Like most other cities and towns in New England, Boston was named after another city across the sea in old England. The English city was originally named “Boltophston” after Saint Botolph, and orthodox preacher in England. Boston came from a shortening of “Boltophston.” Boston, Lincolnshire, home to many of new Boston’s early Puritan settlers, provided the naming roots for Boston, Massachusetts.

While some may believe the city got this label because it flourished with beans, we can’t give all the credit to the magical fruit. It was actually an overabundance of molasses made from sugar traded from the West Indies that contributed to the early colonial obsession with Boston Baked Beans. The dish is no longer popular in the area and restaurants rarely serve it as a specialty.

Used more as an historic tag, this term best describes its cultural and literal prosperity of the late 19th Century. The area had a huge role in birthing and growing of modern America. Events like the Revolution-sparking Boston Tea Party of 1773 changed American history forever, while marvelous projects like the Big Dig are signs of future growth and development.

In a novel he wrote in 1858, Cambridge-born author and philosopher Oliver Wendell Holmes described the Massachusetts State House as the “Hub of the Solar System.” As society in Boston developed, the nickname developed into an even greater brand – “The Hub of the Universe.” The term of reference, shortened to “The Hub,” is seldom used today in daily conversation.

A combination of small, safe neighborhoods and an effective public transportation system has helped deem Boston the friendliest walker city in the country. No doubt is walking the easiest and cheapest way to get around, but being able to avoid endless traffic jams and having to not search parking spots often makes walking the quickest mode of moving. As for taking an historic tour around the old town, forget about tour buses and trolleys. A march along the Freedom Trail will guide you - free of charge - around most of the sites you’ll want to visit.