The Common

The area that would become the Lynn Common was dense with trees when the first settlers came to Lynn in 1629. This area was so congested that it was not suitable for farming.

This early post card (1900's) in sepia tone (brownish color) shows the band stand in the background, the fountain in the middle as well as a utility building.

The Frog Pond had a central fountain that would later be electrified by General Electric as electricity became popular at the turn of the century. The shape of the Common would be redesigned to that of a shoe in the late 1800's to celebrate Lynn's being the shoe capital of the world.

The Band Stand would be a popular spot for Sunday afternoon concerts. Abolitionist Frederick Douglass, who lived in Lynn for several years, spoke of his life as a slave during an anti-slavery meeting at this location in 1845. Today the Band Stand is named after Frederick Douglass.