BOSTON

city, capital of the state of Massachusetts, and seat of Suffolk county, in the northeastern United States. It lies on Massachusetts Bay, an arm of the Atlantic Ocean. The city properincluding part of the Charles River, Boston Harbor, and a portion of the Atlantic Oceanhas an unusually small area for a major city, only 46 square miles (119 square kilometres), more than one-fourth of it water. The area, the people, and the institutions within its political boundaries can only begin to define the essence of Boston. As a city and as a name, Boston is a symbol of much that has gone into the development of the American consciousness, and its presence reaches far beyond its immediate environs. As the spiritual capital of the New England states, as the nation's closest link to its European heritage, as the progenitor of the American Revolution and the nation, and as the earliest centre of American culture, Boston has influenced the country for nearly three centuries. Though Boston, like New England in general, has played a lessening role in national life during much of the 20th century, it remains the focal point of what may be the most diversified and dynamic combination of educational, cultural, and medical and scientific activities in the United States. city, capital of the state of Massachusetts, Suffolk county, in the northeastern United States. It is a major seaport at the head of Massachusetts Bay, an arm of the Atlantic Ocean, and is the historical, cultural, commercial, and industrial centre of New England. Boston and its sheltered deepwater harbour are ringed by rolling terrain. The former Shawmut Peninsula, which was the site of the original settlement (1630), has changed dramatically over the years. In the 19th century its hills were cut down (except for what remains of Beacon Hill) to provide material to fill in the neighbouring marshes and mud flats known as Back Bay, and the peninsula became an indistinguishable part of the mainland. The harbour, adjoining the eastern part of the city, was greatly expanded. After the introduction of suburban rail lines in the mid-19th century, the city absorbed many surrounding communities. Its metropolitan area now includes the town of Brookline, which is nearly surrounded by Boston proper; the cities of Cambridge, Somerville, Medford, Malden, Everett, Chelsea, Revere, Quincy, and Newton; and numerous other communities. Boston's climate is generally temperate and humid, but with continental extremes characterized by a wide annual range of temperatures. Banking, insurance, investment management, and other financial and business-service activities are the chief elements in the economic life of the city. The Federal Reserve Bank of the New England district is located there. Industries include food processing, clothing manufacture, printing, defense, telecommunication, and metal fabrication. Although central Boston is now marked by high-rise office and residential buildings, such as the Prudential Tower and the John Hancock Tower, its older districts still feature street markets and narrow, winding routes. The centre of the colonial town was at the Old State House (171147). Although the original centre and the colonial South End have become commercial districts, some 18th-century buildings, such as Faneuil Hall (17421805) and the Old Corner Bookstore (1711), survive. The Paul Revere House (c. 1680) and Old North Church (formerly Christ Church; 1723) stand in the North End section. The handsome residential area of Beacon Hill, which includes Louisburg Square, is a designated historic district. To the south lie the public acres of the Boston Common, and additional parkland adjoins the Charles River to the north. The Boston area has an abundance of colleges and universities; a partial listing includes Harvard University (1636), Boston College (1863), Boston University (1839), the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (1861), and the Tufts University School of Medicine (1852). In addition, medical research centres and major hospitals, museums, libraries, and historical societies abound. Boston's subway system, begun in 1897, was the first in the country and has been designated a historic place; railroad passenger service, however, has deteriorated. Logan International Airport is in East Boston. Inc. town, 1630; city, 1822. Area city, 48 square miles (124 square km); metropolitan area (MSA), 2,429 square miles (6,291 square km). Pop. (1990) city, 574,283; Boston PMSA, 3,227,707; (1996 est.) city, 558,394; Boston PMSA, 3,263,060. American rock group that was as well known for the lengthy periods between its albums as for its unique heavy metalpop sound. The original members were Tom Scholz (b. March 10, 1947, Toledo, Ohio, U.S.), Brad Delp (b. June 12, 1951, Boston, Mass.), Fran Sheehan (b. March 26, 1949, Boston), Barry Goudreau (b. Nov. 29, 1951, Boston), and John (Sib) Hashian (b. Aug. 17, 1949, Boston). Boston burst onto the pop music scene in 1976 with the meticulously crafted single More Than a Feeling, which combined elements of progressive rock and 1960s pop. Generating three American Top 40 hits, the group's eponymous first album became the biggest-selling debut in rock history. Guitarist Scholz, who had earned a master's degree in mechanical engineering at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (and who later invented the popular Rockman compact amplifier), laboured for seven years in his home recording studio to craft the majestic guitar sound that, along with Delp's distinctive high-register vocals, became the band's trademark. Able to soften their sound on the occasional ballad, Boston appealed to a wide range of music fans. The group's second album, Don't Look Back (1978), was criticized for its resemblance to Boston but sold well. It took the group eight years to release Third Stage, the result of Scholz's perfectionism and a legal battle that ended with the group switching record labels. By this time, only Scholz and Delp remained from the original members, but the band's success formula remained intact, as both the album and the single Amanda topped the charts. Boston was not heard from again until the 1994 release of the less successful Walk On. town and borough (district), administrative and historic county of Lincolnshire, England, on the River Witham on the northern margin in the Fens. Boston town has served as a small port since the 13th century, when, as a member of the Hanseatic League, it traded in wool and wine. With the progressive silting of the river and changing patterns of trade, the town's prosperity declined. It was from Boston that many of the Puritans set forth for the New World. Boston's church is a landmark for the surrounding flat country of the Fens. The tower, known as Boston Stump, is 272.5 feet (83 metres) high. The church itself is a Decorated-style building extensively restored since 1931. The contemporary importance of the town of Boston derives from its continued modest function as a port and from the presence of agricultural and cattle markets. Industries are based largely on agricultural processing. The surrounding borough is mostly rural and intensively cultivated. Area borough, 139 square miles (360 square km). Pop. (1991) town, 34,606; (1998 est.) district, 54,700. Additional reading Michael P. Conzen and George K. Lewis, Boston: A Geographical Portrait (1976), gives an overview of the metropolitan area and of the dramatic changes in its demographics and land use. Walter Muir Whitehill, Boston: A Topographical History, 2nd ed., enlarged (1968), describes the extraordinary physical changes in the city from settlement to the mid-1960s. Lawrence W. Kennedy, Planning the City Upon a Hill (1992), focuses on the planning history of Boston. Harold Kirker, The Architecture of Charles Bulfinch (1969); Walter H. Kilham, Boston after Bulfinch (1946); and Bainbridge Bunting, Houses of Boston's Back Bay: An Architectural History, 1840-1917 (1967), describe characteristic aspects of Boston's buildings. Samuel Eliot Morison, The Maritime History of Massachusetts, 1783-1860 (1921, reissued 1979); Bernard Bailyn, The New England Merchants in the Seventeenth Century (1955, reissued 1979); and Bernard Bailyn and Lotte Bailyn, Massachusetts Shipping, 1697-1714 (1959), give the essentials about Boston shipping. Oscar Handlin, Boston's Immigrants: A Study in Acculturation, rev. and enlarged ed. (1959, reissued 1991), deals with the changes brought about by 19th-century immigration. Walter Muir Whitehill, Boston Public Library: A Centennial History (1956), and Museum of Fine Arts, Boston: A Centennial History, 2 vol. (1970), describe two pioneering institutions. Walter Muir Whitehill, Boston in the Age of John Fitzgerald Kennedy (1966), briefly deals with the institutions that make modern Boston a centre of civilization. David McCord, About Boston (1948, reissued 1973), is a poetic evocation of the sights and sounds of the city. Robert Campbell and Peter Vanderwarker, Cityscapes of Boston (1992), juxtaposes historical and contemporary views of Boston. Justin Winsor (ed.), The Memorial History of Boston, Including Suffolk County, Massachusetts, 1630-1880, 4 vol. (188081), is an excellent reference work on most aspects of Boston's early history. Elisabeth M. Herlihy et al.,Fifty Years of Boston (1932), is a sequel for the years 18801930. John H. Mollenkopf, The Contested City (1983), studies the politics of Boston's urban redevelopment; while Ronald P. Formisano and Constance K. Burns (eds.), Boston, 1700-1980 (1984), examines the history of Boston's electoral politics. Walter Muir Whitehill George Knowlton Lewis The Editors of the Encyclopdia Britannica