Jamaica Plain
Jamaica Plain, commonly known as "JP," is a historic neighborhood in Boston, Massachusetts. It was originally part of Roxbury, Massachusetts, and then part of the town of West Roxbury, Massachusetts when that was established in 1848. West Roxbury (including Jamaica Plain) was annexed to Boston in 1874. According to an official city estimate, it had a population of 38,196 in October 2003.
History
Name
There are a number of theories regarding the origin of the name Jamaica Plain. A well-known theory trace the origin to "Jamaica rum," a reference to Jamaica cane sugar's role in the Triangle Trade of sugar, rum, and slaves. [1] However, a more likely explanation is that "Jamaica" is an Anglicization of the name Kuchamakin, regent to Wampatuck, the underage sachem (chief) of the Massachusett tribe.[2]
Founding
Jamaica Plain was settled by the Curtis family, circa 1640. A number of the still-extant streets date to this era, including Centre Street, Day Street, and Perkins Street.
Shortly thereafter, Capt. Joseph Weld (ancestor of William Weld) was awarded 278 acres (including present-day Forest Hills and a portion of what is now Arnold Arboretum) for this role in the Pequot War and subsequent negotiations. The Weld Family was closely tied to JP until modern times.[3]
Revolution
The Loring-Greenough House (c. 1760) was a country estate and farmstead of Commodore Joshua Loring of the British Army. After Loring fled to England in 1774, the Loring house served as a commissary, hospital and headquarters for Colonial troops during the American Revolution. After the Revolution, the house was the family home for four generations of the David Stoddard Greenough family from 1780 until its conversion by the Jamaica Plain Tuesday Club to a historic house museum in 1926. This house is the only 18th century building still standing in Jamaica Plain.
Other JP residents who fought in the revolution were Eleazer Weld and Benjamin Bussey.[4]
Streetcar suburb
Streetcars played a significant role in the neighborhood's growth by providing access to downtown along Centre Street and Columbus Avenue (then Pynchon Street) via Roxbury Crossing. Development of the neighborhood followed the streetcar tracks.
By the 1850s Jamaica Plain included massive summer "cottages" on the banks of Jamaica Pond belonging to Boston's oldest families.
In the 1880s, philanthropist and social reformer Robert Treat Paine (1810-1905) experimented with innovations in housing for "substantial workingmen." The Workingmen's Building Association built a 114-house development between Round Hill and Sunnyside streets and the Workingmen's Loan Association offered amortizing mortgages to buyers.[5]
JP is also home to The Footlight Club, which is the United States oldest, continuously running community theatre since 1877. The Footlight Club resides in Eliot Hall, on Eliot Street, just off of Centre Street.
Industry
JP was the home of almost a dozen breweries which relied on the relatively pure water of Stony Brook. By 1896, the Thomas G. Plant Shoe Factory at Centre Street and Bickford Street proclaimed itself to be the largest women's shoe factory in the world.[6]
Annexation
By the end of the 19th century, the annexation by Boston had provided municipal services to the neighborhood, and it began to experience a rapid growth in population. This was fostered by the creation of the above-mentioned Emerald Necklace and Forest Hills Cemetery.
Immigration
During the 20th century Jamaica Plain transformed from a streetcar suburb to a more urban neighborhood, with a large influx of German, Irish, Italian, Polish and French-Canadian Americans. Prohibition brought an end to the breweries and launched a significant public housing development effort on Heath Street and later at Bromley Park, eventually creating over 1,000 government-subsidized housing units.[7]
Urban Renewal
In the 1950s, sections of Jamaica Plain along the Boston & Providence Railroad and the Stony Brook valley were deemed blighted by the city's urban planners. Significant portions of the neighborhood adjacent to the railroad were demolished in the 1960s, in preparation for bringing I-95 through the city.[8] Many working class families were displaced.[citation needed] Eventually public opposition shut the project down, and, after remaining desolate,crime ridden and abandoned for 20 years, the areas demolished for the interstate right-of-way were rebuilt as the Southwest Corridor linear park.[8] The MBTA Orange Line reopened through this corridor in 1987, replacing an elevated train along Washington Street.
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/bd/Hyde_Square_steeple.jpg)
In the 1970s JP was better known for its arson and petty crime than for its parks.[citation needed] A dramatic fire in 1976 destroyed the Plant Shoe Factory and its adjacent park, creating a crater of rubble that remained for nearly two decades.
In the 1980s low rents brought many students to the area, especially those who attended the Museum School, Mass Art, and Northeastern University, who often lived in collective households. In addition, the neighborhood also developed a lesbian and gay community. The presence of artists in the neighborhood led to the opening or revitalization of local galleries and bookstores, and arts centers like the converted Firehouse.
Many first-time homebuyers were able to afford the house and condominium prices in JP during this time. While much of Boston's real estate market was experiencing a surge, and concurrent bank illegalities towards minority homebuyers (infamously known as "redlining"), Jamaica Plain was a neighborhood on the brink of coming back from destitution and neglect. Enterprising people rehabbed their properties with their own handiwork, and they have continued to be active in the revitalization of JP, both through politics and community-based activism.
The 1990s brought significant redevelopment to JP. Residents began to clean up the parks, and Jamaica Pond became a rallying point with the Jamaica Pond Project's restoration efforts. Nonprofit housing groups bought up rundown houses and vacant lots to create low-income rental units.[9][10] Unfortunately, dangerous public schools and the opportunity to cash in on rising property values has led many families with children to relocate to the suburbs.[citation needed]
In the 1990s, the Plant Shoe Factory site was redeveloped as JP Plaza, a strip mall, and later a supermarket and a new facility for the Martha Eliot Health Center completed the site's redevelopment. Boston Main Streets districts sprouted in three corners of the neighborhood (Hyde/Jackson Square, Egleston Square, and Centre/South), bringing city funds and tools of neighborhood revitalization to local business owners.
Present day
By the turn of the century, the neighborhood had attracted a large community of college educated, professional singles or young couples, political activists and artists.[citation needed]
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/68/Jamaica-pond-3.jpg/300px-Jamaica-pond-3.jpg)
JP has long been diverse: a melting pot of races, ethnicities, and family types.[citation needed]
Hyde, Jackson, and Egleston Squares have significant Spanish-speaking populations from Cuba, the Dominican Republic and Puerto Rico.[citation needed]
JP is a popular area among Boston intellectuals and has liberal social attitudes which has led to a unique blend of cultures that is reflected in local businesses, such as the many often esoteric and expensive business establishments which line Centre Street.[citation needed]
TheGreen Line "E" Branch at Heath Street, the Orange Line, and the #39 bus provide access to Back Bay, the South End, and Downtown; as well as Amtrak trains and most southbound commuter rail lines. A funky, populist feel have helped popularize the area with college students, artists, and young professionals.[citation needed] The crime rate continues however to be high, due primarily to the high number of urban poor, and the presence of poorly planned public housing projects with the crime problems that often arise in such developments.[citation needed]
A hot real estate market has driven conversion of older buildings into condominiums, particularly in historic areas such as Hyde Square, Pondside and Sumner Hill. A large number of formerly vacant sites are now being converted to residential use, among them the ABC Brewery, the Gormley Funeral Home, the Eblana Brewery, the Oliver Ditson Company, 319 Centre Street, Jackson Square, JP Cohousing, Blessed Sacrament, Our Lady of the Way, and 80 Bickford Street.
Geography
Neighborhoods
Jamaica Plain is made up of a number of distinct residential subdistricts.
- Brookside (Brookside Neighborhood Association) - roughly bounded by Boylston Street, Green Street, Washington Street, and the Southwest Corridor Park
- Egleston Square (Egleston Square Neighborhood Association) - intersection of Columbus Avenue and Washington Street at the border between Jamaica Plain and Roxbury
- Forest Hills - roughly bounded by the Arborway, Hyde Park Avenue, and Forest Hills Cemetery
- Hyde Square - intersection of Centre Street, Day Street, and Perkins Street
- Jackson Square - intersection of Columbus Avenue and Centre Street
- Jamaica Hills (Jamaica Hills Association) - northwest of the Arnold Arboretum, including Moss Hill and Green Hill
- Parkside - roughly bounded by Washington Street, Egleston Square, and Franklin Park
- Pondside (Jamaica Pond Association) - roughly bounded by Centre Street, South Huntington Avenue, and the Jamaicaway
- Sumner Hill (Sumner Hill Association) - roughly bounded by Seaverns Avenue, Everett Street, Carolina Avenue, and Newbern Street
- Sunnyside (Sunnyside Neighborhood Association) - roughly bounded by Centre Street, Day Street, Round Hill Street, and Gay Head Street
- Woodbourne (Woodbourne Heritage Association) - southwest of Forest Hills Cemetery, roughly bounded by Walk Hill Street, Goodway Street, and Wachusett Street
Parks
Jamaica Plain is by far the greenest neighborhood in the city of Boston and is bordered by three of the largest "links" in the Emerald Necklace park system designed by Frederick Law Olmsted in the 19th century:
- Jamaica Pond has 60 acres of surface area and is the largest and deepest body of fresh water in Boston.
- Arnold Arboretum is a 265 acre world-renowned plant collection maintained by Harvard University
- Franklin Park is a 527 acre park (the largest in the city) and holds the Franklin Park Zoo (the largest zoo in New England).
Added to this are numerous smaller parks and playing fields (such as the green area at the highest point of Wachusett Street), Forest Hills Cemetery (a 275-acre “garden cemetery”) and hundreds more acres of cemetery that stretch along Walk Hill Street. Jamaica Plain also has three wooded parkways: Arborway, Riverway and Jamaicaway.
Notable Natives & Remarkable Residents
- Brian Viglione, drummer of the Boston Punk-Cabaret band The Dresden Dolls.
- The Weld Family, landowners in JP from the 17th century to present; former Governor of Massachusetts William Weld is a member of this family
- Samuel Griswold Goodrich, a.k.a. Peter Parley, 19th century author, publisher, state senator, and Consul General to France
- Robert L. Bacon, New York congressman and colonel in World War I, born in Jamaica Plain
- Fanny Chamberlain, Maine first lady of Maine, born in Jamaica Plain.
- Emily Greene Balch, co-winner of the 1946 Nobel Peace Prize (130 Prince Street)
- James Michael Curley, four-term mayor of Boston, later governor of Massachusetts (350 Jamaicaway)
- James Dole, founder of Hawaiian Pineapple Company which became Dole Food Company (14 Roanoke Avenue)
- Ralph Waldo Emerson atop "Schoolmaster Hill" in Franklin Park
- John Hancock owned a summer house that stood on the banks of Jamaica Pond
- Hellen Keller attended the Perkins Kindergarten for the Blind when it was located on Perkins Street in Hyde Square
- Sylvia Plath, poet (birthplace at 24 Prince Street)
- Ellen Swallow Richards, first woman admitted to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (and other notable accomplishments) (32 Eliot Street)
- Julie and Hillary Goodridge, plaintiffs in the landmark court case that legalized same-sex marriage in Massachusetts
- Joe McIntyre, former member of boy band New Kids on the Block, grew up in JP and performed in community theater at The Footlight Club
Transportation
JP is served by the MBTA's bus and rail services. Major roads are Centre Street, the Jamaicaway (formerly US 1), the Arborway (MA 203), Washington Street, and Columbus Avenue (MA 28).
Bicycle Paths
Two major bicycle paths serve JP. Along the Southwest Corridor Park is the Pierre Lallement Bicycle Path, which runs from Forest Hills to Back Bay. To the west are bicycle paths, which run through the parks of the Emerald Necklace, along the Jamaicaway and Riverway. Jamaica Plain is home to the only bike lane in a Boston street, along one block of Perkins Street at Jamaica Pond.
Subway
The Green Line "E" Train terminates at Heath Street in Mission Hill. This line used to continue along South Huntington Avenue, Centre Street, and South Street to its terminus at the Arborway Yard across from Forest Hills Station. Service beyond Heath Street was suspended by the MBTA in 1985.
The Orange Line runs through the middle of JP with stops at Jackson Square, Stony Brook, Green Street, and Forest Hills. The Orange Line carries as many passengers as the #39 bus, on which ridership is steadily declining.[citation needed]
Forest Hills Station is a major transportation hub and is walking distance to the Arnold Arboretum and Forest Hills Cemetery.
Green Line controversy
Proposed restoration of the "E" Train extension to Forest Hills (part of the promised environmental mitigation measures relating to the Big Dig) has caused considerable tension in the area. Some residents and commuters are eager to embrace what is seen as a reconnection with the rest of the city, while many others cite the #39 Bus along the old route and the Orange Line just a few blocks away as easy travel solutions. Opposition is mainly based on this availability of transport, and fears that restoration of the trolley service would eliminate on-street parking and create traffic snares in an area already plagued by a shortage of the former and abundance of the latter. Advocates on both sides of the issue, including the Arborway Committee and Better Transit Without Trolleys, present compelling arguments for improved service while the MBTA has not yet committed to a permanent transit solution.
Commuter Rail
The Needham Line of the Commuter Rail stops at Forest Hills Station, and many other lines are easily accessible by riding the Orange Line subway train to Ruggles and Back Bay.
Buses
The #39 Bus (Back Bay to Forest Hills) is a replacement service for the "temporarily" suspended Green Line streetcar from Heath Street to Forest Hills.
The #41 bus carries passengers from JP Center to Dudley Square.
The #48 bus runs a loop around the neighborhood, tying together the Washington and Centre Street corridors.
Green Line - Heath Street
- 14 Roslindale Sq.-Heath St. Sta.
- 39 Forest Hills Sta.-Back Bay Sta.
Orange Line - Jackson Square
- 22 Ashmont Sta.-Ruggles Sta. via Talbot Ave.
- 29 Mattapan Sta.-Jackson Sq. Sta. via Seaver St.
- 41 Centre & Eliot Streets-JFK/UMASS Sta.
- 44 Jackson Sq. Sta.-Ruggles Sta. via Seaver St.
- 48 Jamaica Plain Loop Monument-Jackson Sq. Sta.
- 66 Harvard Sq.-Dudley Sta. via Harvard St.
Orange Line - Stony Brook
- 48 Jamaica Plain Loop Monument-Jackson Sq. Sta.
Orange Line - Green Street
- 48 Jamaica Plain Loop Monument-Jackson Sq. Sta.
Orange Line - Forest Hills
- 16 Forest Hills Sta.-Andrew Station or JFK/UMASS Sta.
- 21 Ashmont Sta.-Forest Hills Sta.
- 31 Mattapan Sta.-Forest Hills Sta. via Morton St.
- 32 Wolcott Sq. or Cleary Square-Forest Hills Sta.
- 34/34E Walpole Center or Dedham Line-Forest Hills Sta. via Washington St.
- 35 Dedham Mall/Stimson St.-Forest Hills Sta.
- 36 Charles River Loop or V.A. Hospital-Forest Hills Sta. via Belgrade Ave.
- 37 Baker and Vermont Sts.-Forest Hills Sta.
- 38 Wren St.-Forest Hills Sta.
- 39 Forest Hills Sta.-Back Bay Sta.
- 40 Georgetowne-Forest Hills Sta.
- 42 Forest Hills Sta.-Ruggles Sta. via Washington St.
- 50 Cleary Sq.-Forest Hills Sta.
- 51 Reservoir (Cleveland Circle)-Forest Hills Sta.
Cars and parking
Shared car service Zipcar once had a number of cars stationed throughout the neighborhood. In January 2006, the number of shared cars was sharply reduced to five (four at a filling station on Centre Street and one at Forest Hills). Municipal parking lots are located off Centre Street at Burroughs Street in JP Center, across from the Mary Curley School on Centre Street at Spring Park Ave., and across from Blessed Sacrament Church in Hyde Square. There are no parking meters in JP; on-street parking is free. Many streets near the MBTA Orange Line stations are posted "resident permit only" during working hours (8 AM to 6 PM). This is intended to discourage commuters from using residential streets as parking lots during the day.
External links
In alphabetical order:
- Arborway Committee -- Arborway Committee, advocates for light rail
- Franklin Park Coalition -- Franklin Park Coalition
- Historic Hyde Square -- Historic Hyde Square
- Gas Lamps of Jamaica Plain -- photos of gas street lights
- JamaicaPlain.com -- neighborhood information and links
- Jamaica Plain Gazette -- Free neighborhood newspaper
- Jamaica Plain Historical Society -- Jamaica Plain Historical Society
- Egleson Square -- Egleson Square Neighborhood
- Historic Jamaica Plain Photographs -- Locales, Street Cars, Persons
- Jamaica Plain High School Yearbooks -- Directories, Bibliography, Research Resources
- Sumner Hill -- Sumner Hill Historic District
- Woodbourne -- Woodbourne Historic District
- Southwest Corridor Park -- Massachusetts Department of Conservation & Recreation page
- The Jamaica Pond Project -- A Photographic Essay
- Neighbors for Neighbors -- A volunteer community group
References
- ^ How Jamaica Plain Got Its Name, by Walter H. Marx (January 17, 1992). Jamaica Plain Historical Society web site, accessed March 5, 2007.
- ^ Native Americans in Jamaica Plain, by Walter H. Marx (December 29, 1988), and correction by Ed Quill. Jamaica Plain Historical Society web site, accessed March 5, 2007.
- ^ Jamaica Plain Historical Society, "THe Welds"
- ^ Jamaica Plain Historical Society, "The Welds"
- ^ Streetcar Suburbs : The Process of Growth in Boston, 1870-1900, Second Edition, by Sam Bass Warner, Jr., Harvard University Press (2004), ISBN 0-674-84211-1.
- ^ Tom Plant: The Making of a Franco-American Entrepreneur, 1859-1941 (Studies in Entrepreneurship), by Barry Hatfield Rodrigue, Garland Publishing (1994), ISBN 0-8153-0988-0.
- ^ From the Puritans ot the Projects: Public housing and public neighbors, by Lawrence J. Vale, Harvard University Press (2000), ISBN 0-674-00286-5
- ^ a b Rites of Way: The Politics of Transportation in Boston and the U.S. City (Hardcover), by Alan Lupo, Little Brown & Company (January 1971), ISBN 0-316-53670-9.
- ^ Urban Edge History, accessed on July 30, 2006.
- ^ See the difference we've made, JPNDC, accessed on July 30, 2006.
Further reading
- Local Attachments : The Making of an American Urban Neighborhood, 1850 to 1920 (Creating the North American Landscape), by Alexander von Hoffman, The Johns Hopkins University Press (1996), ISBN 0-8018-5393-1.
- A Home in the Heart of a City: A Woman's Search for Community (Hardcover), by Kathleen Hirsch, North Point Pr (1998), ISBN 0-374-28079-7.
- Jamaica Plain: Then & Now by Anthony M. Sammarco, soft cover, 96 pages. Vintage Jamaica Plain photographs are placed alongside contemporary ones showing well-known buildings and streetscapes as they once were and as they appear today. Included are historic photographs of Jamaica Pond with its icehouses, streetcars, schools, places of worship, and homes. Anthony M. Sammarco is a noted historian and author of more than forty books on the history of Boston and surrounding cities and towns. Sammarco teaches history at the Urban College of Boston.
- Jamaica Plain by Anthony M. Sammarco (1997.) Soft cover, 128 pages. Author and noted local historian Anthony Mitchell Sammarco combines powerful text and images in this volume to create a compelling visual history of one of New England’s loveliest neighborhoods.
- Edwina by Jill Hofstra, soft cover, 252 pages. Jill Hofstra’s new book Edwina chronicles the life of a precocious and delightful girl who lived in Jamaica Plain in the early 1900s.