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78 City of Worcester: 300 Years Numerous musical performances take advantage of the outstanding acoustics in Mechanics Hall. source: Mechanics Hall John Green's pocketbook 1766 Three physicians - all named John Green - f rom successive generations, played a large role, both in the development of Worcester as a town (and then a city) and in the advancement of medicine in Worcester. It all began just west of Worcester in Leicester where in the early eighteenth-century Rev. Thomas Green established the First Baptist Church. In addition to being a preacher, Thomas Green had also been trained informally in medicine and surgery by two men who had been boarders. As a result of this training, and further study on his own, his practice thrived as did his church. He actually began teaching others the practice of medicine as there were no medical schools in Massachusetts before Harvard Medical School was established in 1782. Over the course of his career, he was responsible for training over 100 doctors. One of his sons, John Green, was trained by him in medicine and moved to Worcester in 1757 at age 21 to practice. His father had purchased several hundred acres for him to build a home on the outskirts of town in what is now Green Hill Park. The first John Green also built an office on Main Street, just down f rom the Courthouse and began his practice. Worcester at that time had a population of less than 2,000. His office was in one of only seven houses located on Main Street, which ran f rom what is now Lincoln Square to the Town Square where City Hall now is. John Green married twice and had 12 children. One of these twelve was John Green, Jr., who he trained in medicine. Father and son practiced together until the father's death in 1799 at age 63. B. Dale Magee, MD The Arts In Worcester Like the visual arts, the performing arts have long flourished in Worcester, thanks to a number of major venues constructed during the 19th and 20th century. Major theaters and auditoriums, such as the Franklin Square Theatre (1904) -- now Hanover Theatre -- Worcester Memorial Auditorium (1933), and the Centrum (1982), have provided spaces for performances ranging from live acts to film. A wide variety of galleries and performance venues, including those at the various colleges and the new Jean McDonough Arts Center (JMAC), continue to give today's artists a variety of opportunities. Also noteworthy is the community's program of public art, including POW! WOW! Worcester, which draws artists from around the world to create large-scale murals throughout the city. Finally, not to be overlooked, are Worcester's many fine examples of architecture, which add beauty to and help tell the fascinating history of New England's second largest city. Preservation Worcester, founded in 1969, has as its mission the safeguarding of the best of these structures and encouraging excellence in future design. Thanks to generations of generous and culturally minded community leaders, the arts are today among Worcester's greatest assets. The Worcester Cultural Coalition, established in 1999, assists in coordinating the many activities of this rich array of cultural and educational organizations, all of which make Worcester a special place. n James A. Welu From the Worcester Historical Museum collection.