Quincy Motor Tour, Part 1

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Prologue:

Several years earlier, arctacuda and I journey to Quincy in search of a specific store.

Me (driving through downtown): I don’t like it here.

***

The Present Day. Arctacuda and I doing the Quincy Motor Tour.

Me (driving through downtown): I don’t like it here.

Arctacuda: That’s what you said last time we were here.

Me: We’ve been here before?

Arctacuda: Yes.

Me: Huh. Well, at least I’m consistent!



The start of the trip! Arctacuda and I had breakfast at Bickford’s before heading off. Bickford’s is a New England chain known for its apple pancakes, which are oven-baked and DELICIOUS. That is the remainder of mine. (They’re huge.) Sustenance for the coming journey!





The Bickford’s is in a sketchy plaza, as you can see. But it’s the only Bickford’s in the area, so we had no choice, as I really wanted an apple pancake. However:



On the highway, off to Quincy! (Shot through my filthy windshield.)

1. Adams and Son



Located at the edge of Merrymount Park (so I guess that’s where Merrymount comes in). It kind of does what it says on the tin.



World War II monument, which obviously did not exist when the 1937 post was published. This is a very dramatic monument.



Also, all around it were the most fascinating memorial bricks.







John Adams and John Quincy Adams would be so proud!



Yeah, we were lost. What I mainly take away from this picture is: I was in need of a manicure.

2. Squaw Rock



Oops, sorry, we couldn’t go to Squaw Rock! We have no idea what the deal is here and why it was closed off. Arctacuda wanted me to ask, but I thought it looked sketchy for me to say that we wanted to gain access because a book from 1937 told us a crazy story about Squaw Rock, and I have my law license to worry about, so I was a coward and drove us to a parking lot nearby, where we took a photo of what we assume is Squaw Rock:



Anyway, if we could have reached Squaw Rock, here is what we would have seen: a rock. Where, apparently, an Indian fell into the sea once. According to the book, the area surrounding the rock was known as Squaw Tumble, which eventually evolved into Squan-Tum. There is another story, however, that the rock is called Squaw Rock because it looks like an Indian profile, and that the name Squantum came from “the Englishman’s friend” Squanto, and was named this by Governor Winthrop. This is one of history’s mysteries that arctacuda and I did not solve. We did, however, conclude that Squaw Rock is now closed to the public because of aliens.

Oh, and apparently behind the rock is a hill of “Roxbury puddingstone, an interesting conglomerate found in the environs of Boston.”

In the absence of getting to view Squaw Rock, I give you dramatic views of this frozen body of water!





Oh, and the Prudential from across the water:





We think Chickatawbut probably disagrees about the status of the treaty.

3. Colonel Josiah Quincy House



Built in 1770, in 1937 it was a “square yellow house with white block quoins and pillared portico.” Until the middle of the nineteenth century, it was a farmhouse “surrounded by rolling pasture.” No longer. Today, it’s located in this totally random neighborhood. For instance, this is what’s across the street:



Josiah Quincy, who lived from 1709 to 1784, was a shipbuilder, but, at the age of 40, he decided to retire to the country. He was the father of Josiah Quincy, Jr., “who horrified his parent by his defense of the British soldiers involved in the Boston Massacre.” A third Josiah Quincy later inherited the house, “who was successively Mayor of Boston, Congressman, and President of Harvard College.” There’s an accomplished life for you.

4. Vassal-Adams Mansion

MASSIVE CONFUSION trying to locate this. What you should know is this: Quincy fails at labeling things. Sure, the houses have historical plaques in front of them, but they don’t have names. And the 1937 book doesn’t give addresses. We tried to guess at this mansion based on the book’s description but we didn’t do very well. It could be this one:



Because it’s a white clapboard house, which the book told us we were looking for. But it didn’t have the right number of chimneys. This house did:



So, one of those houses was built in 1731, was lived in by John Adams and John Quincy Adams, and remained in the Adams family until 1927. And one of them is a private residence whose inhabitants probably called the Quincy police as I was darting around their yard taking photographs.

TO BE CONTINUED...