Massachusetts

When it comes to New England, many of the places most often noted are in Massachusetts. Boston is the region's largest city. Harvard is its best known institution of higher learning. Cape Cod is its best known beach destination. The American Revolution began there with the "shot heard round the world" and some of the country's best sports teams play in or near Boston.

With its coastline jutting out into the Atlantic Ocean, Massachusetts also has long been a center for shipping and the fishing industry. The island of Nantucket is almost synonymous with the whaling industry of the 19th century while modern-day Boston has become a home for the high tech industry, partly because of the state's "other" major university, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).

History

Every school child who paid any attention in history class knows all about Boston's historic past. The number and importance of the Colonial and Revolutionary War historical sites and monuments in Boston alone are too numerous to mention. From the dumping of tea barrels into Boston Harbor in protest to high British taxes to early skirmishes between Patriot militia and the "Red Coats," the state was at the center of America's first war.

In addition to the fight for American independence, Massachusetts also was a center for racial diversity. One of the tourist attractions in Boston is the Black Heritage Trail, a walking tour through the heart of Boston that lists many of the early accomplishments of Negroes in the New World, including the oldest black church in America.

Natural Beauty

The state has more to offer than just historical sites. Cape Cod is home to a vast array of beaches. Over its some 560 miles of coast, Cape Cod includes the homes of rich, famous, and powerful and many other more modest locales. The area is full of small towns and fishing villages. Few places in the country are better for finding a seafood restaurant, particularly if one has a taste for clam chowder.

The ocean attractions are not all the state has to offer. Although Massachusetts's nickname is "the Bay State," the lands to the western part also attract many tourists. Pioneer Valley and the Berkshires are home to mountains, rivers, and lakes of tremendous natural beauty.

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