The Freedom Trail: North End Graveyard & Shem Drowne

The North End Graveyard is an unmarked location in Fallout 4, across the street from Mean Pastries, west of Pickman's Gallery and east of Cabot House. Players may end up there during the Gilded Grasshopper quest, in which case they can dig up the grave of Shem Drowne for some loot. 

Shem Drowne was a real person, not just a video game story, and he really did make a gilded grasshopper weathervane (read more about that in my Faneuil Hall section). Though whether or not he's actually buried with a radioactive sword or with bars of copper, silver and gold, I have no idea. 

The real-life grave marker of Shem Drowne (right) and his wife Katherine, at Copp's Hill Burying Ground in Boston. 
Photo by Diane Blair via FindaGrave.com

Shem Drowne's grave and headstone in Fallout 4, after digging up his coffin during the Gilded Grasshopper quest. 
PS4 screen capture by Jewelsmith

With the cemetery's location relative to the Old North Church and other landmarks in Fallout 4, and the existence of Drowne's grave there, North End Graveyard seems to be based on Copp's Hill Burying Ground in Boston. 

Copp's Hill Burying Ground in Boston
Photo by Rhododendrites via Wikipedia CC BY-SA 4.0

North End graveyard as seen in Fallout 4, based on Copp's Hill Burying Ground in Boston 
PS4 screen capture by Jewelsmith

In use for about two hundred years, from 1659 until the mid-1800s, Copp's Hill is the final resting place of more than 10,000 people, including: 

• Shem and Katherine Drowne
• Cotton Mather and his father Increase Mather, two Puritans who were associated with the Salem witch trials 
• Prince Hall, leader of the free black community of Boston in the 1700s 
• Robert Newman, the guy who put the lanterns in the Old North Church steeple for Paul Revere 
• Edmund Hartt, builder of the USS Constitution 

During the Revolutionary War, British troops used the hill to fire artillery onto Charlestown during the Battle of Bunker Hill and possibly used the gravestones for target practice. 

Copp's Hill Burying Ground, with Skinny House across the street, and Old North Church in Boston, courtesy of Google maps

Across the street from Copp's Hill Burying Ground in modern-day Boston is an unusual building called Skinny House, while across the street from North End Graveyard in Fallout 4 is an unmarked bakery called Mean Pastries. 

I didn't think there was any connection between the two locations until I read that Skinny House is a "spite house" built to anger its neighbors. 

Maybe that's why the pastry shop in Fallout 4 is "mean" - because it's spiteful? 

The front of Mean Pastries bakery in Fallout 4, across the street from North End Graveyard, and with the green, white and red bunting seen throughout the North End area of the game. Inset map shows the location of the bakery (indicated by the arrow) as well as Pickman Gallery, the Old North Church and Railroad HQ. 
PS4 screen capture by Jewelsmith, map from Fallout4map.com

While Copp's Hill Burying Ground is a stop on the Freedom Trail in Boston, in Fallout 4 the "Road to Freedom" quest ends at Old North Church.

However, there are still pieces of the red brick line that can be followed to North End Graveyard and Bunker Hill in the video game, without seals to mark them as official sites because they're not needed to decode the password for Railroad HQ. 

A red brick line can be seen by North End graveyard, but there's no seal to mark it as a stop on the Freedom Trail in Fallout 4 - PS4 screen capture by Jewelsmith

• Read more about Freedom Trail locations in Fallout 4 and IRL

Check out my other articles and return for updates or follow me on YouTube, Twitter or Patreon for more information.

~ Jewelsmith (aka JLHilton)

Sources:

TheFreedomTrail.org

Boston.gov 

Wikipedia 

Ghosts & Gravestones of Boston 

Unmarked location: Long Wharf

In Fallout 4, players can visit a row of ruined shops east of the Custom House Tower, not far from Christopher Columbus Park and the Paul Revere House. At the end of the pier they'll find a super mutant camp and a warehouse. 

An arrow indicates the unmarked location of the Long Wharf, east of the Custom House Tower according to the Pipboy in Fallout 4. Screen capture by Jewelsmith

The location is based on the Long Wharf in Boston, Massachusetts, which also has a warehouse and an eight-pointed compass rose in the pavement. 

The Long Wharf east of the Custom House and Christopher Columbus Park IRL.
Satellite image from Google maps

Constructed between 1710 and 1721, the wharf once stretched a half-mile into Boston Harbor, in order to accommodate the many ships bringing cargo to the city. 

Today, the shortened wharf is a dock for passenger ferries and sightseeing boats, and a home to shops, restaurants and a hotel. 

An unmarked location in Fallout 4 that resembles the IRL Long Wharf.
Screen capture by Jewelsmith

The Long Wharf in Boston, with brick warehouse and compass rose pavement.
Image from Google maps

Detail of the eight-poitned "compass rose" as seen in Fallout 4.   
Screen capture by Jewelsmith

Fallout 4 players can find some junk items and a special ice cold variety of Gwinnett beer on the tables here. 

The larger building, labeled simply "warehouse" in the game, consists of one large room with a single super mutant enemy, meat bags and a few containers to loot. 

Interior of the warehouse at the end of the wharf in Fallout 4. Screen capture by Jewelsmith

Interior of the warehouse at the end of the wharf in Fallout 4, when looking at the entrance. Note that the window size, shape and arrangement looks different on the inside than it does on the outside. Screen capture by Jewelsmith

This warehouse appears to be based on the Gardiner building, built in 1763 and rebuilt in 1812. 

Portrait of John Hancock
by John Singleton Copley 
(public domain)

For a time, John Hancock used the building as a counting house. That's the IRL Hancock btw, not the ghoul mayor of Goodneighbor. 

Long Wharf was once filled with this kind of building, but the Gardiner building is now the only one left. It is currently a seafood restaurant. 

The famous portrait painter John Singleton Copley, born in 1738, spent his childhood on the wharf, where his mother had a tobacco shop. 

Copley grew up to paint portraits of Paul Revere, John Hancock, John Adams, Samuel Adams, and many other notable people of his time. 

Boston's IRL Copley station bears his name and appears in Fallout 4 as a possible means for players to enter the Boston Public Library. 

I'll be writing more about Fallout 4 locations and their real-world inspirations, in the months to come. Check back for updates or follow me on YouTube, Twitter and Patreon for more information.

~ Jewelsmith (aka JLHilton)

The Freedom Trail: Paul Revere House

The Paul Revere house is the 12th site along the Freedom Trail in Boston. In Fallout 4, the Paul Revere house is the 7th and penultimate stop before the red line of the "Road to Freedom" ends nearby at the Old North Church, the gateway to Railroad HQ. 

A partially destroyed Paul Revere house in Fallout 4. Note the similarities with the IRL location, including the appearance of the adjacent buildings. Screen capture by Jewelsmith

The actual Paul Revere house in Boston. Photo courtesy of Paul Revere House

Paul Revere was born in Boston in 1734 (some sources say 1735). When he was 15 years old, he earned five pennies a month ringing the bells of the Old North Church. 

He learned the art of gold and silver smithing from his father, and took over the family business at the age of 19, after his father died. He made tea sets, spoons, buttons, buckles and other items. He also provided engraving and repair services, business cards, and even dentistry on the side.  

A portrait of Paul Revere painted by John Singleton Copley. Copley was born in 1738 and grew up on Boston's Long Wharf, not far from the Revere house. The painting is dated to 1768 and remained in the Revere family until gifted to the Museum of Fine Arts Boston. 

A plaque beside the door of his house in Fallout 4 tells more of the real-life history of the location:

Built in 1680, this wooden building is the oldest structure in all of Boston. In 1770 this home was bought be famed patriot Paul Revere. 

Paul Revere dwelled here with his family (including his 16 children) until 1800. 

Paul Revere was living here when he made his famous midnight ride to Lexington and Concord to warn Samuel Adams and John Hancock that Redcoats were en route to arrest them and seize the militia weaponry. 

After the British evacuation of Boston, he served as a lieutenant colonel and commander of artillery at Castle Island - inspiration for the Castle in Fallout 4. 

The unmarked location of the Paul Revere House near the Old North Church and Railroad HQ, according to the Pipboy map in Fallout 4. Screen capture by Jewelsmith

Google map showing the location of the Paul Revere House in relation to the Old North Church, Copps Hill Burying Ground, Haymarket and Christopher Columbus Waterfront Park in Boston, Massachusetts

After Revere sold his house in 1800, it became a sailor's boarding house, then an immigrant tenement with shops on the ground floor. Over the years there was a candy store, cigar factory, bank and fruit business at the location. 

His great-grandson, John P. Reynolds Jr, bought the building in 1902 to keep it from being demolished. The Paul Revere Memorial Association was formed to preserve and renovate the building, which has operated as a museum since 1908. 

Another angle of the Paul Revere House in Fallout 4. The Freedom Trail seal and red line can be seen on the sidewalk just below the steps. Screen capture by Jewelsmith

The real Paul Revere House at a similar angle for comparison. Even the red brick buildings, behind to the left, look similar in Fallout 4. Photo courtesy of Roadtrippers.com

Today, the Paul Revere House stands at 19 North Square and is a national historic landmark, about a five-minute walk from the Old North Church in Boston's North End neighborhood. 

Paul Revere equestrian statue
by Cyrus E. Dallin
Photo from Wikipedia
CC BY-SA 3.0

A statue by sculptor Cyrus E. Dallin, commemorating Paul Revere's role in U.S. history, stands in the Paul Revere Mall near the Old North Church. 

If you follow the route of Paul Revere's historic ride, you will end up at Minute Man National Historic Park, the real-life location of the Minuteman statue and bridge seen outside of Sanctuary Hills in the video game. 

• Read more about Freedom Trail locations on the FalloutIRL website

I'll be writing more about Fallout 4 locations, and researching their real-world inspirations, in the months to come. Check back for updates or follow me on YouTube, Twitter or Patreon for more information.

~ Jewelsmith (aka JLHilton)

Further reading: 

North End History 

Unmarked location: Christopher Columbus Park, trellis, fountain & statue

Close to Old North Church, Faneuil Hall and the Custom House Tower in Fallout 4, players can find Christopher Columbus Park. 

This unmarked location is based on the Christopher Columbus Waterfront Park and playground, which includes the Rose Kennedy Rose Garden, along the waterfront in Boston's North End. 

Fallout 4 fountain area and benches near Faneuil Hall with trellises in the background.
A skeleton and flaming barrel can be seen off to the left. Screen capture by Jewelsmith

The IRL fountain area, with wooden benches and trellises in the background.
Photo from Google maps street view

Both the real and video game locations feature a statue (or at least a pedestal), a playground, a fountain area surrounded by benches, and an arrangement of vine-covered trellises. 

In Fallout 4, the playground area features a flying saucer slide (left) and climbing gym (right). 
The fire barrel, skeleton and pedestal can be seen in between them. 
Screen capture by Jewelsmith

The IRL park was dedicated in July 1976, the 200th anniversary of the adoption of the Declaration of Indepence (y'know, that document we were asked to steal in Fallout 3). 

Google map showing the area of IRL Boston with Faneuil Hall, the Custom House and Christopher Columbus Waterfront Park with rose garden and trellis

The unmarked location of Christopher Columbus Park 
Map by Jewelsmith

In the Fallout 4 version of the park, there's a pedestal but instead of a statue it features a skeleton stretched over a fire barrel. 

A skeleton on a fire barrel, atop a pedestal, near some trellises in Fallout 4 
Screen capture by Jewelsmith

This corresponds to the real-world location of a Columbus statue that was erected in 1979. However, the statue was vandalized repeatedly throughout the 2000s and eventually removed in 2020, five years after the release of Fallout 4. 

The vandalized Christopher Columbus statue without a head, near the trellises in IRL Boston 
Boston Herald photo by Nancy Lane

Landscape arcitects Halvorson Design renovated the park for a 2003 reopening. The trellises are lit up with blue lights during the holiday season by the Friends of Christopher Columbus Park and the Boston Parks and Recreation Department. 

The trellises in Christopher Columbus Waterfront Park, Boston
Photo credit: Yelp/Cammie W via TimeOut.com

The trellises as seen in Fallout 4 - Screen capture by Jewelsmith

A faded street sign directs the way to "Columbus Park" in Fallout 4. The steeple of the Old North Church can be seen in the background. 
Screen capture by Jewelsmith

I'll be writing more about Fallout 4 locations, and researching their real-world inspirations, in the months to come. Check back for updates or follow me on YouTube, Twitter and Patreon for more information.

~ Jewelsmith (aka JLHilton)

Additional sources: 

Friends of Christopher Columbus Park 

The Cultural Landscape Foundation 

Boston Central