Widening Chardon Street
Before the City of Boston widened Chardon Street in the 1930s to develop the area around Haymarket Square, West Enders voiced their support for widening the street on a grassroots level.
Read article
Topic: City Planning
City planning and design, built environments, urban planners, parks, roads
Charles Bulfinch
Charles Bulfinch is regarded as the first American-born architect. He rose to prominence designing public buildings, including the Boston State House and US Capitol Building, and was a West Boston native whose designs still dominate the historic portions of the West End today.
Harrison Gray Otis and Sally Foster Otis
Harrison & Sally Otis Harrison Grey Otis was a major political and business figure in Boston during the Federalist Period. He is best known as a supporter of Charles Bulfinch, as Boston’s third mayor, and as a leader of the Hartford Convention. His wife, Sally, was a skilled socialite and hostess, who provided significant support for…
The BRA’s Apology to the West End
In 2015, Brian Golden, director of the BPDA, gave the City of Boston’s formal apology for the destruction of the old West End. He delivered the apology in a speech at The West End Museum, and his words continue to hold meaning for current debates about urban renewal powers in the city.
John Staniford
John Staniford was a New Fields (now West End) land owner and decon who lived from 1678 to 1752. He built Staniford Street and Lynde Street, and is the namesake of the former.
Ed Logue
As director of the Boston Redevelopment Authority in the 1960s, Ed Logue was the highly visible face of urban renewal in the period following the destructive and controversial redevelopment of the West End.
Jane Jacobs
Jane Jacobs was a journalist, author, and activist who argued for the prioritization of people in urban planning projects.
Thomas Hodson’s Gravel Quarry and the Reshaping of Beacon Hill
Thomas Hodson’s quarry extracted gravel from the north slope of Beacon Hill in the middle of the eighteenth century. This provoked public outrage, but the excavation of Beacon Hill for the expansion of Boston was too difficult to stop.