ADAMS BUILDING
The architect of the Adams Building was William J. Beal; the style Tudor Revival and built in the late 1800's.
This was taken on Thanksgiving Day. I actually rode around a bit taking pictures as it is so refreshing not to have cars all over the place. I miss the Blue Laws; frankly I wouldn't care whose religion we observed if we could go back to a day of rest for any reason. I miss Sundays when there wasn't much else to do than be with your family. No errands, Sunday drives, relaxation whether you liked it or not. And I can remember not always liking it - so here we are rat race city 24/7. Oh for the good ole days!

SANTA CLAUS IS COMING TO TOWN
Santa will be here on Sunday for the 56th Annual Christmas Parade. I don't recall Santa here in front of city hall last year? Is he a new addition? Seems we have a new snowman too, but the same old dusty toy soldier! : )~ And I see the manger scene is being put together. Only 26 shopping days until Christmas!

ADAMS ACADEMY
The Adams Academy Building, home of the Quincy Historical Society, is a Registered National Historic Landmark. It stands on the site of the birthplace of John Hancock. That house was later the home of another Patriot leader, Josiah Quincy, Jr. The Academy itself was founded by John Adams.

In 1822, John Adams deeded lands to the town of Quincy, the proceeds from which were to be used for the construction of a new church (which became the Church of the Presidents) and for the establishment of a preparatory school to ready local youth for college. Adams stipulated that the school be constructed on the site of the home of Hancock and Quincy, to honor those great patriots.

For thirty-eight years, the Adams Academy provided an excellent education under three distinguished headmasters--William Dimmock, William Everett, and Royall Tyler-- and produced many outstanding graduates. After the Academy closed in 1908, the building housed a variety of civic and governmental organizations for some sixty years.

QUINCY HISTORICAL SOCIETY
MUSEUM & SHOP:
MON. - FRI. 9:00 A.M. TO 4:00 P.M.
LIBRARY:
MON. & WED. 9:00 A.M. TO NOON
AND BY APPOINTMENT

THOMAS CRANE PUBLIC LIBRARY
Fun with Photoshop. Truly I wasted way too much time fixing the sky and removing that tree! The moral of the story is, just go and do your laundry! I love the library, I don’t know who thought up the idea of free books; a quick Google search revealed nothing fast, and I have wasted enough time already. On average I always have at least 10-15 items out of the library at any given time. An interest hits and I take out every good book in the system! I always return to my base and at the moment have a ton of books on photography out.


I think that they did a pretty good job with the new edition of the library but I would have much preferred if they hadn't gutted the Coletti Building. I am sure I will take another photo of the library (one that I will take the time to crop out what I don’t want in the shot before I take it – thank you very much!) as the library has a fascinating history which I will explore with you on my next picture.

SURVIVAL, INC.
So many things have changed in Quincy, things are becoming a blur. As I walked around behind the Quincy High School, old Quincy College I was taken by this beautiful house. I believe it is the site of the old Survival, Inc., that came into being with drugs here in Quincy in the early 70's? Survival has since transformed into Bay State Community Services, and I believe this beautiful old house is in use by the school department. Mind you,this could all be false information and bad memory! But it is a gorgeous old home, just the same! I am open to corrections or additional information on this old house!

QUINCY HIGH SCHOOL EXTENSION
Coddington Hall on Coddington Street over the years has had a number of uses. It began as Coddington Elementary School, became Quincy Junior College; at some point transformed into Quincy College, and now that the colleges logo is Coddington Hall, the school has become a temporary building for Quincy High School as our new high school is built. Thoughts are that the building will remain as administrative offices for Quincy Public Schools once the high school project is completed. It was registered as an historic site on October 20, 1989.

QUINCY SQUARE FIRE HYDRANT
I really liked the look of this fire hydrant in need of some TLC. It is on Huntley Street where we are constructing a new high school. Out of sight, out of mind, but lots character!

BETHANY CONGREGATIONAL CHURCH
The church owes its origins to a few persons who, in the winter of 1831-32 instituted a course of religious lectures at the Quincy Town Hall for the purpose of teaching the truths of Evangelical Christianity as maintained by Congregationalists.

Bethany is in its third church building. The first was built on Hancock Street in 1834 and occupied until 1871. The second church building was built in 1871 in Quincy Square at the corner of Hancock and Chestnut Street. While in the second church, in 1896, the name was changed from Evangelical Congregational Church to Bethany Congregational Church. That site later became the home of the Granite Trust Bank.

MOUNT WOLLASTON CEMETERY
I took this picture walking to work the other day because I am ecstatic that the leaves have FINALLY completely fallen and I can get past raking leaves! And a note for anyone in the city that isn't aware, the DPW has extended the YARDWASTE pickup for one week. The last pickup will be on Friday, December 5th. Bring on the snow!

CHURCH OF THE PRESIDENTS
Today's sky was awesome. The United First Parish Church from the rear.

BETH ISRAEL SYNAGOGUE
Beth Israel was built in 1918 on Grafton Street. The city once had four synagogues, now with Beth Israel's closing there is only one; Temple Beth El. Members must decide where to send Beth Israel's Torah scrolls and the sanctuary's tall, elaborately carved wooden Ark, in which the scrolls are kept. Beth Israel opened during World War I, when thousands of immigrants flocked to Quincy to work at the Fore River shipyard.

SEAGULL
Seagulls drink both fresh and salt water. Most animals are unable to do this, but gulls have a special pair of glands right above their eyes, designed to flush the salt from their systems through openings in the bill. Seagulls live anywhere from 5 to 15 years depending on their environment and predators. Some have been known to live over 25 years. Gulls are literal garbage cans and will eat just about anything. You'll see them dropping clams in flight to crack them open, probably the healthiest thing they eat! They're protective of their young; at about six months you'll see young gulls flying with the adults. They're slightly smaller, with a more mottled coloring. Seagulls usually live offshore on uninhabited islands; you can find them in abandoned barns, large buildings, dumping grounds, sea cliffs, and other remote areas. Gulls are known to live many miles away from where you see them during the day.

QUINCY CITY HALL
Quincy City Hall's original section was built in 1844 with Quincy granite. The City of Quincy adopted a "Plan A" form of government, whereby a city government and legislative body are composed of the mayor and a city council, all being elected. This is commonly known as a "strong mayor-weak council" form of government. Under this form of government, Quincy is governed by the general provisions of a "Plan A" form of government.

SQUANTUM YACHT CLUB
Wollaston Beach begins to get a tad brisk at this time of year. It must be age, as the season is just beginning and I am NOT enjoying the cold. And I know what your thinking - 'you ain't seen nothin yet!' This is what I find troubling. Let me go on the record as saying I believe we are in for one hell of a winter. No I haven't seen the farmers almanac, I am just having a little (and let me do a little dance here as I say this) out going "Presidential gut" type feeling! Lucky for all it's just a preemptive snow prediction!

WORLD WAR I DOUGHBOY
The WWI Doughboy stands in front of the Adams Academy; the site is the birthplace of our great Patriot, John Hancock. Today was the Veterans Day Parade here in Quincy; honoring all of those who have served and are serving our country. Yes I took some pictures but didn't like a single one, except for this Doughboy which I was able to salvage by removing the telephone wires at his feet. The Washington Post had a rather interesting article at Memorial Day of the last surviving Doughboy, Cpl. Frank Buckles of Charles Town, W.Va., titled "Why Didn't We Listen to Their War Stories".
A statement that the men of World War I weren't 'memorialized' quite like the men of our other wars; this makes me feel good that we do honor our Doughboys and that right here in Quincy they continue to walk among the clouds. When asked about the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, Buckles told the Washington Post, “I’m no authority, but I’m not in favor of war unless it’s an emergency.”

"THE SOOOOW-PEEEE DOG"
This is our dog Lydia, after a trip to the Soapy Dog. It's the greatest thing since sliced bread. You can wash your own dog for a mere $15, and they cut her nails and clean her ears too! Lydia is not a big fan of getting a bath, but tolerates it pretty nicely. Her reward is the THREE BIG BONES for a BUCK as we pay for the service. And she is just as PROUD AS A PEACOCK displaying these bones, which as you can see, she insists on getting them all in her mouth at once!. She hangs out of the car window all the way home ... "SEEE, SEEE EVERYONE, SEEE my bones!!" She is the best dog on the planet! A true testament to pound puppies!

FALL IN NEW ENGLAND
This year the Fall colors are magnificent. This was taken in Wollaston right around the corner from my house, the lazy wo'man's way, from my car as I was headed to work! I believe these are mighty oaks, why would I know for sure, I have only known them my entire life? The oaks in my neighborhood are so awesome; we have lost some along the way. I wish someone had thought to put the telephone lines underground, as my street, lined with maples has been hard hit by the yearly pruning to accommodate the lines; not many maples have been able to survive the abuse! Our yearly ritual was my mother nearly lying down in front of the city truck, absolutely refusing to let them touch "her tree" but sadly even her tree has fallen. The city did replace it more than five years back now, and this past summer I gave up on the hope that it would grow high enough for me to stop banging my head on the lowest branch; I had to perform surgery! These new trees apparently haven't any growth hormones in them! The signs around town still say "Tree City USA" and from the air, it still looks very green, but down here it looks so bare, monfrare. I miss George Carlin!

Frisbeetarianism is the belief that when you die, your soul goes up on the roof and gets stuck. ~George Carlin

THE CHURCH OF THE PRESIDENTS

Over its 350 years, the congregation of historic First Parish has played a most important part in the building of this city, the state, and indeed the nation. Like their ancestors before them, both Presidents John Adams and John Quincy Adams were life-long members of the Church. Their tombs stand in a crypt within the church, beside those of their wives, Abigail and Louisa Catherine. Also, the Patriot John Hancock was baptized in this church by his father, the Rev. John Hancock, who served here as minister from 1726 to 1744. The Quincys' were also active members for many generations.

Originally founded by Puritan congregationalists, and Unitarian since 1750, First Parish continues to serve the community as a leader in liberal religion. Inspired by a noble heritage, the Church endeavors "to hold fast Freedom, Friendship, and Faith" for a service of humanity and the building of a more just and compassionate world.

JOHN QUINCY ADAMS BIRTHPLACE

John Quincy Adams, the sixth President of the United States, was born in Braintree, (now Quincy) Massachusetts to Abigail and John Adams. He witnessed the Battle of Bunker Hill together with his mother at the age of 9. Adams spent much of his childhood in Europe, mostly in France while his father was serving as Minister. At the age of 15, the young John Quincy Adams served as Secretary to the Mission to Russia.

JOHN ADAMS BIRTHPLACE

In 1720 John Adams' father, "Deacon" John Adams, purchased this house. It is where in 1735 young John was born. John became the 2nd President of the United States of America. The birthplace remained in the possession of the Adams family until 1940, when they deeded it to the city of Quincy. The saltbox house was a style common in New England before 1830.

The house is now part of the Adams National Historical Park.