Roxbury Heritage State Park
Roxbury Heritage State Park
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The Dillaway-Thomas House in the park area |
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location | Roxbury , Massachusetts , United States | |
surface | 0.868 ha | |
Geographical location | 42 ° 20 ' N , 71 ° 5' W | |
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Setup date | 1992 | |
Framework plan | Metropolitan Park System of Greater Boston | |
administration | Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation |
The Roxbury Heritage State Park is a state park designed as a history museum in the oldest part of the Boston district of Roxbury in the state of Massachusetts in the United States . The approximately 2 acres (1 ha ) park is managed by the Department of Conservation and Recreation (DCR) and is part of the Metropolitan Park System of Greater Boston .
description
Historical background
The site is located in the north of the district on John Eliot Square , where the city center was after the city was founded in 1630. The park's anchor point is the Dillaway – Thomas House , built in 1750 and considered to be the oldest standing building in Roxbury. The Georgian- style building was originally built as a rectory for Oliver Peabody , who was pastor of the First Church of Roxbury in 1750 . It served as the headquarters for General John Thomas and the Continental Army during the Siege of Boston in 1775 .
In 1776, cannons from Fort Ticonderoga in New York were transported by Henry Fox to Cambridge , from where they were taken via Roxbury to the fortification of Dorchester Heights . There they were used to force the British troops to evacuate Boston on March 17, 1776. A memorial stone was placed in the park in 2009 to commemorate General Thomas' role in ending the Siege of Boston . The memorial stone bears the number 57 of a series of stones reminiscent of the Noble train of artillery as the Henry Knox Trail , and was also the first and so far the only one to be added since 1927.
restoration
A first restoration was carried out in the 1930s by a conservationist who, however, made some inaccurate or incorrect corrections in an effort to embellish the story a little. After two fires in the 1970s, a former Roxbury resident successfully applied in 1984 to restore the house with public funds and designate it as a protected area. The building was then extensively restored, leaving some areas untouched to show its development over two centuries as part of a physical timeline. The work was completed in 1992. Inside, a museum has been set up with exhibits reflecting both the past and present of Roxbury, as well as its people and cultures.
Others
The protected area also includes an approx. 4,000 m² landscaped park around the building, from which the Boston skyline can be clearly seen.
Individual evidence
- ^ Roxbury's History. (No longer available online.) In: Discover Roxbury. Archived from the original on August 26, 2013 ; accessed on September 16, 2012 (English). Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ a b c Robert Campbell: A window on the past Inside Roxbury's Dillaway-Thomas House, an archeological approach to restoration lays bare a succession of style. In: Boston Globe . May 20, 1993, accessed September 14, 2012 (English, paid article).
- ^ A b Sandy Coleman: Roxbury house reopens to tell of past, future A house reopens to bear witness to the past and future. In: Boston Globe . October 11, 1992, accessed September 16, 2012 (English, paid article).
- ^ The Cannon. (PDF) The Newsletter of the General Henry Knox Museum. (No longer available online.) General Henry Knox Museum, 2009, archived from the original on July 26, 2011 ; accessed on September 16, 2012 (English). Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ YAWU Miller: Roxbury role in Revolutionary War Recognized with marker. (No longer available online.) In: The Bay State Banner. March 19, 2009, archived from the original on January 4, 2010 ; accessed on September 16, 2012 (English). Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ^ Roxbury Heritage State Park. Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation, accessed September 14, 2012 .