Topic: Social & Religious Institutions
Settlement houses, churches, almshouses, women’s shelters, synagogues, priests, social workers

African AmericansSocial & Religious InstitutionsWest Boston African Meeting House, from the 1843 Boston Almanac (Museum of African American History).

Building the African Meeting House

The African Meeting House, believed to be the oldest standing Black church in America, was incorporated in 1805 and built in 1806. The building, now restored to its 1855 appearance, stands as a testament to the dedication and perseverance of the Black community on the north slope of Beacon Hill (which was at the time part of the West End). The African Baptist Church purchased the land for, fundraised for, and constructed the Meeting House in less than two years. Through this, they created a vital space for the Black community’s religious, political, and social gatherings.

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Immigrant NeighborhoodNeighborhood LifeSocial & Religious Institutions Image of a newspaper article with the headline "Reunion of the West Enders", and three photographs of a woman and two men below.

After the First Mass: West Enders at St. Joseph’s Church

St. Joseph’s Church was established in 1862 on Chambers Street in the West End, near the site of the first public Catholic mass in Boston. In the early 1900s, the St. Joseph’s Association, an organization of parishioners, hosted an annual party at the church which also held many notable funerals, marriages, and worship services. Decades after urban renewal, West Enders reunited at annual masses at St. Joseph’s to honor deceased fellow residents.

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City PlanningMedicineNeighborhood LifeNew BostonSocial & Religious InstitutionsUrban Renewal photograph of a book cover with a photograph of two boys looking out of a second-story window of a brick apartment building

Marc Fried and the Human Cost of Urban Renewal

Soon after the bulldozers of urban renewal began clearing land, experts in various fields focused on the effects of development projects and the human cost paid by affected communities, such as Boston’s West End. Marc Fried, a Harvard educated psychologist, interviewed hundreds of displaced West End residents in the late 1950’s to assess the emotional effects of relocation. The results of his work, and that of other dedicated researchers, helped turn public opinion against top-down urban renewal and inspired community activism throughout the United States.

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