35-500: Back Bay is an officially recognized neighborhood of Boston , Massachusetts , built on reclaimed land in the Charles River basin. Construction began in 1859, as the demand for luxury housing exceeded the availability in the city at the time, and the area was fully built by around 1900. It is most famous for its rows of Victorian brownstone homes—considered one of the best preserved examples of 19th-century urban design in
70-585: A 35-car train carrying gravel and other fill arrived every 45 minutes, day and night. When the Needham gravel pits were exhausted, additional fill was found in Canton, Dedham, Hyde Park, and Westwood. William Dean Howells recalled "the beginnings of Commonwealth Avenue, and the other streets of the Back Bay, laid out with their basements left hollowed in the made land, which the gravel trains were yet making out of
105-615: A million people attend the Boston Pops concert and fireworks display held there every Independence Day . The Hatch Shell also hosts free public concerts and movies, and special events—walkathons, races, and festivals such as Earth Day —that draw hundreds of thousands of additional spectators each year. Sailing on the Charles began in the 1930s, and the boathouse on the Esplanade was built in 1941. Organized in 1946, Community Boating
140-902: A political and cultural organizing mechanism. The City of Boston's Office of Neighborhood Services has designated 23 Neighborhoods in the city: The islands in Boston Harbor are administered as part of the Boston Harbor Islands National Recreation Area . The Boston Redevelopment Authority , the City Parking Clerk, and the City's Department of Neighborhood Development have also designated their own neighborhoods. Unofficially, Boston has many overlapping neighborhoods of various sizes. Neighborhood associations have formed around smaller communities or commercial districts (often with "Square" in
175-490: A predominantly Irish-American neighborhood, which hosts the city's annual St. Patrick's Day parade. South of Roxbury, Jamaica Plain and Dorchester are the neighborhoods of Mattapan, Roslindale, Hyde Park and West Roxbury. Roslindale is known for its small business district and includes the smaller side of the Arnold Arboretum. Roslindale has also recently become a majority-minority neighborhood. Mattapan remains
210-552: A remnant of older Italians, and is the site of Logan International Airport . On the north bank of the Charles River is Charlestown ; once a predominantly Irish enclave and site of the Bunker Hill Monument, it is now a home for young professionals. West of downtown are the neighborhoods of Fenway Kenmore, Allston, Brighton, Longwood and Mission Hill. Fenway Kenmore borders the campus of Boston University and houses many college students and young professionals and
245-400: Is Boston's largest neighborhood and predominantly a working class community considered to be Boston's most diverse. Roxbury is populated largely by African Americans, Caribbean Americans and Latinos and is historically the center of Boston's black community. Jamaica Plain is a community of white professionals and Latinos, and includes the larger side of the Arnold Arboretum. South Boston is
280-691: Is also considered a fashionable shopping destination (especially Newbury and Boylston Streets , and the adjacent Prudential Center and Copley Place malls) and home to several major hotels. The Neighborhood Association of the Back Bay considers the neighborhood's bounds to be " Charles River on the North; Arlington Street to Park Square on the East; Columbus Avenue to the New York New Haven and Hartford right-of-way (South of Stuart Street and Copley Place ), Huntington Avenue , Dalton Street, and
315-705: Is listed on the National Register of Historic Places , and is considered one of the best-preserved examples of 19th-century urban architecture in the United States. In 1966, the Massachusetts Legislature, "to safeguard the heritage of the city of Boston by preventing the despoliation" of the Back Bay, created the Back Bay Architectural District to regulate exterior changes to Back Bay buildings. Since
350-463: Is the center of the city's LGBT population and also populated by artists and young professionals as well as a vibrant African American community. The North End retains an Italian flavor with its many Italian restaurants, though many of its Italian families have moved out, while young professionals have moved in. The Back Bay is west of the Public Garden , and Beacon Hill is the site of
385-496: Is the location of Fenway Park . Allston and Brighton are populated heavily by students from nearby universities, as well as recent graduates. Mission Hill is an ethnically diverse neighborhood, adjacent to the Longwood area, which is full of world-class medical institutions. South of downtown are the neighborhoods of Roxbury, Jamaica Plain, Dorchester, Mid Dorchester and South Boston. Dorchester , including Mid Dorchester,
SECTION 10
#1732765903286420-776: The Back Bay area of the city, on the south bank of the Charles River Basin . The limited-access parkway Storrow Drive forms the southern boundary of the park, with the Charles River marking the northern edge. In the park are walkways, statuary, the Hatch Memorial Shell performance stage, playgrounds, ballfields, and Community Boating . The Esplanade comprises part of the Charles River Reservation state park. The Esplanade
455-697: The Charles River Dam in 1910 converted the former Charles estuary into a freshwater basin; the Charles River Esplanade was constructed to allow residents to enjoy the view of the new lagoon. The Esplanade has since undergone several changes, including the construction of Storrow Drive . The Back Bay is traversed by five east–west corridors: Beacon Street , Marlborough Street, Commonwealth Avenue , Newbury Street and Boylston Street . These are interrupted at regular intervals by north–south streets named alphabetically: Arlington (along
490-570: The Harvard Bridge ) and connected with Frederick Law Olmsted 's Emerald Necklace system of parks and open spaces. To address criticism, trees, a refreshment pavilion, and concerts were brought to the park. The Esplanade went through a major expansion from 1928 to 1936, widening and lengthening the park land. These improvements were aided by a $ 1 million donation from Helen Osborne Storrow , in memory of her husband James . The Storrow Memorial Embankment, designed by Arthur Shurcliff , added
525-584: The Massachusetts State House . The Back Bay and Beacon Hill are also home to national and local politicians, famous authors and top business leaders and professionals. Bay Village is one of the smallest neighborhoods in Boston and mostly contains Greek Revival -style row houses. North and east of downtown are the neighborhoods of East Boston and Charlestown. East Boston has a majority of Hispanics, Brazilians, and young professionals, with
560-681: The Massachusetts Turnpike on the South; Charlesgate East on the West." Before its transformation into buildable land by a 19th-century filling project, the Back Bay was a bay, west of the Shawmut Peninsula (on the far side from Boston Harbor ) between Boston and Cambridge , the Charles River entering from the west. This bay was tidal: the water rose and fell several feet over the course of each day, and at low tide much of
595-533: The 1960s, the Esplanade was linked to Herter Park in Brighton , and other upstream parks, with the construction of the Dr. Paul Dudley White Bike Path. This 18-mile (29 km) loop travels along the entire basin on both the north and south banks of the river, and makes it especially suitable for biking , inline skating , and running . The Esplanade is isolated from the nearby Boston neighborhoods by Storrow Drive ,
630-578: The 1960s, the concept of a High Spine has influenced large-project development in Boston, reinforced by zoning rules permitting high-rise construction along the axis of the Massachusetts Turnpike , including air rights siting of buildings. Copley Square features Trinity Church , the Boston Public Library , the John Hancock Tower , and numerous other notable buildings. Prominent cultural and educational institutions in
665-857: The Back Bay include: Back Bay is served by the Green Line's Arlington , Copley , Hynes Convention Center , and Prudential stations, and the Orange Line's Back Bay station (which is also an MBTA Commuter Rail and Amtrak station). According to the 2012–2016 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, the largest ancestry groups in ZIP Codes 02115 and 02116 are: 42°21′4.66″N 71°4′49.28″W / 42.3512944°N 71.0803556°W / 42.3512944; -71.0803556 ( Back Bay, Boston ) Neighborhoods in Boston Boston's diverse neighborhoods serve as
700-501: The Boston Harbor Islands) and 64 Neighborhood Statistical Areas (with four areas further subdivided). These correspond roughly with the neighborhoods and sub-neighborhoods of Boston. Unofficially, Boston is made up of approximately 105 neighborhoods. Lists of neighborhoods Neighborhood guides Charles River Esplanade The Charles River Esplanade of Boston , Massachusetts , is a state-owned park situated in
735-464: The United States—as well as numerous architecturally significant individual buildings, and cultural institutions such as the Boston Public Library , and Boston Architectural College . Initially conceived as a residential-only area, commercial buildings were permitted from around 1890, and Back Bay now features many office buildings, including the John Hancock Tower , Boston's tallest skyscraper. It
SECTION 20
#1732765903286770-545: The adjacent Fenway neighborhood with Ipswich, Jersey, and Kilmarnock Streets. West of Hereford are Massachusetts Avenue (a regional thoroughfare crossing the Harvard Bridge to Cambridge and far beyond) and Charlesgate , which forms the Back Bay's western boundary. Setback requirements and other restrictions, written into the lot deeds of the newly filled Back Bay, produced harmonious rows of dignified three- to five-story residential brownstones (though most along Newbury Street are now in commercial or mixed use). The Back Bay
805-466: The bay's bed was exposed as a marshy flat. As early as 5,200 years before present, Native Americans built fish weirs here, evidence of which was discovered during subway construction in 1913 ( see Ancient Fishweir Project and Boylston Street Fishweir ). In 1814, the Boston and Roxbury Mill Corporation was chartered to construct a milldam , which would also serve as a toll road connecting Boston to Watertown , bypassing Boston Neck . The dam prevented
840-498: The development of major projects in the area. The plan of Back Bay, by Arthur Gilman of the firm Gridley James Fox Bryant , was greatly influenced by Haussmann's renovation of Paris . It featured wide, parallel, tree-lined avenues unlike anything seen in other Boston neighborhoods. Five east–west corridors— Beacon Street (closest to the Charles), Marlborough Street, Commonwealth Avenue (actually two one-way thoroughfares flanking
875-649: The first lagoon , boat landings, plazas, playgrounds, and the Music Oval, where a temporary bandshell was placed. The summer of 1929 was the first year Arthur Fiedler and the Boston Pops performed on the Esplanade. In 1941, the construction of the Hatch Memorial Shell gave the Pops, and a wide range of other artists and performers, a first-class stage for popular summer events. In the 2000s, half
910-474: The largest areas. Downtown Boston includes Downtown Crossing , the Financial District and Government Center . Surrounding downtown are the neighborhoods of Chinatown/Leather District, South End, North End, West End, Bay Village, Beacon Hill and Back Bay. Chinatown / Leather District is the historical garment district and today has thriving Chinese and other Asian populations. The South End
945-565: The name) that have a well-defined center but poorly identified extremities. As the city of Boston has grown and evolved, its neighborhoods have changed as well. The names of the West End, North End and South End refer to their positions on the Shawmut Peninsula , the original extent of Boston. Due to the annexation of surrounding communities, those neighborhoods are no longer at those geographic extremities. The Back Bay and Bay Village neighborhoods were formerly part of an actual bay , becoming
980-464: The natural tides from flushing sewage out to sea, creating severe sanitary and odor problems. With costs higher and power lower than expected, in the end, the project was an economic failure, and in 1857 a massive project was begun to "make land" by filling the area enclosed by the dam. The firm of Goss and Munson extended railroad lines to quarries in Needham, Massachusetts , 9 miles (14 km) away;
1015-686: The neighborhood with Boston's highest concentrations of African Americans. Hyde Park and West Roxbury have a distinct suburban feel, while still being a part of the city of Boston. Both neighborhoods have large areas of wooded parks and recreation land. Hyde Park is populated largely by African Americans and Caribbean Americans, whereas West Roxbury is predominantly white, but with rapidly growing African American, Middle Eastern and Latino populations. The 23 official neighborhoods in Boston are made up of approximately 84 sub-districts, squares and neighborhoods within each official neighborhood. The Boston Redevelopment Authority defines 16 planning districts (plus
1050-399: The neighborhoods they are today after landfill projects expanded the size of the city. Brighton (including Allston), Charlestown, Dorchester (including South Boston, Mid Dorchester, Mattapan and Hyde Park), Roxbury (including West Roxbury, Roslindale and Jamaica Plain), have all at some point been municipalities independent from downtown Boston, providing a source of well-defined boundaries for
1085-410: The tree-lined pedestrian Commonwealth Avenue Mall), Newbury Street and Boylston Street —are intersected at regular intervals by north–south cross streets: Arlington (along the western edge of the Public Garden ), Berkeley, Clarendon, Dartmouth, Exeter, Fairfield, Gloucester, and Hereford. An 1874 guidebook noted the trisyllabic-disyllabic alternation of that alphabetic sequence; the series continues in
Back Bay, Boston - Misplaced Pages Continue
1120-481: The western border of the Boston Public Garden ), Berkeley, Clarendon, Dartmouth, Exeter, Fairfield, Gloucester and Hereford Streets. All of the west–east streets, except Commonwealth Avenue, are one-way streets. In the 1960s, the " High Spine " design plan, in conjunction with development plans, gave way to the construction of high-rise buildings along the Massachusetts Turnpike , which in turn allowed
1155-479: The westward hills." Present-day Back Bay itself was filled by 1882; the project reached existing land at what is now Kenmore Square in 1890, and finished in the Fens in 1900. Much of the old mill dam remains buried under present-day Beacon Street. The project was the largest of a number of land reclamation projects which, beginning in 1820, more than doubled the size of the original Shawmut Peninsula. Completion of
1190-677: Was designated as a Boston Landmark by the Boston Landmarks Commission in 2009. The Esplanade was originally dedicated as the Boston Embankment in 1910. The Embankment was created as part of the construction of the 1910 Charles River Dam Bridge (today the site of the Museum of Science). The parkland was criticized for its lack of shade trees, refreshment stands, recreation facilities, transportation utility, and visitors. It extended to Charlesgate (upstream of
1225-405: Was the country's first public boating program. For a modest fee, thousands of people have learned to sail on the Charles River. The next major change to the Esplanade began in 1949, with the construction of Storrow Drive. To make up for park land lost to the new road, additional islands including multiple paths were built along the Esplanade, also designed by Arthur Shurcliff and his son Sydney. In
#285714