Along the Freedom Trail just past Faneuil Hall, and just across the street from the Union Oyster House you’ll find the New England Holocaust Memorial.
The 6 glass towers rising high stand out from Boston’s revolutionary story. And the 6 is significant. 6 represents the 6 million Jews murdered during the holocaust. The 6 main death camps. And 6 years of the holocaust.
Each of the towers represents a concentration camp.
Belzec
Auschwitz
Sobibor
Majdanek
Trebinka
Chelmno
Each tower has numbers printed on the glass. Each number represents a number tattooed onto each victim of the holocaust. During a sunny day their shadows cover your skin.
Below the grates you’ll see lights. As you walk steam rises from the ground. This represents the flames of the of the incinerators. The gas chambers.
During the Holocaust 11 million died in camps including 1.5 million children. In Poland alone 3 million Jews died, that was 90% of the Polish Jewish community.
The term “Holocaust” comes from old English, meaning destruction. But the Holocaust was not always known as the Holocaust. It was not until Meryl Streep’s TV mini-series, Holocaust, that aired in 1978, that the Holocaust was commonly known as the Holocaust.
Learn more about the New England Holocaust Memorial and its story on our solo, smart phone navigated tour of the Freedom Trail, Part 1, Revolutionary Boston.
On the tour you’ll see the Freedom Trail classics along with JFK’s residence, Ben Franklin’s Birthplace, the burial spot of Sam Adams and Paul Revere. Learn more by on the WalknTours app, available on the App Store and Google Play.
The WalknTours app offers solo tours navigated by your smart phone. Go at your own pace, on your own schedule and on your own terms. It's like a real life tour guide, only it's on your phone, way more convenient and a better story teller. Now available in Boston, Charleston, Savannah, Salem, New Orleans, Portsmouth NH and Portland OR.
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