Thanks for asking, I truly enjoy this type of research!
Residence
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Your upper-crust Bostonians would have indeed lived on Beacon Hill,
the South Slope, in fact.
"Boston-born aristocrat and author Oliver Wendell Holmes first coined
the term "Boston Brahmins" in reference to this elite class of
19th-century New England families who called Beacon Hill home. Many of
the current brownstones are still occupied by descendants of those
original Brahmin "First Families".
"...homes on Mt. Vernon St. and Chestnut St. are the most luxurious,
though some on Beacon St. (along Boston Common) are valued at over $5
million because of their views of the Common. Small green placards
indicate which homes housed famous folk."
Boston | South Slope
http://www.letsgo.com/BOS/04-Sights-157
Louisburg Square - Between Mt. Vernon and Pinckney St.
------------------------------------------------------
"This cobblestone-covered block is not only the supposed birthplace of
door-to-door Christmas caroling, but also the most elite and
prestigious address in the city. Previous residents included the
wealthy Vanderbilt family and Little Women author Louisa May Alcott."
Boston | South Slope: Louisburg Square
http://www.letsgo.com/BOS/04-Sights-159
Nichols House - Mt. Vernon Street
----------------------------------
"The only Beacon Hill townhouse open to the public, Nichols House was
given to the city of Boston in 1961 by the late Rose Standish Nichols
(who lived in the house most of the 88 years of her life). She
preserved most of the original late 19th-century decor to serve as a
museum of turn-of-the-century Boston Brahmin life. (The only way to
see how modern-day Brahmins live is vigorous gold-digging.) Several
Brahmin-era artists have close ties to the house: the plot of land was
originally owned by portraitist John Singleton Copley (his own
portrait hangs in the house's parlor); Rose's uncle was noted sculptor
Augustus St. Gaudens (of Shaw Memorial fame), and his work is found
throughout the house; and Rose's own arts and crafts decorate the
walls."
Boston | South Slope: Nichol's House
http://www.letsgo.com/BOS/04-Sights-162
Boston Historical Society and Museum
-------------------------------------
"... Photographs and approximately 3,000 other Boston streetscapes and
views are now available in the Bostonian Society's new database of
publications, historic photographs, manuscripts, broadsides, and
ephemera. See how Boston has changed over time by searching the
photograph catalog for pictures of streetcars, children at the
turn-of-the century, Boston Common in the snow, buildings under
construction, and buildings that are no longer there including those
lost to the Great Fire of 1872."
Hint: Search by Street Name (i.e. Mt. Vernon, Louisburg Square, etc.)
Chestnut Street, 1940
http://rfi.bostonhistory.org/boston/full/004251.jpg
Sunflower House, Mt. Vernon Street
http://rfi.bostonhistory.org/boston/full/000295.jpg
Louisa May Alcott House | Louisburg Square
http://rfi.bostonhistory.org/boston/full/002495.jpg
Pinckney Street
http://rfi.bostonhistory.org/boston/full/002045.jpg
Religion
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"In North America a Brahmin is also a member of the blue-blooded class
of New Englanders who claim hereditary or cultural descent from the
original Anglo-Saxon Protestants who founded the city of Boston,
Massachusetts."
Free Encyclopedia | Boston Brahmins
http://encyclopedia.thefreedictionary.com/Boston%20Brahmins
"After the American Revolution, Boston began to change. In the early
19th century, what had been the Puritan church experienced a schism
between the "Unitarians" who denied the doctrine of the Trinity and
the "Trinitarians" or "Congregationalists" who supported it.
In that century, Bostonian ties with England became stronger,
especially during the reign of Queen Victoria. The Bostonian
aristocracy--the "Brahmins"--wished to be more like the British
nobility and adopted their religion, Anglicanism or "Episcopalianism"
as it was called in the U.S. This explains the number of fine
Episcopal churches in the central part of Boston."
Historic Churches of Boston | Religious History
http://www.geocities.com/Athens/Agora/8410/history.html
Emmanuel Church
---------------
Emmanuel Church, designed by A.R. Estey, was built in 1862 at 15
Newbury Street, in the Back Bay. In "1920: The Lindsay Memorial Chapel
is added to the Emmanuel Church in honor of William Lindsay's daughter
Leslie who dies along with her husband, Thomas Mason, on their
honeymoon when the Lusitania is torpedoed."
Boston Family History | Back Bay
http://www.bostonfamilyhistory.com/neigh_bbay.html
"This Gothic structure was the first church building constructed in
the Back Bay. Founded in 1861, its Episcopal congregation is fortunate
enough to hear a full Bach cantata as part of the service of every
Sunday from September to May. Inside is the Leslie Lindsey Chapel,
dedicated to a woman who died in the sinking of the Lusitania in 1915.
Early in the 20th Century, Emmanuel was home to a holistic medicine
movement, known as the "Emmanuel Movement."
Historic Churches of Boston | Tour Part III
http://www.geocities.com/Athens/Agora/8410/tour3.html
Emanuel Church (present website)
http://www.emmanuel-boston.org/
Additional Sources
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The Nichol's House Museum
http://www.nicholshousemuseum.org/index.html
Boston Family History | Boston's Neighborhoods
http://www.bostonfamilyhistory.com/neigh_main.html
Boston Women's Heritage Trail | Beacon Hill
http://www.bwht.org/beaconhill1.html
EDR SanbornŽ Maps: Digital Sanborn Maps, 1867-1970
"EDR's Sanborn collection dates from 1866 and includes over 1.2
million Sanborn maps chronicling the history of approximately 12,000
American cities and towns." (Including Boston) Available by purchase
or subscription only, however, an invaluable resource. Also,
available, historical aerial photographs beginning in 1930.
http://www.edrnet.com/reports/historical.html
I hope you find this information useful. Should you have questions
about the materials or links provided, please feel free to ask for
clarification.
---larre
Answer Strategy | Search Terms
---------------------------------------------------------------------
religious history boston
history "emmanuel church" boston
"beacon hill" residence 1920..1929 boston
episcopal church boston beacon hill
"louisburg square" "beacon hill" boston
"louisburg square" 1920..1929 |
Clarification of Answer by
larre-ga
on
26 Sep 2004 09:14 PDT
Hi!
The Back Bay is adjacent to Beacon Hill, downslope slightly to the
west. Beacon Hill is on the northern perimeter of the Common and
Public Garden, the Back Bay is on the west. Boston occupies a small a
peninsula, new land for development was created by lopping off the top
of its hills, and using that dirt to fill in the surrounding tidal
areas. The Back Bay is a former swamp at the foot of Beacon Hill. By
the early-to-mid nineteenth century, the south slope of Beacon Hill
was pretty much "full up", occupied by those old monied families.
While some were surely attracted to the wider streets and newer
brownstones, the majority of those who moved into the new district
from smaller, less prestigious quarters on Beacon Hill or from the
South End were "new money". "Mingling" of the residential preferences
of the two groups had not yet picked up major momentum in the 1920's,
though it did accelerate during the Depression and years of World War
II. The Back Bay is more newly chic, gaining much additional prestige
and popularity in the second half of the 20th century.
"The construction in the early 19th century of the Mill dam and Cross
Dam west of Beacon Hill caused the creation of a large swamp. It was
considered a health hazard and the filling of the swamp was started in
1857. This project, which took almost thirty years to complete, was
the start of a new popular district: the Back Bay."
The Back Bay
http://www.aviewoncities.com/boston/backbay.htm
If your character(s) was definitely Back Bay, then you might consider
the "intersection" of the two areas, Beacon Street, or Marlborough and
Commonwealth Avenues, between Arlington and Berkeley, nearest the
Public Garden, as likely residence streets. Newbury Street, the
current "Rodeo Drive" of Boston, was not yet a fashionable area during
the 20's.
Current Usage Maps (.pdf):
Back Bay: http://www.cityofboston.gov/bra/pdf/maps/backbay.pdf
Beacon Hill: http://www.cityofboston.gov/bra/pdf/maps/charles-st.pdf
I worked in Boston for several months, during a cold winter a number
of (oh my, is it really 25?) years ago, staying in a small flat on
Commonwealth Avenue. When (very occasionally) warm enough to venture
out without freezing my California tootsies, I enjoyed exploring the
neighborhoods.
---l
|
Clarification of Answer by
larre-ga
on
26 Sep 2004 16:59 PDT
Beacon Hill is not "technically" Back Bay., however, we're discussing
a distance of yards and blocks, not miles. The Back Bay is a newer
area, created by fill, beginning in the 1850's, completed over 50
years. Streets in the Back Bay were lain out in a square grid, a new
concept for Boston.
Today - Beacon Hill may seem a part of Back Bay, but in actuality,
it's an older, geographically distinct area/neighborhood. To
illustrate the difference, Boston Common is adjoined by the Public
Garden. The Common is an historic common pasture, dating back before
the Revolutionary War. The adjoining Public Gardens were once a
low-lying, uninhabited area, then, a swamp, and finally, filled in as
part of the Back Bay development. Today, they're considered to be part
of the same recreation area. Beacon Hill is older Boston, built up
between 1780-1850 (approximately). Settlement of the Back Bay began
only in 1856.
If you are able to access the Sanborn Maps, the progression will
become very clear. Many university and public libraries offer access
to these digital documents that show street maps from 1866 on.
Filling the Back Bay (1830)
http://www.iboston.org/mcp.php?pid=backBayFilled&laf=hpe
The Neighborhood Association of the Back Bay offers an excellent
timeline. Note the 1862 mention of Emanuel Church. Other documents on
the site detail history, homes, and more.
History of the Back Bay | Timeline
http://www.nabbonline.com/history/bb_history.htm
From the Wikipedia:
"Beacon Hill is a neighborhood of Boston, Massachusetts covering
approximately one square mile and home to about 10,000 people. It is a
wealthy neighborhood of Federal rowhouses, with some of the highest
property values in the United States. It is known for its narrow
streets, brick sidewalks, and reproduction gas- street lights. It is
located just north of Boston Common and the Boston Public Garden and
is bounded by Beacon Street, Bowdoin Street, Cambridge Street and
Storrow Drive along the riverfront of the Charles River Esplanade.
Beacon Hill's wealthy Louisburg Square is home to John Kerry.
The warm south slope of Beacon Hill facing the Common, was the
socially desirable side in the 19th century. Black Beacon Hill was on
the chillier north slope, above the commercial hub of Scollay Square.
The two Hills were largely united on one subject: Abolition. Beacon
hill was one of the staunchest centers of the anti-slavery movement in
the Antebellum era."
Wikipedia | Beacon Hill
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beacon_Hill,_Massachusetts
Beacon Hill Map
http://www.beaconhillonline.com/cgi-bin/index.cgi?cid=6&sid=1#1
Boston Architectural History
http://www.iboston.org/mcp.php?pid=arch
A Mt. Vernon Street Walking Tour
http://www.beaconhillonline.com/cgi-bin/index.cgi?cid=21
I hope this helps.
---l
|
