- How was the Back Bay, the largest Boston infrastructure project of the 19th century, completed without any taxpayer money at all? (By contrast, the Big Dig, Boston’s largest infrastructure project in recent memory, cost taxpayers over $24 billion.)
- What street in modern Boston hides the remnants of a 1.5 mile long industrial dam?
- How did construction of New York’s Erie Canal help inspire construction of the Boston’s Back Bay?
- Who were the industrialists who were willing to gamble their fortunes on the unproven plans and technologies that built the Back Bay?
- What beloved children’s book accurately portrays the steam powered machines that were put to work building the Back Bay? (Hint: It’s Mike Mulligan!)
- Where did we get the huge volume of material needed to fill in the Back Bay? If you answered “from the top of Beacon Hill,” you have fallen victim to one of Boston’s most persistent urban legends.
- How did policies meant to bar Irish-Americans from public life in Boston lead to their integration and eventual cultural dominance?
- How did a potato famine in Ireland trigger Boston’s most ambitious engineering project to-date?
- Which Back Bay landmark floats like a boat in the marsh and sand beneath the streets?
- How did Boston’s sewage help inspire construction of the Back Bay, and how did our sewage later lead to the near destruction of Boston Public Library and Old South Church in Copley Square?
On our two hour tour with Jake Sconyers, host of the Hub History podcast, you’ll learn the answers to all these questions and more. Join us as we trace the social and civil engineering of the Back Bay project by strolling from Boston’s colonial coastline at the foot of Boston Common to the heart of the “new” neighborhood in Copley Square.
Back Bay animation by Joe Bagley.
When
October 17, 2015 at 10:00 am – 12:00 pm
Where
Meet inside the gate of Boston Common at the corner of Beacon Street and Charles Street.
Getting There
Take the MBTA red or green line to Park Street station. From the station, walk uphill to the statehouse, then turn left on Beacon and walk to the corner of Charles. If you drive, the best option for parking is the garage located under Boston Common on Charles Street.
Register Now