Lesson2 Part2 Boston

Summary

This script explores the urban development of Boston from its colonial origins to a modern metropolis. It highlights the city's growth from a small trading center to a major economic and cultural hub, influenced by factors like trade, industry, and technological advancements. Key historical landmarks, architectural transitions, and urban planning initiatives are discussed, showcasing Boston's evolution through centuries of change.

Takeaways

• 🏙️ Boston was the third largest city during the colonial period and played a significant role in economic, technological, social, and political history.
• 🏡 In the 1630s, Boston was a small community with only a few thousand people, and it remained a small village until the 18th century.
• 🛣️ The city's early growth was as a trading center on the eastern seaboard, with most of its land being countryside and farmland.
• 🏰 Architectural landmarks from the 17th and 18th centuries, such as Paul Revere's house and Old North Church, still stand today.
• 🏛️ By the mid-18th century, Boston had structures like Faneuil Hall, indicating its emergence as a major trading center.
• 🚢 The city was a major shipping point for trade and ship repair and construction by the late 18th and early 19th centuries.
• 🏗️ The 1830s saw Boston expanding its land through projects like the reduction of Beacon Hill and the Back Bay filling project.
• 🚂 The 1840s marked the beginning of Boston's rail connections, which linked it to other cities and made it a larger commercial center.
• 🏙️ By the late 19th century, Boston had transformed into an industrial center with manufacturing facilities and a growing population.
• 🌉 The Big Dig project in the early 21st century connected the waterfront back to the downtown core, revitalizing the city's landscape.

Q & A

What was the population of Boston in the 1630s?

In the 1630s, Boston was a very small community with just a few thousand people.

How did the architectural style of Boston change from the 17th to the 18th century?

In the 17th century, buildings in Boston were mostly built out of wood, as evidenced by Paul Revere's house. By the 18th century, the dominant architectural style shifted to brick and masonry, with structures like Old North Church being built of brick and wood.

What was the significance of Fanueil Hall in the mid-18th century?

Fanueil Hall, constructed in 1740, was a place for meetings and represented the growth of Boston's urban population, signifying its emergence as a major trading center.

How did the political climate in Boston during the 18th century affect its urban development?

The political strife in the late 18th century, including events like the Boston Massacre, was indicative of the city's active role in American history and may have influenced its growth and development as a center for political activities.

What was the role of Beacon Hill in Boston's expansion during the 19th century?

Beacon Hill was reduced in size during the 1830s to provide more land for development within Boston, reflecting the city's need for additional space to accommodate its growing population.

What was the purpose of the Back Bay filling project in the 1890s?

The Back Bay filling project, which began in the 1890s, created over 570 acres of new land for Boston to expand into, allowing the city to grow and develop further as a major metropolitan center.

How did the Boston fire of 1872 impact the city's development?

The fire of 1872 destroyed parts of Boston, but the new construction that followed was of a much higher density, contributing to the city's transformation into a major industrial center.

What was the role of the Boston Commons in the city's history?

The Boston Commons, originally used for pasturing animals, evolved into a public park and became a focal point for entertainment, relaxation, and political demonstrations, playing a significant role in the city's social and political life.

How did the development of transportation networks influence Boston's growth in the late 19th and early 20th centuries?

The development of streetcars, subways, and a road network facilitated Boston's expansion into suburbs and made commuting more convenient, contributing to the city's growth as a major commercial center.

What was the impact of the Big Dig project on Boston's waterfront and downtown core?

The Big Dig project, completed in the early 21st century, removed the elevated highway that had divided the waterfront from the downtown core, reconnecting the areas and revitalizing the waterfront with parks and pedestrian pathways.

Outlines

00:00

🏙️ Early History and Growth of Boston

This paragraph discusses the early history of Boston, highlighting its significance during the colonial period as the third largest city with a rich economic, technological, social, and political history. It started as a small community in the 1630s and grew slowly, becoming a small village by the 18th century. The city's early architecture was primarily wooden, with brick and masonry becoming dominant by the 18th century. The city's expansion began in the 19th century, with the construction of buildings like Fanueil Hall and the New Boston State House, reflecting its growth as a major trading center. The political strife of the late 18th century, including the Boston Massacre, is also mentioned.

05:01

🛠️ Industrial Expansion and Urban Development

The second paragraph details the industrial expansion of Boston in the early 19th century, focusing on the city's growth as a trading center with the construction of Quincy Market and the expansion of Fanueil Hall. The New Boston State House, designed by Charles Bulfinch, is highlighted as a symbol of architectural prowess. The residential area of Beacon Hill and the Boston Athenaeum, a public learning institution, are noted as significant developments. The paragraph also covers the city's expansion beyond colonial boundaries, the construction of wharves and warehouses, and the addition of new land through projects like the Back Bay filling, which created over five hundred acres for further development.

10:03

🚂 Transportation and Infrastructure Growth

This paragraph explores the transformation of Boston's transportation and infrastructure in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. It discusses the development of rail lines, streetcars, and the subway system, which facilitated the city's expansion into suburbs like Roxbury, Brookline, and Cambridge. The construction of Symphony Hall and the Museum of Fine Arts is mentioned as part of the cultural investment during the population growth. The paragraph also covers the impact of the 1872 fire on the city's density and the emergence of Boston as a major industrial center with manufacturing and retail sectors. The development of parks by Olmstead and the importance of Boston Commons as a public space and political hub are also highlighted.

15:03

🌆 Modernization and Revitalization of Boston

The fourth paragraph delves into the modernization and revitalization of Boston from the 1950s onwards. It discusses the construction of highways, such as Route 128, which linked Boston to the development of high technology and other outlying communities. The decline of the waterfront's heavy industry and the subsequent revitalization efforts are covered, including the Big Dig project that reconnected the waterfront to the downtown core. The construction of skyscrapers like the Prudential Center and John Hancock Tower is noted as a significant change in the city's skyline. The paragraph concludes with a discussion of how Boston's urban development is an ongoing process of adaptation and transformation.

20:04

🏞️ Ongoing Urban Development and Adaptation

The final paragraph summarizes the continuous process of urban development in Boston over four centuries. It emphasizes how each era has left its mark on the city, with buildings being demolished or revitalized to meet the needs of the current population. The paragraph encourages observers to identify buildings from different periods and consider their original and current uses, reflecting on the dynamic nature of urban development and the city's ability to adapt and evolve over time.

Keywords

💡Urban Development

Urban development refers to the process of growth and physical expansion of urban areas, including the construction of infrastructure, housing, and public facilities. In the video, Boston's urban development is traced from its early days as a small trading center to a major metropolitan area. The script mentions the transformation of Boston's landscape through the construction of buildings like Fanueil Hall and the expansion of its transportation networks.

💡Colonial Period

The colonial period denotes the era when a country or region is under the control of another country, often involving the establishment of settlements and the development of trade. Boston, being the third largest city during the colonial period in the script, had significant economic, technological, social, and political importance, shaping its early urban development.

💡Economic History

Economic history is the study of how economies have developed and changed over time. The video script highlights Boston's economic history, noting its evolution from a small trading center to a major trading and industrial hub. The growth of trade and industry is exemplified by the construction of structures like Quincy Market and the expansion of the city's port facilities.

💡Architectural Features

Architectural features refer to the distinctive elements of a building's design and construction. The video discusses the evolution of Boston's architectural landscape, from wooden structures in the 17th century to brick and masonry buildings in the 18th century, and eventually to the construction of skyscrapers in the 20th century.

💡Political Strife

Political strife refers to conflicts or tensions within a political context. The script mentions the political strife in Boston during the late 18th century, including events like the Boston Massacre, which were part of the broader political unrest leading up to the American Revolution.

💡Industrial Center

An industrial center is a location where manufacturing and industrial activities are concentrated. The video describes Boston's transformation into an industrial center in the 19th century, with the construction of factories, warehouses, and the expansion of its port facilities to support trade and manufacturing.

💡Expansion and Landfill

Expansion and landfill refer to the process of increasing a city's size by filling in bodies of water or other landforms with earth and debris. The script discusses Boston's expansion through projects like the Back Bay filling project, which created new land for development and contributed to the city's growth.

💡Cultural Icons

Cultural icons are structures or institutions that have significant cultural or historical importance. The video mentions the construction of cultural icons like Symphony Hall and the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston, reflecting the city's investment in cultural development alongside its economic growth.

💡Transportation Networks

Transportation networks consist of the systems and infrastructure that enable the movement of people and goods. The script describes the development of Boston's transportation networks, including streetcars, subways, and highways, which facilitated the city's expansion and connected it to surrounding areas.

💡Revitalization

Revitalization refers to the process of renewing or restoring a city or neighborhood to improve its economic, social, or physical conditions. The video discusses Boston's revitalization efforts, particularly in the 20th century, such as the Big Dig project, which transformed the city's infrastructure and reconnect the downtown core with the waterfront.

Highlights

Boston was the third largest city in the colonial period with significant economic, technological, social, and political history.

In the 1630s, Boston was a small community with just a few thousand people.

By the 18th century, Boston was still a small village, primarily a trading center on the eastern seaboard.

Boston Proper was only 487 acres, and most of it can be explored on foot today.

The population of Boston started to grow significantly in the 19th century.

18th century maps show Boston as a small island-like feature connected to the mainland by a road.

Prominent features around Boston included Charles Town and forts protecting the Inner Harbor.

In the 18th century, Boston was still somewhat agricultural with prominent church steeples as the main architectural feature.

Paul Revere's house is one of the few buildings remaining from the 17th century in Boston.

By the 18th century, brick and masonry became the dominant architectural style in Boston.

Old North Church, built of brick and wood in 1723, was a dominant piece of 18th-century architecture in Boston.

By the 1740s, Boston emerged as a major trading center with structures like Faneuil Hall.

Faneuil Hall, built in 1740, was one of many structures built to accommodate Boston's growing urban population.

By 1776, Boston resembled many European cities with a state house at its center surrounded by commercial and residential buildings.

The Boston Massacre in the 1770s was one of many political activities that took place in Boston.

In the 1830s, Boston sought new land for development, including reducing Beacon Hill to create more buildable land.

By the late 18th and early 19th centuries, Boston was a major shipping point and a place for ship repair and construction.

Faneuil Hall was expanded, and Quincy Market was built to accommodate Boston's prominence as a trading center.

The New Boston State House was built between 1795 and 1798, showcasing Boston's architectural capabilities.

Beacon Hill's early 19th-century houses and parks demonstrate Boston's expansion and architectural styles.

The Boston Athenaeum, established in 1807, was one of the first institutions dedicated to public learning.

By the 1830s, Boston's expansion had surpassed its colonial boundaries, with significant development along the waterfront.

The 1860s saw the addition of land through filling in areas like the Back Bay, creating over 570 acres for Boston's expansion.

By the 1890s, Boston's population had grown to almost half a million, solidifying its status as a major metropolitan center.

The Back Bay filling project in the 1890s created a large area for Boston to expand into, including the development of Commonwealth Avenue.

The fire of 1872 shaped parts of Boston, leading to higher-density construction in the rebuilt areas.

By the 1880s, Boston had become a major industrial center with manufacturing centers for cloth and general market goods.

Boston Commons, originally used for pasturing animals, became a public park and a center for political activity.

The late 19th and early 20th centuries saw the development of a series of parks by Olmsted, including the Boston Commons.

The downtown area became a major shopping district, accessible by streetcar and later by subway.

The construction of Symphony Hall and the Museum of Fine Arts in the early 20th century marked Boston's cultural investment.

Boston's expansion was supported by modern transportation networks, including subways, streetcars, and road networks.

The Big Dig project in the early 21st century transformed Boston by reconnecting the waterfront to the downtown core.

Boston's urban development is ongoing, with buildings from each period being adapted to new uses.

Transcripts

not you've been introduced to history of

urban development in terms of the

critical factors which have shaped

cities I'd like to consider just one

city as a case study and we're gonna

look at Boston it was the third largest

city in colonial period and it had great

importance both in terms of its economic

technological social and political

history now if you look at the history

Boston it was a very small community in

the 1630s just a really a few thousand

people even by the turn of the 18th

century and it was a small village if

you want to think of it in those terms

but was one of the larger cities in the

new world Boston Proper was only 487

acres and most of it you probably have

walked round if you've had a chance to

go to Boston now you'll notice the

population of Boston really didn't start

to take off until the nineteenth century

and so the early part of its history was

really one of a small trading center on

the eastern seaboard now here you can

see in an 18th century map they the

extent to Boston and it really is this

kind of small most like Island feature

connected to the mainland by by a road

you'll also notice there some prominent

features situated around Boston

including Charles Town and various forts

that protected the Inner Harbor not much

more than that if you were to go beyond

this one location what you would have

found is mostly countryside farmland now

here's a view of a Boston in the 18th

century when it was still a British

colony you can see the Long Wharf you

can see the steeples and you can see

that there's still some what looks like

almost at agricultural land even within

the city limits we have to remember that

Boston was a training center but it

wasn't one of great industry just yet

and so the steeples on the church

is really the most prominent

architectural features that you find

along along this this horizon now we do

have a few buildings left from the 17th

century this is Paul Revere's house and

you can just imagine what the City of

Boston would have looked like in the

17th century if everything had been

built out of wood but by the 18th

century we're going to see that the

dominant form of architecture is is

brick and masonry in fact if you walk

through the North End of Boston you can

find some rather unique forms that

harken back to this 18th century period

here is the a very narrow house it was

built primarily out of wood and that

would have been the dominant form in the

18th century off in the distance you can

see Old North Church which was built of

brick and wood which would have been a

dominant piece of architecture in the

18th century here you can see interior

view of this fine church built in 1723

which would have been one of the most

important features in Boston now by the

1740s we start to see the emergence of

Boston as a major trading center and Lee

and so not only do we have churches but

we also have structures like Fanueil

Hall which would have been a place for

meetings by the mid 18th century we see

the construction of Fanueil Hall 1740

which is just one of the many structures

in Boston built in order to accommodate

a growing urban population by the time

of the Revolution in 1776 Boston looked

pretty much like many European cities

with us with a state house located in

its center surrounded by commercial

buildings and residential blocks by the

1770s there was quite a bit of political

strife and I'm sure you're aware of the

Boston Massacre from your knowledge of

American history these were just one of

many political activities that took

place in Boston in the late 18th century

by the 1830s Boston was looking for new

land to develop and one of the features

of Boston and that was Beacon Hill was

actually reduced so then there would be

more land to build on within the

confines of Boston and here you can see

in a photograph of 1870 and lithograph

of 1821 the harbor Boston so certainly

by the late 18th early 19th century

Boston emerged not only as a major

shipping point but also as a place for

ship repair and ship construction by the

early 19th century with the growth of

Boston's trade many of its buildings

also had to expand Fanueil Hall was

expanded Quincy Market was built and

this accommodated Boston's prominence as

a trading center from 1795 to 1798 the

New Boston State House was built the

architect Charles Bulfinch

and this demonstrates the ability of

cities like Boston to create works of

architecture that would have rivaled

those even in Europe now just adjacent

to the Statehouse we see a new

residential area that of Beacon Hill and

most of the houses there are from the

early part of the 19th century and again

it shows this expansion of Boston and

here we have architecture of the federal

and if you walk around you'll see you'll

encounter not only very fine townhomes

but also parks that the local residents

could have used this is the Boston

Athenaeum of 1807 and it's one of the

first institutions dedicated to public

learning it was a library but it was

also a place where people could come and

hear lectures and you can still go there

today and view the collection and see

the books that were probably very few

collections would have been able to

rival in the New World in the early 19th

century

now here's Boston city map of 1837 and

here you can see that the expansion is

now gone

certainly beyond the limits of the

colonial boundaries certainly off to the

west there was also a great deal of

development along the waterfront with

wharves and as well as warehouses and

counting houses we see a view here from

Dorchester height you can see the new

Statehouse constructed you can also see

that the the shipyards and over in

Charlestown you can see also the wharfs

located just along the edge of Boston

now by the 1860s the more land was added

through the addition of Phil and these

areas were devoted to shipyards by the

1850s 1860s we see the construction of a

new Customs House and that still remains

to this day because it's on federal land

in the early part of the 20th century

they decided to expand way beyond the

limits of what was allowed under

municipal bylaws you can see this very

tall tower which still stands today on

the site now one thing we have to note

about Boston is that it was a trading

center and it brought goods from all

over New England to sell across the

Atlantic in other parts and the cotton

production of the south was critical to

the north because of what it was used

for was of course the raw materials to

make textiles in places like Lowell

Massachusetts a lot of people made a lot

of money in Lowell but also lived in

places like Boston here you can see the

beginning of filling in the land that

Boston would need for its expansion that

the trains started to appear in the

1840s linked Boston to other cities in

the region we're just beginning to make

Boston a larger commercial center and by

the 1850s we have the completion of the

Boston Albany rail line with a new

railroad station this is being

commemorated in the illustration you can

see here on the railroad Jubilee

18:51 the map in the corner of the

screen shows the real lives that existed

by the 1880s which linked Boston to many

of the cities along the Seaboard and to

the West now this is an interesting

photograph because it shows Boston in

the 1860s this is a photograph taken

from a balloon one of the very first of

its kind and you can see already that

Boston is no longer a colonial village

or town but actually an industrial

center you can see the six story

buildings many of these are not just

tenements but actually manufacturing

facilities and warehouses and so Boston

now is not just place where you would

find residents engaged in trade and

commerce but also in manufacturing by

the 1890s a major project which was the

Back Bay filling project had begun and

that created a much larger area for

Boston to expand into over five hundred

and seventy acres and by that point in

the 1890s the population now was much

larger almost a half a million people so

now Boston was a major metropolitan

center here you can see what was

involved in creating that nice new land

they established rail lines to bring

gravel and fill into Boston to fill in

the bay and here you can see the result

of that filling in process this is

Commonwealth Avenue in the process of

being built on 19 1872 and you can see

in this map that not everything has been

built on but it's just going to take a

few more decades to complete now if you

go there today you can actually walk

along Commonwealth Avenue and you can

see this development of the late

nineteenth century it's red brick

architecture you can go there today and

walk along Commonwealth Avenue and

Newbury Street and along Commonwealth

Avenue you find this this very broad

Boulevard which was almost a park-like

space that people would have been able

to enjoy and then

Newbury Street today where you find a

lot of shops and restaurants that

residents can certainly enjoy partake of

the other interesting thing as you walk

around Newbury Street and Commonwealth

Avenue as you can see that the city is

kind of layered as the zoning allows for

greater height you can see that the

building's start to grow vertically now

in 1870 there was an event that shaped

part of Boston and that is the fire of

1872 and you know parts of Boston just

disappeared overnight but the new

construction that to form there was of a

much higher density by the 1880s you can

see that Boston has now become a major

industrial center and you can find

within the urban core a number of

manufacturing centers devoted to not

only the manufacturing cloth but also

Goods for the general market by the

1880s Boston now has a major retail

center where you would find just about

everything you could imagine from

clothing to furniture and you can see

that Boston now is expanding to the West

beyond its original boundaries Boston

also included in its development a major

common area this was of course the

Boston Commons which was originally used

for pastoring of animals but now has

become a park for the public to partake

in and it's a of course a major feature

of Boston and everyone knows of the

Boston Commons here we can see a

painting from the 1880s showing Boston

middle of winter you can see the

streetcars going up and down Park

there's no subway at this point so

people would have had to either take the

the streetcars or carriages or walk now

Boston Commons of course has been a

center of political activity

for most of its history and certainly

we're all aware of some of the activity

that's gone on recently in the park so

it's a it's a major focal point not only

for entertainment and relaxation but

also for political demonstrations but we

have to remember that the park is not

just one park we also have to remember

that the Boston Commons is part of a

series of parks that was developed by

Olmstead the Boston Commons was just one

of many parks developed by Homestead

which allowed people to engage in

recreation opportunities throughout the

Boston area now by the late 19th century

early 20th century the downtown was a

major shopping district you could get

there by streetcar and then later by

subway and it was the place to go if you

wanted to shop for just about anything

you can imagine Jordan Marsh as well as

Filene's and Sun Company were in

existence for almost a hundred years and

only closed recently in in this last

decade about the same time we see the

construction of Symphony Hall and the

Museum of Fine Arts so as the population

starts to grow especially out towards

the Fenway we start to see the

investment in these cultural icons now

the Boston expansion took place over the

course of really several centuries and

it it developed with the emergence of

modern transportation networks both in

terms of subway as well streetcars as

well as a road network and here you can

see some of that expansion into the

suburbs places like Roxbury Brookline

Watertown Cambridge Somerville Everett

Walden Medford the streetcar lines were

particularly important in terms of

establishing these new suburban

communities three cars were able to link

people from the suburbs where where

there were residential carting

residential communities to the downtown

with the development of the subway

system in Boston the downtown was linked

to suburbs in

in Boston and outside of Boston and made

for a transportation system that was not

only convenient but also could operate

when the weather was bad in fact here's

one of the advertisements for the Boston

subway and streetcar line says to save

time is to lengthen life because can you

imagine getting to work if you were

using just public conveyance izl on the

street the traffic would have been just

impossible in fact one of the big issues

in Boston was that even if you had

streetcars with heavy snows sometimes it

wasn't possible to commute to work but

if you could access a subway line then

even when the weather was bad you could

still get to work now the other thing to

remember is that it's not only

transportation systems that are improved

in this period but also sewer and water

and without sewer and water no city

could have expanded to the size of

Boston by the even late 19th century

this just shows some of the major

intercepts and sewers for the Boston

system in the late 18-hundreds the other

thing to remember is that not only

Boston but its outlying communities of

Cambridge or centers of activity Ford

located a major facility in in Cambridge

and it was there until the 1950s now in

the 1950s with the development of a

highway system in the United States we

start to see Boston linked to outlying

communities and those communities are

associated with the development of high

technology in the United States here on

the front page of The New Yorker

magazine you have route 128 with all of

the companies that we associate with the

beginnings of high tech in the 50s and

60s and 70s in terms of Boston

waterfront from 1929 1972 we see that it

developed as a heavy area of heavy

industry that was shipping it was

manufacturing going on and over time

that deteriorated it was no longer

competitive with newer shipping centers

in fact Boston went through a number of

revitalizations beginning in the 70s the

old industrial core which was no longer

serving its purpose was torn down and

replaced with a new government center

and here you can see that processed

taking place by the 1970s we see also

the appearance of a number of size

scrapers the first of course the

Prudential Center in 1963 and then later

John Hancock Tower today when we look at

Boston we see a number of tall towers

but that's only over the course of the

last few decades

here is John Hancock tower just adjacent

to Copley Square Trinity Church and at

the time it was a very controversial

building because Boston was a low scale

city and now all of a sudden we have

these major skyscrapers juxtaposed to

19th and 20th century urban development

in the early part of the 21st century

what we can begin to see is

transformation of Boston because of the

highways that had crossed through the

city had divided the waterfront from the

downtown core that it created an impetus

for people to say look let's reclaim our

our waterfront area and so with the Big

Dig project we can see that the

waterfront now becomes linked back to

the downtown core let's just take a look

at those aerial views of the city and

you can see that in this photograph that

I took at the beginning of the big

construction you can see that the

elevated highway that was built to move

automobile traffic through the city is

starting to come down and as a result of

that coming down we can now link what

was the old fabric on in the inner city

to the waterfront area and here you can

see that process beginning and here it

is completed you can see that we now

have the elevated highway demolished

we've now have this linkage with parks

and boulevards from the waterfront area

back to the old inner city and if you go

there today you can see that the

waterfront is now connected you can walk

from one area to the other there's the

Noles North End and you have these

pedestrian pathways that take you down

to the inner core of the city now those

of you have gone to the Boston

waterfront probably have had an

opportunity to engage in some of the

shopping and recreational areas that

that are really quite popular in summary

Boston is a city that has developed over

the course of four centuries each period

has left its mark on Boston the city was

transformed each age many buildings were

demolished to make room for new

buildings and structures that could

better accommodate the needs of the

current population while other

structures have been revitalized and

adapted to new uses so when you're

walking around the city see if you can

identify those buildings from each

period and look to see whether or not

they're being used for the same purpose

as they were originally attended and I

think what you'll begin to understand is

that urban development the process is

ongoing and we're always adapting

you