"The Boys Eke Ev’ry One" - The Role of Boston Boys and Girls During Pope's Night

In our last blog post, we described some of the Pope’s Night celebrations that occurred in different seaports in 18th Century Massachusetts. Today, we’ll take a look at some of the younger male and female participants of Boston's Pope's Night.

In the days leading up to Pope’s Night, young boys from the North End and South End of Boston would go door to door ringing bells and begging for money to support their faction's activities. A period broadside, Extraordinary Verses on Pope-Night, describes the excitement of the young participants: “The little Popes, they go out First, With little teney Boys: Frolicks they are full of Gale And laughing make a Noise.” Usually the young boys would have with them hand made “little popes, dressed up in the most grotesque and fantastic manner, which they carried about, some on boards, and some on little carriages.”

During the celebration of November 5th, young boys would often use noisemakers to drown out their rivals. Period prints suggest conch shells or “Pope Horns” were the popular choice for noise makers among the young celebrants.

Older boys would also participate in Pope’s Night activities. During evening processions, these boys often donned outlandish costumes. Period accounts suggest older boys wore tall pointed hats that imitated bishops’ mitres, devil costumes covered with tar and feathers, or dressed in drag as Nancy Dawson, an English actress and dancer popular in 18th Century Massachusetts.

It is unclear if women or girls participated in Pope’s Night. The broadside Extraordinary Verses on Pope-Night also suggests Bostonian girls were encouraged by their male counterparts to join in the revelry. “The Girls run out to see the Sight, The Boys eke ev’ry one; Along they are a-dragging them, With Granadier’s Caps on.”

Unfortunately, we are unaware of any other period accounts relative to the roles of women and girls during Pope’s Night.