Walking Tours of Boston's Made Land

Walking Tours of Boston's Made Land
Author: Nancy S. Seasholes
Publisher: MIT Press
Total Pages: 225
Release: 2006-09-18
Genre: Travel
ISBN: 0262693399

Exploring Boston's past and present: 12 walks that trace the creation of the city's man-made land in the central waterfront, Back Bay, South End, Charlestown, and elsewhere. At its founding, Boston was a small peninsula; over the last 375 years the city has doubled in size by filling in the surrounding tidal flats—areas covered with water at high tide and exposed at low. In Walking Tours of Boston's Made Land, historian Nancy Seasholes outlines twelve walks that trace where and why Boston's man-made land was created, and, along the way, uncovers fascinating and little-known pieces of Boston history. In the course of these walks—around the central waterfront, Back Bay, Beacon Hill, the South End, Charlestown, and elsewhere—she shows us how Boston's past is always just below the surface of its present. Each walk is accompanied by a map that shows the route and original shoreline. The walks are illustrated with historical maps, historical photographs and views, and current photographs. All walks are accessible by public transportation.

Gaining Ground

Gaining Ground
Author: Nancy S. Seasholes
Publisher: MIT Press
Total Pages: 553
Release: 2018-04-20
Genre: Architecture
ISBN: 0262350211

Why and how Boston was transformed by landmaking. Fully one-sixth of Boston is built on made land. Although other waterfront cities also have substantial areas that are built on fill, Boston probably has more than any city in North America. In Gaining Ground historian Nancy Seasholes has given us the first complete account of when, why, and how this land was created.The story of landmaking in Boston is presented geographically; each chapter traces landmaking in a different part of the city from its first permanent settlement to the present. Seasholes introduces findings from recent archaeological investigations in Boston, and relates landmaking to the major historical developments that shaped it. At the beginning of the nineteenth century, landmaking in Boston was spurred by the rapid growth that resulted from the burgeoning China trade. The influx of Irish immigrants in the mid-nineteenth century prompted several large projects to create residential land—not for the Irish, but to keep the taxpaying Yankees from fleeing to the suburbs. Many landmaking projects were undertaken to cover tidal flats that had been polluted by raw sewage discharged directly onto them, removing the "pestilential exhalations" thought to cause illness. Land was also added for port developments, public parks, and transportation facilities, including the largest landmaking project of all, the airport. A separate chapter discusses the technology of landmaking in Boston, explaining the basic method used to make land and the changes in its various components over time. The book is copiously illustrated with maps that show the original shoreline in relation to today's streets, details from historical maps that trace the progress of landmaking, and historical drawings and photographs.

The Atlas of Boston History

The Atlas of Boston History
Author: Nancy S. Seasholes
Publisher: University of Chicago Press
Total Pages: 225
Release: 2019-10-10
Genre: History
ISBN: 022663129X

Few American cities possess a history as long, rich, and fascinating as Boston’s. A site of momentous national political events from the Revolutionary War through the civil rights movement, Boston has also been an influential literary and cultural capital. From ancient glaciers to landmaking schemes and modern infrastructure projects, the city’s terrain has been transformed almost constantly over the centuries. The Atlas of Boston History traces the city’s history and geography from the last ice age to the present with beautifully rendered maps. Edited by historian Nancy S. Seasholes, this landmark volume captures all aspects of Boston’s past in a series of fifty-seven stunning full-color spreads. Each section features newly created thematic maps that focus on moments and topics in that history. These maps are accompanied by hundreds of historical and contemporary illustrations and explanatory text from historians and other expert contributors. They illuminate a wide range of topics including Boston’s physical and economic development, changing demography, and social and cultural life. In lavishly produced detail, The Atlas of Boston History offers a vivid, refreshing perspective on the development of this iconic American city. Contributors Robert J. Allison, Robert Charles Anderson, John Avault, Joseph Bagley, Charles Bahne, Laurie Baise, J. L. Bell, Rebekah Bryer, Aubrey Butts, Benjamin L. Carp, Amy D. Finstein, Gerald Gamm, Richard Garver, Katherine Grandjean, Michelle Granshaw, James Green, Dean Grodzins, Karl Haglund, Ruth-Ann M. Harris, Arthur Krim, Stephanie Kruel, Kerima M. Lewis, Noam Maggor, Dane A. Morrison, James C. O’Connell, Mark Peterson, Marshall Pontrelli, Gayle Sawtelle, Nancy S. Seasholes, Reed Ueda, Lawrence J. Vale, Jim Vrabel, Sam Bass Warner, Jay Wickersham, and Susan Wilson

Freedom Trail Boston - Ultimate Tour & History Guide - Tips, Secrets, & Tricks

Freedom Trail Boston - Ultimate Tour & History Guide - Tips, Secrets, & Tricks
Author: Steve Gladstone
Publisher: Steven J Gladstone
Total Pages: 32
Release: 2012-09-07
Genre: Travel
ISBN: 1479132144

A guide to touring the Freedom Trail in Boston, with explanatory material for the 'official' Freedom Trail stops, and includes suggestions for alternatives to touring the entire trail. Additional material and languages are available via smartphone apps and QR codes.

Boston

Boston
Author: Anthony Mitchell Sammarco
Publisher: Arcadia Publishing
Total Pages: 128
Release: 2013-09-16
Genre: Travel
ISBN: 1439643989

Oliver Wendell Holmes coined the Massachusetts State House as the Hub of the Universe. In Boston: A Historic Walking Tour, readers are guided on a series of downtown walking tours that radiate out from this Boston landmark. Featuring different excursions that explore Bostons prominent neighborhoods and districts, visitors and natives alike will see how this city has become one of the countrys oldest cultural destinations. Bostons growth and development in the 19th and 20th centuries has contributed to it becoming the unofficial Capital of New England; its economic and cultural impact on the entire New England region is far reaching. Although Boston is known for its notoriously crooked streets and narrow alleys, it is a mecca for walkers looking to take in historic sites and surround themselves with history. Walk along Tremont, Washington, Beacon, and Summer Streets to explore downtown Boston. Saunter down Beacon Street on Beacon Hill and Boylston Street in the Back Bay to take in the citys most beloved sites.

Paul Revere's Ride

Paul Revere's Ride
Author: Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
Publisher:
Total Pages: 96
Release: 1907
Genre: Lexington, Battle of, Lexington, Mass., 1775
ISBN:

Make Way for Ducklings

Make Way for Ducklings
Author: Robert McCloskey
Publisher: Penguin
Total Pages: 72
Release: 1999-02-01
Genre: Juvenile Fiction
ISBN: 110165483X

"Robert McCloskey's unusual and stunning pictures have long been a delight for their fun as well as their spirit of place."—The Horn Book Mrs. Mallard was sure that the pond in the Boston Public Gardens would be a perfect place for her and her eight ducklings to live. The problem was how to get them there through the busy streets of Boston. But with a little help from the Boston police, Mrs. Mallard and Jack, Kack, Lack, Nack, Ouack, Pack, and Quack arive safely at their new home. This brilliantly illustrated, amusingly observed tale of Mallards on the move has won the hearts of generations of readers. Awarded the Caldecott Medal for the most distinguished American picture book for children in 1941, it has since become a favorite of millions. This classic tale of the famous Mallard ducks of Boston is available for the first time in a full-sized paperback edition. Make Way for Ducklings has been described as "one of the merriest picture books ever" (The New York Times). Ideal for reading aloud, this book deserves a place of honor on every child's bookshelf. "This delightful picture book captures the humor and beauty of one special duckling family. ... McClosky's illustrations are brilliant and filled with humor. The details of the ducklings, along with the popular sights of Boston, come across wonderfully. The image of the entire family proudly walking in line is a classic."—The Barnes & Noble Review "The quaint story of the mallard family's search for the perfect place to hatch ducklings. ... For more than fifty years kids have been entertained by this warm and wonderful story."—Children's Literature

Walking Boston

Walking Boston
Author: Robert Todd Felton
Publisher: Wilderness Press
Total Pages: 257
Release: 2013-09-09
Genre: Travel
ISBN: 0899977197

Boston is a walker's town. It's as clear as the brick red path marking the Freedom Trail, the bright blue signs of the Harborwalk, and the green of the Emerald Necklace series of parks. Boston's nearly 400-year history has led to the development of hidden neighborhoods, historic sites, and iconic parks that tempt both Bostonians and visitors out onto the sidewalks, paths, and trails lacing this close-knit city. In addition, the Big Dig project, which helped revive downtown and the waterfront by moving Interstate 93 underground, has created an energy and excitement that has driven projects like the Harborwalk and the Rose Fitzgerald Kennedy Greenway. Walking Boston offers the best of Boston's new and old rambles. This portable guide features detailed maps, original photos, and public transportation information for every trip. Route summaries make each walk easy to follow, and a "Points of Interest" section summarizes each walk's highlights.

Victorian Boston Today

Victorian Boston Today
Author: Mary Melvin Petronella
Publisher: UPNE
Total Pages: 340
Release: 2004
Genre: Architecture
ISBN: 9781555536053

This lavishly illustrated guidebook to the many distinctive attractions of Boston's Victorian heritage provides the walker and the armchair traveler alike with delightful and enlightening discoveries of the city's remarkable treasure trove of nineteenth-century landmarks and luminaries. Victorian Boston Today, edited by Mary Melvin Petronella for the New England Chapter of the Victorian Society of America, includes a beautifully drawn map for each tour, and contains such features as expanded descriptive captions for the profuse vintage illustrations, telephone numbers and web addresses for sites open to the public, directions between tour sites, information about public transportation, and a wealth of other practical enhancements and tips. From the South End's signature residential squares to the Black Heritage Trail to Jamaica Plain's pastoral landscape, these walking tours vividly recapture the spirit of Victorian Boston. The guidebook will fascinate Boston residents, tourists, and historians, and it will provide inspiration for the active preservation of the city's magnificent buildings and neighborhoods.