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Beverly Street:
Beverly Street along with North Station and all of Bullfinch Triangle is located in what used to be known as the Mill Pond. In 1630, the Puritans arrived on a small peninsula that the Native Americans of the region called: Shawmut. Shortly after this, Bostonians began what would become a very long history of landfilling.
One of these cases was the filling of the Mill Pond, an area located at the Northern tip of Boston used for a series of flour mills. These mill were positioned here since they could be powered by the tides. Through a series of hand-offs, the pond became unsafe due to a build-up of sewage and rot. In 1807 the land-filling of Mill Pond began. Over time, the area known as Bullfinch Triangle (after the architect who designed the area), became a commercial hotspot.
Mason, Betsy. “How Boston Made Itself Bigger.” Culture. National Geographic
The commercial aspect to the area Beverly Street resides in is clear from pictures of the surrounding area. Beverly Street is located off of Causeway Street, a main street that runs past North Station. Causeway Street is so integral to the area, there was once an elevated rail line called the Fitchburg Line.
Construction of the Fitchburg Rail Depot on Causeway St. 1911. Historic New England.
Causeway St. View with Fitchburg Rail Line. March 11, 1911. Historic New England
It is clear from the two photos above that what was once Mill Pond, has over time become an important center of commercialization for Boston. In the upper left photo a sign for Sunshine Biscuits can be seen as well as the side of a Glue Company. These buildings were located right near Beverly Street, along the Charles River.
Bromley, George Washington. Atlas of the City of Boston. 1912
Display Ad 35 -- no Title." Boston Daily Globe (1872-1922): Sunshine Biscuits
These companies, along with the companies located on Beverly Street, illustrate the vibrancy of commercial and business life. Each company contributed to the overall economic and financial framework of Boston.
Text Citations
Mason, Betsy. “How Boston Made Itself Bigger.” Culture. National Geographic, May 3, 2021. https://www.nationalgeographic.com/culture/article/Boston-landfill-maps-history.
Image Citations
Price, William, fl. 1725-1769. "A new plan of ye great town of Boston in New England in America, with the many additional buildings & new streets to the year 1743." Map. Boston, Mass: Wm. Price, 1743. Norman B. Leventhal Map & Education Center, https://collections.leventhalmap.org/search/commonwealth:9s161952m (accessed December 11, 2022).
Construction of the Fitchburg Rail Depot on Causeway St. 1986. Historic New England. https://www.historicnewengland.org/explore/collections-access/capobject/?refd=PC017.01.02.02.0230.
Causeway St. View with Fitchburg Rail Line. 1986. Historic New England. https://www.historicnewengland.org/explore/collections-access/capobject/?refd=PC017.01.02.02.0240.
Bromley, George Washington. Atlas of the City of Boston. Philadelphia: G.W. Bromley & Co., 1912. Boston Public Library, via Atlascope.
"Display Ad 35 -- no Title." Boston Daily Globe (1872-1922), Jun 01, 1909. https://holycross.idm.oclc.org/login?auth=cas&url=https://www.proquest.com/historical-newspapers/display-ad-35-no-title/docview/501293032/se-2.
Mason, Betsy. “How Boston Made Itself Bigger.” Culture. National Geographic, May 3, 2021. https://www.nationalgeographic.com/culture/article/Boston-landfill-maps-history.
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