Beacon Hill is one of Boston’s oldest and most exclusive neighborhoods. Beacon Hill got its name because early settlers placed a beacon there, which they used as a call to arms for invaders – like the Redcoats. When the Puritans came to the Beacon Hill area it had three hills, which they called “trimount” (which was the basis for naming a main street ‘Tremont”). The three hills were later leveled and used as landfill for lower-lying areas. In the 1700s residents would graze their sheep on the Boston Common. Beacon Hill became home to a new state house designed by the legendary architect Charles Bulfinch and built in 1795. Beacon Hill’s official website is www.boston.gov/neighborhood/beacon-hill