37-593: The Middlesex Fells Reservation Parkways are the roadways within and bordering on the Middlesex Fells Reservation , a state park in the northern suburbs of Boston, Massachusetts , United States. The park includes portions of the towns of Malden , Medford , Melrose , Stoneham , and Winchester . The roads inside the park and around its perimeter have been listed on the National Register of Historic Places . Other portions of some of
74-427: A junction with Fellsway West. There is a parking area, with access to Wright's Pond, on this stretch of road. Fellsway West is partly a border parkway and partly internal; the border section of the parkway connects Elm Street to Roosevelt Circle. North of this junction only about 2,000 feet (610 m) of roadway are part of the original parkway design, having been extensively altered by the construction of I-93 along
111-563: A log cabin in Maine , numbered all of its parts, and brought it down to Breakheart Hill, where it was rebuilt on the shore of Lower Pond. On June 12, 1891 the retreat was officially opened. In the early 1900s, the partners increased the size of the property. The Six-Hundred Acres was also home to Breakheart Hill Farm, an 18-acre farm. It was first owned by the Hitchings family, who sold it to Thomas Houghton for $ 375 in 1830. Four years later, it
148-728: A major interchange including Interstate 93 and Fellsway West ( Massachusetts Route 28 ) in Medford, along the southwestern border of the reservation, northwest into Winchester, where it ends at a junction that includes Highland Avenue, a noncontributing road that borders the reservation on the west, and the Mystic Valley Parkway , a parkway that joins the reservation to the DCR lands of the Mystic River Reservation . There are small, mostly unpaved, parking areas on
185-531: A municipal road heading southeast, it passes through a heavily wooded section of the park before reaching its junction with the East Border Road in Malden. The roadway continues south from this junction as a connecting parkway. East Border Road runs west from its junction with Summer Street, a Malden municipal street, through the intersection with Fellsway East, along the heavily wooded southern flank of
222-488: Is a grassy area, including a parking area, that provides fine views of Spot Pond, along this stretch of road. A non-park portion of Pond Street extends north toward the center of Stoneham, while the parkway section extends south into the interior of the park, flanking the eastern shore of Spot Pond. At its junction with Woodland Road it runs eastward to a junction with Fellsway East and the Lynn Fells Parkway ,
259-760: Is managed by the Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation . Archaeological evidence shows that hunting, camping, and fishing took place along the Saugus River as far back as the Paleo-Indians and continuing through the Archaic and Woodland periods. In 1666, John Gifford, the second general agent of the Saugus Iron Works , who had left the company over a dispute with its creditors, purchased 260 acres along
296-752: Is not included in the National Register listing. The parkway provides access to the most centrally-located parking area of the reservation, the Lower Sheepfold lot. Middlesex Fells Reservation Middlesex Fells Reservation , often referred to simply as the Fells , is a public recreation area covering more than 2,200 acres (890 ha) in Malden , Medford , Melrose , Stoneham , and Winchester , Massachusetts, United States. The state park surrounds two inactive reservoirs, Spot Pond and
333-512: Is not visible from the roadway. Woodland Road is one of the two major north–south parkways through the reservation. It is a four-lane roadway with a grassy median for most of its length, running south from South Street in Stoneham to a junction with Elm Street and Highland Avenue in Medford. Its major intersections are designed as small rotaries, and it provides access to the Spot Pond area,
370-416: Is now used by dog walkers and picnickers. Breakheart Reservation Breakheart Reservation is a public recreation area covering 652 acres (264 ha) in the towns of Saugus and Wakefield , Massachusetts . The reservation features a hardwood forest, two freshwater lakes, a winding stretch of the Saugus River , and scenic views of Boston and rural New England from rocky hilltops. The park
407-562: Is offered on Dark Hollow Pond. Other facilities include picnicking areas, an observation tower, and a tot lot. A concessionaire offers sailing lessons and rentals of kayaks, canoes, pedal boats and row boats on Spot Pond during summer. Rock climbing is also popular in the Fells. Sheepfold Meadow is an open field of 10 acres (4.0 ha) located in Stoneham, Massachusetts as a part of the Middlesex Fells Reservation that
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#1732783960101444-673: The Fells Connector Parkways , which connect the park to the Mystic River Reservation in Winchester, and the Lynn Fells Parkway , connecting the park to the Breakheart Reservation in Saugus . The reservation has over 100 miles (160 km) of trails for hiking, mountain biking, cross-country skiing, and horseback riding. Trailheads are accessible from Interstate 93 at exits 24, 25, and 26. Fishing
481-615: The Metropolitan Park System of Greater Boston . The area around Middlesex Fells is known to have been explored by John Winthrop , Governor of the Massachusetts Bay Colony , in 1632. The reservation's lands have been used for the production of timber, granite, and ice. Abundant water power meant that many mills, including one that manufactured some of the first vulcanized rubber products, were located here. Remnants of early mill works are visible in
518-706: The Middlesex Fells Reservation Parkways . The park's visitor center on Woodland Road in Stoneham is in the historic John Botume House , which is not far from the 1906 Metropolitan District Commission Pumping House . Historically important archaeological sites in the park are listed as part of the Spot Pond Archeological District . Roadways connecting the park to other elements of the Metropolitan Park System are also listed; these include
555-576: The Spot Pond Archeological District , located in the Virginia Woods section, the site of the former mill village of Haywardville. The reservation was initiated in 1891 with the donation of Virginia Wood to The Trustees of Reservations by Fannie Tudor as a memorial to her daughter, Virginia. As a child Virginia loved to walk in the woods surrounding the Italianate mansion her grandfather had given her mother on Spot Pond in 1862. The property
592-614: The War of 1812 due to a decline in the demand for sailcloth ; however, the dam still exists. In 1891, Benjamin Newhall Johnson , Micajah Clough, and John Bartlett of Lynn began purchasing land in the Six-Hundred Acres for use as a hunting retreat. They created Upper Pond (today's Silver Lake) and Lower Pond (today's Pearce Lake), stocked them with fish, and named their property Breakheart Hill Forest. Johnson purchased
629-603: The Fells Reservoir, and the three active reservoirs (North, Middle, and South) that are part of the water supply system for the town of Winchester. Spot Pond and the Fells Reservoir are part of the Wachusett water system , one of six primary water systems that feed metropolitan Boston's waterworks . The park is managed by the Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation and is part of
666-626: The Metropolitan Parks Commission, predecessor organization to the Metropolitan District Commission and today's Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation (DCR). By 1897 the park had been expanded to some 3,000 acres (1,200 ha). This area included some existing roadways, which became internal roadways of the park. The border roads that surround the park followed a principle articulated by landscape designer Charles Eliot , who
703-685: The Reservation along Woodland Road in Stoneham , until it closed in February 1999. In addition to being a state park, portions of the park and structures within it are listed on the National Register of Historic Places . The entire area surrounding Spot Pond to the east of I-93 is within the Middlesex Fells Reservoirs Historic District , and the roadways in the park and on its borders are listed as
740-531: The Saugus River from Thomas Breedon of Boston for £260. He established his own iron works on the site, which closed in 1675 due to the economic downturn caused by King Philip's War . Gifford's site later housed a sawmill (1703–1740), wire-manufacturing operation (1814–1828), a snuff-grinding mill (1837–1871), and a second sawmill (1871–1902). In 1706, the land (known as the Six-Hundred Acres)
777-404: The border roads that run through parts of the reservation) are described roughly from east to west. Ravine Road is a relatively short (3,000-foot (910 m)) roadway connecting Woodland Road in the west to Fellsway East. The roadway is only 28 feet (8.5 m) wide, and is heavily forested on both sides. The ravine for which it is named contains Spot Pond Brook, and lies just to the north, but
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#1732783960101814-603: The farm until his death in 1923. In 1934, the executors for Johnson and Clough sold the Breakheart Hill Forest to the Metropolitan District Commission for $ 40,000. The MDC then turned the land over to the Civilian Conservation Corps . Over the course of six years, the CCC built roads and trails, planted trees, and restored the dams at Upper Pond and Lower Pond. The CCC's efforts resulted in
851-895: The jurisdiction of the Department of Conservation and Recreation , which also controls Lynn Fells Parkway in Melrose and Saugus. In December 2002, the Massachusetts Historical Commission voted to nominate both the Lynn Fells Parkway and the Breakheart Reservation Parkways to the Keeper of the National Register, but only the Breakheart Reservation Parkways were added to the Register that year. (The Lynn Fells Parkway
888-500: The latter a connecting parkway joining the Fells to the Breakheart Reservation . The section along the pond is four lanes wide, with opposing travel lanes separated by a wide grassy median. The northernmost section of Fellsway East runs either within or on the border of the Fells. From the junction with Pond Street in Stoneham, it runs south, forming a small miter (triangular) junction with Ravine Road, before passing, shortly afterward entering Melrose. After it passes Washington Street,
925-419: The park, to a junction with Highland Avenue, a municipal street in Medford. A short stretch of Highland runs north along the park border to a circular intersection with Woodland Road and Elm Street; this stretch of Highland is not part of the National Register listing. Elm Street continues to follow the southern flank of the park westward from the junction with Woodland Road and East Border Road, running west to
962-639: The pieces in burlap bags, drove Bailey's carriage down to Floating Bridge Pond in Lynn, and dumped the bags in the pond. After a sensational trial, Best was found guilty and executed in the electric chair at Charlestown State Prison . Bailey was succeeded as caretaker of Breakheart Hill by Henry Cole. On April 12, 1901, Cole left home and was never seen again. He and his wife had an argument before he left and she believed that he had not returned because he had tired of his family situation. After Cole's disappearance, George Parker took over as caretaker and remained on
999-438: The reservation side of the road providing access to trails. There is a small dead-end spur of the road that resulted from the construction of I-93, and there is a roughly 1-mile (1.6 km) section which runs inside the reservation as a result of land acquisitions south of the road. Hillcrest Parkway is a U-shaped road, both of whose ends are on Highland Avenue in Winchester. The parkway is, at 4,000 feet (1,200 m), one of
1036-648: The return of wildlife that had become rare in Breakheart, including beavers , fishers , coyotes , blue herons , and owls . Breakheart was opened to the public in 1936. On August 11, 2003, the Breakheart Reservation Parkways (officially registered as Breakheart Reservation Parkways-Metropolitan Park System of Greater Boston ) were added to the National Register of Historic Places . The parkways consist of Forest Street, Pine Tops Road, Elm Road, and Hemlock Road. The parkways are under
1073-417: The roads are covered by more than one listing in the national register; see Fellsway Connector Parkways and Middlesex Fells Reservoirs Historic District . The Middlesex Fells Reservation is one of the oldest and largest of the parks in the Metropolitan Park System of Greater Boston . The reservation was created in 1894 with a gift of 450 hectares (1,100 acres) of land from The Trustees of Reservations to
1110-571: The same corridor. The internal section provides access to some centrally located reservation resources; the historic border section now consists of a one-way stretch of road that runs from the northeast side of Roosevelt Circle, while a modern one-way section runs south from the Elm Street junction, over I-93, to join Roosevelt Circle at the northwest, near the junction with South Border Road. The interior parkways (excluding portions of
1147-535: The shorter parkways in the system. The west side of the parkway (the inside of the U) consists of residential properties, most of which were developed in the early 20th century; the reservation is to the east. This roadway, which does not generally carry through traffic, is only 24 feet (7.3 m) wide and is unstriped. There is a scenic view of the North Reservoir near its northern end. The Near this point there
Middlesex Fells Reservation Parkways - Misplaced Pages Continue
1184-575: The visitor center at the John Bottume House , and the Metropolitan District Commission Pumping House . The interior reservation parkway portion of Fellsway West runs north from the junction with Elm Street in Medford to a junction with North Border Road and South Street in Stoneham. Because it has been significantly altered by the construction of adjacent I-93, most of this portion of parkway
1221-540: Was divided among the male settlers. During the 18th and 19th centuries, the land remained largely unchanged. Most of the land was passed down through the same families. Most landowners resided off of the property and used the land for firewood, if at all. In 1814, a fieldstone milldam was constructed downstream from the Gifford site to provide power for the Linen and Duck Manufactory Company of Boston. The mill closed after
1258-492: Was formerly a junction with a North Border Road, which has been fragmented and rerouted in part by the construction of I-93 and partially converted to hiking trails, and is not considered part of the National Register listing. South Street runs from Main Street in Stoneham, at its junction with a newer section of North Border Road, for about 0.25 miles (0.40 km) east-southeast to a point where it merges into Pond Street. There
1295-433: Was instrumental in the preservation of the Fells, that such roads clearly delineated the bounds of the park, and provided its neighbors with pleasing views. The parkways are described here in clockwise order, beginning in the south. These roads are generally two-lane paved roads, about 30 feet (9.1 m) wide, and in some cases briefly pass through portions of the reservation. South Border Road runs from Roosevelt Circle,
1332-405: Was later donated to the Metropolitan District Commission in 1923. In 1893, the state took the property over and began managing it as a state park. At some point in the 1800s or earlier, a stone tablet was erected on Great Island, which reads "WHERE SHUTE FELL". There are several contradictory stories explaining the significance of this phrase. Boston Regional Medical Center was located within
1369-559: Was sold to Artemas Edmands for $ 400. In 1892, Edmands' grandson sold it to the Breakheart Hill Forestry, run by Johnson and his associates, for $ 1. After purchasing the land, Johnson hired George Parrott to farm the land and keep out trespassers. In 1897, Parrott was succeeded by George E. Bailey. In May 1900, Bailey hired John C. Best to assist him on the property. On October 8, 1900, after a dispute, Best shot and killed Bailey . He then dismembered Bailey's body, placed
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