Boston, MA
Boston Urban Archive started as a hobby but turned into a way to unearth history – The Boston Globe
When I travel and visit people in other cities and states, I’ve realized that many people still don’t grasp the diversity that exists within Boston. Sometimes, I hear questions like “There are Black people in Boston?”
I actually grew up outside of Boston itself, but I would come into the city on weekends and during the summer to see my dad, who was based in Dorchester. He is from Barbados originally — and Dorchester is home to all of these Caribbean communities, which was so exciting and a culture shock to be introduced to when I visited. I loved coming here. I moved to Boston full-time when I was 12 years old and eventually enrolled as an English major with a focus on journalism at UMass Boston.
One semester, I took a music history class on hip-hop with UMass Boston professors Jeffrey Melnick and Akrobatik, who is also a well-known rapper from Boston. They brought in lots of cool artists and speakers. They also told us about this archive that existed in the campus library: the Massachusetts Hip-Hop Archive. So, I made an appointment, walked in, and there were all of these boxes and folders all around the main table. I just went to town in there for an hour and a half.
When you learn about the history of a city, you start to realize that a lot of stories eventually come full circle. They echo across generations. And as I dug through the Massachusetts Hip-Hop Archive, I was reminded that stories of Boston as this multicultural place are often untold. I couldn’t find a place online where you could even access that community history. As I kept finding all of these photos and videos — not just in the hip-hop archive but also in the Boston Public Library and Northeastern University Library, state archival databases, and television archives — I decided to create that resource online: the Boston Urban Archive.
When I launched the Boston Urban Archive’s account on Instagram in 2023, I was strategic with my approach. I wanted it to be a space that was aesthetically pleasing — very neat and organized. And I wanted to captivate people.
One of my earliest posts — which ended up getting something like a million hits — was this old video from the 1980s that featured Mark Wahlberg [a Boston-born actor and rapper] as a child. That video was a way of bringing people in and gaining traction before sharing a wider range of photos, videos, and stories from the archives. I also try to choose stories that have some connection to what is going on in the present. Recently, I posted this mid-1970s clip from a supermarket in Dorchester in which a reporter talks about rising food costs and customers are complaining about $2 steaks.
On Oct. 25, I wanted to publish something about youth in Boston. I had a video clip from 1990 of a reporter speaking with little boys at the Franklin Field housing project on the north side of Franklin Park. The reporter asks them about crime and a curfew that the city had been considering putting into place back then. I really liked the boys’ energy. They said, “Yeah, this is our neighborhood and if there’s a curfew, we’re probably not gonna abide by it, but we’re gonna be playing basketball and minding our own business.” When I heard that, I chuckled a little bit, and I decided to use that bit as the intro to another clip that showed the boys playing basketball. Within hours of posting the video on the Instagram account, all of these comments came rolling in, many of them saying the same thing: “RIP EMOE.” There were dozens of them.
So I’m like, “Who’s EMOE?” None of the video descriptions from the archive had information identifying the boys, because they were minors. But then another person commented on the post claiming to be EMoe’s cousin. So I messaged them, and I soon learned that EMoe was the nickname of the boy in the video who made the comment about staying out past curfew playing basketball. His name was Eric Paulding. And in 1997, Paulding was shot while leaving his girlfriend’s house around Franklin Park. I learned that his killing was notable because it came after a two-and-a-half-year period of no juveniles being killed in Boston. He was killed in the same neighborhood where that clip with the reporter took place seven years earlier.
Not long after Paulding’s cousin and I exchanged DMs, his aunt messaged me and said, “Thank you so much for sharing this. It was great for his grandmother to see.” That really hit a soft spot for me. The video clip was over 30 years old. When I imagined Paulding’s grandmother hearing his voice, seeing him, all these years later — I can only imagine how it made her feel.
In the beginning, I had some idea that sharing these archival videos and photos might inspire people from the community to contribute their own memories and information. But I didn’t realize how big this platform would become and that it could be a way of bringing a community together or how it would be this place where we all learn from each other. I’ve learned a lot from the comments. I posted a video of an early 1990s rap group called Joint Ventures, thinking, “Wow, this sounds like something that could’ve come out of New York.” And then the daughter of the group’s lead rapper, MC Fly Ty, commented and said, “That’s my dad! He ended up passing in ’94. Thanks for posting this.” I’ve even seen some folks reconnect with each other in the comments on certain posts! They’ll spot a familiar face, tag their friends, and say, “Oh my gosh, isn’t that Miss So-and-so from when we were kids?”
The Boston Urban Archive began as a hobby, but now it’s opened doors. People watch these videos, study these photos, and ask about the people in them: “Where are they now? What happened to them?”
As a journalist and a writer, I want to be able to answer those questions, to give voice to stories and experiences from the community that haven’t received the recognition that I think they should.
Ebony Gill is the creator of the Boston Urban Archive, which curates archived film, newspapers, documents, and photography from Boston, with a focus on underrepresented communities in the city. Miles Howard is a freelance writer in Boston and the founder of the Walking City Trail. He publishes the weekly hiking newsletter Mind the Moss.
Brockton’s Moyzilla food truck offers up Asian comfort food on the go
Moyzilla is a jewel of MA food trucks. Founded by Jon Moy — son of Brockton culinary royalty — it offers Asian comfort food from Brockton to Boston.
Looking for a new marketplace to shop at this spring? You’re in luck – Boston is home to one of the best public markets in the country, according to USA TODAY 10BEST Readers’ Choice Awards.
The annual 10BEST awards highlight the best in travel, food and lifestyle, and winners are chosen by a public voting poll after being nominated by industry experts. In the 2026 food awards, highlighting the top food tours, food cruises, farmers markets and more from across the country, Boston Public Market ranked third in the best public market category.
Here’s what to know before you go to Boston’s top-ranked public market.
Why Boston Public Market ranked third
A year-round indoor marketplace in Downtown Boston, Boston Public Market celebrates the bounty New England has to offer with fresh groceries, prepared meals, crafts and specialty items from over 30 local artisans and food producers, with a focus on seasonal items.
Along with browsing through groceries and goods, guests are invited to join the public market for a variety of special events, including trivia, live music, magic shows and face painting.
Boston Public Market is located at 100 Hanover St. on the Rose Fitzgerald Kennedy Greenway, directly above the Haymarket MBTA station. Hours are 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sunday, 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday and Tuesday or 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Wednesday through Saturday.
What other markets made the list?
Here is USA TODAY’s full ranking of the top 10 public markets in the country:
- Reading Terminal Market – Philadelphia, PA
- Milwaukee Public Market – Milwaukee, WI
- Boston Public Market – Boston, MA
- Eastern Market – Detroit, MI
- West Side Market – Cleveland, OH
- Essex Market – New York City, NY
- Lancaster Central Market – Lancaster, PA
- Midtown Global Market – Minneapolis, MN
- Grand Central Market – Los Angeles, CA
- North Market Downtown – Columbus, OH
The Green Line B branch trains will not run between Kenmore and Boston College through April 30, according to the MBTA.
The nine-day outage will allow T officials to work on several infrastructure improvements and maintenance, the installation of Green Line Train Protection System (GLTPS) infrastructure, replacement of 130-year-old wooden overhead catenary wire “trough” near the Green Line portals and more.
The MBTA announced free, accessible shuttle buses between the two stops, Kenmore and Boston College during the outage. The buses will not stop at Griggs Street, Allston Street, and Packard’s Corner due to “accessibility issues,” T officials said.
During the weekend of April 25 and 26, the outage will extend through Copley, and shuttle buses will skip Griggs Street, Allston Street, and Packard’s Corner during the same weekend.
Throughout the shutdown all Green Line frequency will be reduced between Copley and Government center.
The MBTA urged riders to use the Orange Line at Back Bay during the outage. The agency also noted riders can transfer to Copley from Back Bay, an approximately five-minute walk.
The route 57 bus will also be free from April 22 through 24 and April 27 through 30 for alternate service between Kenmore and Packard’s Corner, the MBTA stated. During the April 25 and 26 weekend, the T noted the bus will not be a good alternate with not Green Line service at Kenmore.
During the shutdown, riders taking shuttle buses should budget extra travel time, the T said.
“For example, a rider travelling to Park Street from Boston College should budget at least an additional 10 minutes of travel in additional to their regular commute,” the MBTA stated.
More information is available on-site through transit ambassadors and T staff, virtually through T-Alerts or following the MBTA on X @MBTA, or via the mbta.com/GreenLine.
Tyrese Maxey and VJ Edgecombe combined for 59 points, and the Philadelphia 76ers looked like a completely different team against the Boston Celtics in Game 2.
And unlike Game 1, the Sixers’ defense also showed up, holding Boston to 43 second-half points and 39 percent shooting for the game in a 111-97 road win to tie this Eastern Conference first-round series at 1-1.
Edgecombe scored a team-high 30 points on 12-for-20 shooting, and Maxey added 29 points and nine assists. The Sixers’ backcourt duo combined to shoot 11-for-22 from 3-point range. The Sixers were 19-for-39 from 3 after going 4 of 23 from that distance in Game 1.
Boston was led by Jaylen Brown’s game-high 36 points, but Jayson Tatum was the only other Celtics player who scored in double figures with 19. Boston shot 13-for-50 from 3-point range.
Here are some takeaways with Game 3 set for Friday in Philadelphia.
Celtics offense falls flat
The Celtics knew to expect a different effort from the 76ers.
One adjustment from Philadelphia likely didn’t take Boston by surprise. After taking just 23 3-pointers in Game 1, the 76ers sought out more long balls in Game 2.
Maxey called his own number more often. Edgecombe was aggressive from the start. As a team, the 76ers played with more freedom, firing plenty of shots that they might have turned down in the series opener. Philadelphia made plenty of those looks while shooting 48.7 percent from behind the arc.
Still, the Celtics would have been all right if they had played their usual offensive game. Instead, their offense was their biggest issue. They shot just 39.3 percent on field goal attempts. They missed 37 of 50 3-point attempts. They committed an atypical 13 turnovers.
Trying to come back in the fourth quarter, they had too many empty offensive possessions. Jaylen Brown got blocked while trying to beat the shot clock buzzer and picked up an offensive foul while hitting Maxey in the face. Jayson Tatum missed a contested pull-up 3-pointer early in the shot clock on one possession and threw away a pass on another. Derrick White was left wide open in the left corner but couldn’t find the bottom of the net. The 76ers left the door open early in the fourth quarter by missing several shots, including a couple of layups, but the Celtics couldn’t fully capitalize. Eventually, Maxey sank a series of baskets to create more separation for Philadelphia, and the Celtics largely went away down the stretch. — Jay King, Celtics beat writer
Sixers bounce back in Boston
This is the way the 76ers have to play if they want to extend this series as far as possible.
Maxey and Edgecombe have to dominate their guard matchups, which is exactly what they did in Tuesday night’s Game 2. Paul George needs to be a deterrent to Celtics stars Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum. He doesn’t have to eclipse them, because that would be difficult. But he does have to give them a bit of pause. Most of all, the 76ers have to play the focused brand of basketball they exhibited in Game 2 rather than the sloppy and slapstick kind of hoops they played in Game 1.
The Celtics are such a good team that the above equates to near-perfect basketball. But that’s the task the Sixers are facing, particularly without star center Joel Embiid. On Tuesday night, this was a team up to the task. They were focused. They executed on both ends of the floor. They got much better play from their role players. Maxey and Edgecombe were absolutely dominant.
Overall, on both ends of the floor, this is the best game the 76ers have played in months. And they got it at just the right time. Now we have a 1-1 series heading back to Philadelphia. — Tony Jones, Sixers beat writer
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