1895 MarketMuseum former building Boston MarketSq

The Market Museum (1804-1822) of

Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...

Massachusetts Massachusetts (Massachusett language, Massachusett: ''Muhsachuweesut assachusett writing systems, məhswatʃəwiːsət'' English: , ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is the most populous U.S. state, state in the New England ...

, was located in Market Square, adjacent to

Faneuil Hall Faneuil Hall ( or ; previously ) is a marketplace and meeting hall located near the waterfront and today's Government Center, in Boston, Massachusetts. Opened in 1742, it was the site of several speeches by Samuel Adams, James Otis, and others ...

. Phillip Woods directed the enterprise. Also called the Boston Museum, it featured displays of "wax figures, pictures, natural and fanciful curiosities -- such as have not been exhibited in this town before" and was "opened for the inspection of the public every day, from 9 o'clock in the morning until 9 in the evening." Among the highlights advertised: "the Magical Deotric, which represents a variety of elegant views of the most populous cities on the globe;" " Nairne's new patent electrical machine;" "performance of the

phantasmagoria Phantasmagoria (, also fantasmagorie, fantasmagoria) was a form of horror theatre that (among other techniques) used one or more magic lanterns to project frightening images, such as skeletons, demons, and ghosts, onto walls, smoke, or semi- ...

, or German ghosts;" "the great elephant Horatio;" "grand

cosmorama A cosmorama is an exhibition of perspective pictures of different places in the world, usually world landmarks. Careful use of illumination and lenses gives the images greater realism. Cosmorama was also the name of an entertainment in 19th cent ...

Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-most populous city in Canada and List of towns in Quebec, most populous city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian ...

& its environs;" "live alligator;" "a young whale, just brought in from sea;" "live bear;" 80-foot-long "skin of the sea-elephant;" pictorial "likenesses of generals

Washington Washington commonly refers to: * Washington (state), United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A metonym for the federal government of the United States ** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered on ...

and

Green Green is the color between cyan and yellow on the visible spectrum. It is evoked by light which has a dominant wavelength of roughly 495570 Nanometre, nm. In subtractive color systems, used in painting and color printing, it is created by ...

;" "wax figures." 1821 alligator MarketMuseum BostonDailyAdvertiser Aug3

On the premises Woods sometimes sold goods such as "cement" and "electrical machines." He also treated medical problems: "Mr. Woods tenders his services to those ladies or gentlemen who stand in need of medical electricity, and would inform them that he cures the gout, rheumatic complaints, dystentary, toothache,

ague Ague may refer to: * Fever * Malaria * Agué, Benin * Duck ague, a hunting term See also * Kan Ague, a residential area of Patikul, Sulu Patikul, officially the Municipality of Patikul ( Tausūg: ''Kawman sin Patikul''; tl, Bayan ng Patikul ...

, asthma, felon or

whitlow A whitlow or felon is an infection of the tip of the finger. Herpetic whitlow and melanotic whitlow (subungual melanoma) are subtypes that are not synonymous with the term ''felon''. A felon is an "extremely painful abscess on the palmar aspect o ...

, lock-jaw, pally, quincy, ricketts, St. Vitus' Dance, and a variety of other complaints incident to the human body." The museum closed by 1822, when the newly formed New-England Museum acquired its collection.

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