Art & LiteratureImmigrant NeighborhoodNew BostonUrban Renewal A black and white photograph of a man standing behind a movie camera with destroyed buildings in the background.

Charles Frani: Photographers of the West End’s Demolition, Part I

Charles J. “Frani” Zanfani (1922-2001), born in Boston to Italian immigrant parents, first moved to the West End with his family in the 1950s. Displaced by the West End urban renewal project to the North Slope of Beacon Hill, Frani devoted the 1960s to meticulously photographing the destruction of the neighborhood. His photographic collection, preserved at The West End Museum, offers a poignant view into Urban Renewal and its devastating effects on the community.

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Immigrant NeighborhoodMedicineWest Boston A black and white photograph of a nineteenth-century medical laboratory, showing microscopes, vials, and other medical instruments.

Allen Street House: Early Autopsies, Morgues, and Pathology at MGH

The Allen Street House, built in 1874 at Massachusetts General Hospital, became the center of early pathology and autopsy practices in Boston. The House’s morgue, autopsy amphitheater, and laboratories were used for experiments, research, and education. For over 80 years, it served as the symbolic and functional heart of the hospital’s pathology department, shaping both clinical knowledge and medical teaching.

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