south-westerly
corner of Centre and Allandale streets, near the famous mineral springs.
It was kept by Capt. Samuel Childs, who led the minutemen company of
the third parish in the Lexington battle. It was purchased in 1794, with
forty acres adjoining, by the patriot Samuel Adams, and he occupied it
during his gubernatorial term as a summer residence, and afterward until
the close of his honorable life.

On the north-west corner of Washington and Vernon streets, where Diamond
block now stands, there formerly stood an old house, which was occupied
in 1805 as the Old Red Tavern, kept by Martin Pierce.

The City Hotel was built of brick in 1804, and stood near the north-west
corner of Washington and Zeigler streets, and was the mansion of George
Zeigler. It ceased to be a public house about a third of a century ago.

Taft's Tavern stood at the north-west corner of Washington and South
streets, near the Roslindale station, on the Dedham Branch railway. It
was built in 1805, and first kept by Sharp & Dunster, and was long
famous for good dinners. The widow of Samuel Burrill kept it during the
War of 1813-1815. It is now the Roslindale Hotel.

The Norfolk House was built in 1781, and was the mansion of Joseph
Ruggles, a well-known lawyer of that day. His uncle Joseph kept an inn
in Roxbury in 1765. After the decease of Capt. Nathaniel Ruggles the
mansion was the residence of Hon. David A. Simmons, who sold it to the
Norfolk House Company in 1825, and it was opened in the following year
as a public house, a large brick addition having been built containing a
hall for public assemblies, known at first as Highland Hall,
subsequently as Norfolk Hall, which, in 1853, was moved to the rear. The
old mansion now stands on the north side of Norfolk street, and is
occupied as a tenement-house. It was the starting-point of the Roxbury
hourly coaches, which began running to the Old South Church on the first
of March, 1826; fare, twelve and a half cents. It ceased to be a public
house a generation ago, and became the pioneer of that large class of
domestic and social comforts designated as "family hotels," no less than
sixty of which now stand where, half a century ago, the tide ebbed and
flowed.

In 1635 Robert Long with his wife and ten children arrived from
Dunstable (Eng.) at Charlestown, and in 1638 purchased the so-called
"Great House," originally erected by Thomas Graves for the governor's
residence, for court-meetings, and pu