In July, typical afternoon highs at Faneuil Hall run around 85°F (hot). Mid-afternoon sun stands about 56° high, and the sun is up from 5:20 AM to 8:19 PM. Historic districts usually offer building shade on one side of the street as the sun moves.
See live sun & real shadows here →| January | 33°F |
| February | 35°F |
| March | 51°F |
| April | 60°F |
| May | 66°F |
| June | 78°F |
| July | 85°F |
| August | 80°F |
| September | 74°F |
| October | 63°F |
| November | 49°F |
| December | 37°F |
Historic districts usually offer building shade on one side of the street as the sun moves. See real building shadows over satellite imagery for any time of day: https://isthereshade.com/?anywhere&at=42.36,-71.05611
Around 8:19 PM local time in mid-July (it shifts through the year). Sunrise is about 5:20 AM.
Faneuil Hall · Boston, MA. Data: exact sun position; climate normals from historical weather; live forecast on the interactive view.
The marketplace around Faneuil Hall is an open-air plaza of brick and cobblestone in the middle of Boston, and open is the key word. The gathering spaces between the market buildings are paved and largely uncovered, so the shade you get comes from the buildings themselves and shifts across the plaza as the sun moves. On a summer day, which side of the open space you stand on matters.
Boston summers are moderate. Afternoon highs reach about 85°F in high summer, warm enough to notice over a long visit but short of dangerous, so the sun is more of a comfort question than a safety one here. Out on the brick and stone of the marketplace, though, the paving soaks up heat and there is little overhead cover, so the open plaza feels warmer than a shaded street would at the same temperature.
By 3 PM the sun sits about 56 degrees up and comes from the west-southwest, so the market buildings throw their shadows toward the east-northeast. That gives you a shaded strip along one side of the plaza and full sun on the other, and the line between them slides through the afternoon. Days are long in July, with sunrise near 5:20 AM and sunset around 8:19 PM.
The practical move at Faneuil Hall is to read the buildings and stand where their shadows fall:
Stepping inside the market halls and the surrounding shops is the simplest way to get out of the sun entirely, and it doubles as a break from the heat. To see how the buildings cast shadow across the marketplace through the day, the satellite shadow view shows the layout from above.
Mornings are the coolest and least crowded time in the marketplace, with the low sun throwing long shadows across the plaza and the brick still cool from the night. The midday and early-afternoon hours are the brightest and busiest, when the open spaces get full sun and you will want to stick to the shaded side of the buildings or duck indoors. Late afternoon eases as the sun drops toward the west and the shadows stretch back across the plaza.
At 85°F this is manageable heat, but a long, wandering visit on open pavement in full sun still adds up, so carry water on the hottest days, wear a hat, and use the market halls as shade breaks. The shoulder seasons are lovely here, with spring and fall afternoons in the 60s making the open plaza comfortable at any hour. Whenever you visit Faneuil Hall, watch which way the buildings throw their shadows, follow the shaded side of the marketplace, and step inside when the sun is at its highest.