Posted on 02/02/2023 3:00:31 PM PST by rightwingintelligentsia
The property had been inherited by Mehitable (Minot) Cooper from her uncle, William Stoughton, in 1701; Stoughton himself had acquired the property some time before June 1676.
[2] Valued at 650 pounds in 1705,[2] the Green Dragon Tavern was purchased from her son, William Cooper, by physician and pamphleteer William Douglas in 1743.
[4] Douglas lived in the tavern, calling it his "mansion house".[4] After his death in 1752, the tavern passed to his sister, who sold it to the St. Andrews Lodge of Freemasons in 1766.
[3] The Masons used the first floor for their meeting rooms led by Grand Master of the Grand Lodge of Massachusetts, Joseph Warren (killed at Bunker Hill), followed by Grand Master John Hancock.
The basement tavern was used by several secret groups and became known by historians as the "Headquarters of the Revolution".
The Sons of Liberty led by Samuel Adams, Boston Committee of Correspondence and the Boston Caucus each met there. Though membership in the Sons of Liberty was secret, it is widely believed to have included Samuel Adams, Dr. Joseph Warren, Paul Revere, John Hancock, James Otis, and Benjamin Edes (owner of the influential Boston Gazette).
The Boston Tea Party was planned there and Paul Revere (a Mason) was sent from there to Lexington on his famous ride.
In January 1788, a meeting of the mechanics and artisans of Boston passed a series of resolutions urging the importance of adopting the Federal Constitution pending at the time before a convention of delegates from around Massachusetts.
The building was demolished in 1832.
[5] A warehouse was subsequently built in its place.[2] On August 19, 1892, a commemorative plaque was placed:[5]
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