Beacon Hill, Back Bay and the Building of Boston's Golden Age

Venture back to the Boston of the 1800s, when Back Bay was just a wide expanse of water to the west of the Shawmut Peninsula and merchants peddled their wares to sailors along the docks. Witness the beginning of the American Industrial Revolution; learn how a series of cultural movements made Boston the focal point of abolitionism in America, with leaders like William Lloyd Garrison; and see the golden age of the arts ushered in with notables Longfellow, Holmes, Copley, Sargent and Isabella Stewart Gardner. Travel with local historian Ted Clarke down the cobbled streets of Boston to discover its history in the golden age.

Ted Clarke's passion is history, especially Boston history and that of areas around Boston. He is currently working on his twelfth book, most of which are on local history or figure skating, in which he was a judge and national administrator. After years of teaching and journalism and three master's degrees, Clarke is "somewhat" retired but still spends a solid part of each day at his writing vocation. "I feel as though I've never retired, and yet I'm doing something I love to do," he says. "I've always enjoyed using words and telling stories, and here I do both. If you read my writing, I want you to get the story clearly but also enjoy the way it's told." He has a forthcoming book from The History Press called South of Boston, part of a brace of books called "From Cape to Cape," which is in the works. He and his wife, Mary, live in the town of Weymouth, south of Boston, where he serves as chair of the historical commission. He has written and narrated five television productions on town history, winning, in 2010, the Massachusetts Historic Commission's award for his program on historic preservation. He also gives frequent talks, which may be arranged through The History Press.