boston history very tiring. The ideas behind the people and the people can be more interesting. But honestly it gets quite dull.
Philadelphia is definitely number one not only because it's the Birthplace of America (conception) but it also has a very long list of firsts and inventions as well. Not to mention the metro area sites on top of that.
In addition to that, out of all the historic cities in the US, it is by far the best at preserving their history than others.
Boston is a very close second, but unfortunately, it's so gentrified that they favor the luxury condo over the historic building. I hope Philadelphia doesn't follow that route. Boston has become soulless and sacrificed it's character for the dollar bill.
Nailed it... Boston is knocking down historic buildings to put up condo's.
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