West End (Boston)

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West end
Boston West End 2009
Boston West End 2009
Borough of Boston
Boston2.png
Basic data
State : United States
State : Massachusetts
County : Suffolk County
Coordinates : 42 ° 22 ′  N , 71 ° 4 ′  W Coordinates: 42 ° 22 ′  N , 71 ° 4 ′  W
Time zone : Eastern ( UTC − 5 / −4 )
Area code : +1 617, 857

The West End is a district ( neighborhood ) of the city of Boston in the state of Massachusetts in the United States . The area lies between Cambridge Street to the south, the Charles River to the west and northwest, North Washington Street to the north and northeast, and New Sudbury Street to the east. To the south the district is bordered by Beacon Hill and to the east by the North End . The West End became known nationwide in the late 1950s through a large-scale urban renewal project , in the course of which large areas of Italian and Jewish quarters were torn down to make way for new developments.

geography

The West End circa 1769

Geographical location

The West End is on the northwestern part of the Shawmut Peninsula . The largest part of the ground in the 19th century by Landaufschüttung won by a part of the Beacon Hill to backfill a small bay and a mill pond was used by the West End of the city districts of Beacon Hill and the North End was separated. The measures for this began in 1807.

Today the district consists mainly of blocks of flats in high-rise buildings . It borders between the Longfellow Bridge and the Charles River Dam Bridge on the Charles River , on whose banks and the Playground Charles Bank is that the rest of the West End by the Storrow Drive is disconnected.

history

history

The beginnings

The first home in the West End designed by Charles Bulfinch for Harrison Gray Otis .

In the late 18th and early 19th centuries, the coasts of Boston and the North End were increasingly overpopulated, so many of the wealthier residents took advantage of the opportunity to develop what is now the West End . At the beginning the designated area was separated from the other parts of the city by a small bay, which had to be filled up first. For this purpose, part of the nearby Beacon Hill was removed and used as a filler. Architect Charles Bulfinch was responsible for much of the architectural character of Boston at the time and also played a large role in the development of the new West End .

Early in his career in the 1790s, Bulfinch mostly designed larger properties , many of which were in the West End and other Boston neighborhoods. One of the most famous houses from this period is the first of a total of three houses that he built for Harrison Gray Otis . This house is one of the few that survived the urban renewal process.

Other attractions designed by Bulfinch in the West End include the granite building of the Massachusetts General Hospital (now known as the Bulfinch Pavilion ), constructed from 1816 to 1825, and the West End Market on the corner of Grove and Cambridge Streets . This historic market, built in 1810, was demolished as part of urban renewal in the 1950s.

Bulfinch designed many new brick buildings with gardens that attracted many of Boston's wealthier residents. By 1810, the West End was predominantly inhabited by wealthy businessmen, traders and lawyers. However, most of them moved on to Beacon Hill after a short time , making the West End a focal point for new immigrants and African Americans .

Also known at this time was the architect Gridley James Fox Bryant , according to whose plans the Charles Street Jail was built in the West End in 1851 . The prison was later converted into the Liberty Hotel .

African American history

The West End in the 19th century from the top of Beacon Hill of view
The West End Adult Evening School , ca.1890, photographed by Augustine H. Folsom ( Boston Public Library )

In the early 19th century, the West End - like the northern portion of Beacon Hill - became an important center for the Afro-American community in Boston. Most of the affluent and white residents of the southern part of Beacon Hill were staunch advocates of abolitionism , which led working and middle-class African Americans to move to the West End and northern Beacon Hill .

After the American Civil War , the West End continued to be an important center of African American culture, and at that time was one of the few places in the United States where African Americans had a political voice. Each year from 1876 to 1895, there was at least one black West End resident on Boston City Council.

Urban renewal

The Green Street in 1959

By the 1950s, Boston's West End had become a residential area with widespread in- work poverty . Individual businesses were spread across the district, and most residents said it was a good place to live. The once heavily overpopulated area was in a process of détente (also known as "deslumming") and the population had fallen to around 7,500. At the end of the 1950s, more than half of the entire district was demolished in order to replace the old buildings with new high-rise apartment buildings as part of a large-scale urban renewal project .

Political background

Large-scale renovation of the West End was proposed by Nathan Straus back in the 1930s , shortly after the National Housing Act of 1934 was passed under the New Deal . The neighborhood was viewed as a slum by wealthy Boston residents who lived in other parts of the city, but working-class people living in the West End felt close to the neighborhood, so the plan remained political until the 1950s was not feasible into it.

In the late 1940s, Mayor James Michael Curley ruled the city with an iron hand. His "policy more or less ignored the WASP and Yankee groups ". One of his tactics was to blame the rich for the needs of the poor. This is believed to be one of the reasons for the beginning exodus from Boston and the decline that followed.

“Curley made many enemies in his long career. He enjoyed verbally attacking the Boston Brahmins, and he encouraged his Irish constituents to blame their woes on the Yankees. Many of the people who had long dominated the city came to feel unwelcome in Boston. The exodus of Protestants to the suburbs that took place during the Curley era left a lasting legacy. "

“Curley made many enemies in his long career. He took pleasure in verbally attacking the Boston Brahmins and assisted his Irish constituents in finding the source of their problems with the Yankees. Many of the city's long-time dominant citizens felt increasingly unwelcome, and the Protestant migration to the suburbs during Curley's tenure left a legacy. "

Despite these policies and allegations of corruption around him, Curley was perceived as the mayor of the people.

When John Hynes took over management in 1949, he made a complete U-turn and sought to bring the city back to prosperity. To this end, he worked with business leaders and founded the Boston Redevelopment Authority (BRA). This consisted of four people appointed by the mayor and one other person appointed by the governor. The BRA was supposed to replace the Boston Housing Authority , in which the mayor no longer had confidence, and was responsible for large-scale urban renewal in Boston, including the West End .

implementation

As part of the plan to create a "new Boston", the BRA restructured several neighborhoods during the 1950s. Thus, before the West End and the South End redesigned and Scollay Square was leveled in order to later the Government Center to build. A major motivation behind these projects was the intention to replace districts classified as slums with ones that promised increased tax revenues. The West End's tax revenue before the renovation was only an estimated $ 546,000 per year .

The renovation of the West End was officially announced on April 11, 1953. Mayor Hynes and the BRA stated that the project would bring many benefits to the district. The area's narrow streets presented a high risk of fire and many of the buildings no longer complied, in part or in full, with building and fire safety regulations applicable at the time. Tenants were assured that they would be offered affordable and decent housing and many were led to believe that they could return to the West End after the renovation project was completed .

The plan included the complete leveling of 46 acres (186,155 m²) in the West End , which would involve the relocation of 2,700 families. However, only 5 high-rise residential buildings with a total of 477 apartments were to be built on the new area. The new development was clearly aimed at the upper middle class as new residents, meaning that most of the relocated families would not be financially able to afford to return.

In October 1957 the BRA held a hearing on this project, attended by at least 200 West End residents , most of whom were against the implementation of the plans. With the support of Joseph Lee they founded the Save the West End committee to organize demonstrations and protests against the new development. Most residents, however, were convinced that the project would not be implemented anyway and therefore remained inactive until it was too late.

The residents concerned received their eviction notices on April 25, 1958. The BRA relied on the Housing Act of 1949 to demolish the West End almost entirely. Working-class families were relocated and the original street network was replaced by blocks of houses . As a result, the renewed district consisted almost exclusively of residential high-rise buildings, shopping centers and parking lots.

Tension and conflict

The urban renewal of the West End was heavily attacked by critics, who criticized the destruction of a district in general and the ruthless implementation of the plans in particular. One of the main criticisms was the finding that the district was not perceived as a slum by its residents and that there was a strong and stable community there. In fact, the district was mainly referred to as a slum by wealthy people living outside the West End , which has always been picked up and supported by politicians. For example, the garbage collection and street cleaning of the district was stopped without further ado, which led to chaotic conditions on the street. To document this, a photographer from a local daily newspaper was commissioned to go into the neighborhood, empty a trash can and create the impression of a neglected district through the resulting image.

Many of the homeowners were not adequately compensated. Due to existing laws, the city immediately became the legal owner of the building in question when an apartment building was added to the demolition list. As a result, the original homeowners no longer generated any income as the rental income had to be paid directly to the city. The former owners were quickly prepared to sell their properties at significantly reduced prices.

The justification for demolishing the West End as a whole was also questioned. There is speculation that the borough, as one of those who supported the previous mayor, was a thorn in the side of John Hynes . The total cost of the project was $ 15.8 million, not including the loss of tax revenue for the time the area was unpopulated. It is uncertain whether the increased tax revenue will ever be enough to justify these costs.

The negative effects of urban renewal on former West End residents are well documented. Between a quarter and a half of the former residents were relocated to houses and apartments of lower standard, for which they also had to pay higher rents. About 40% had significant long-term effects of their grief . Many of the former residents share their memories and griefs through the West Ender newsletter . The destruction of the West End community created a strong reluctance to further urban renewal in Boston.

Population development

A youth baseball team in the West End , 1915

From the second half of the 19th through the mid 20th centuries, Boston's West End became home to many diverse groups of immigrants . The wealthy businessmen and middle-class people had almost completely moved away, but many African-Americans stayed in the West End and contributed to the cultural diversity of the district. The immigrant groups who contributed to this melting pot included Armenians , Greeks , Irish , Lebanese , Italians , Jews , Lithuanians , Poles , Russians , Syrians , Ukrainians, and many other Eastern and Southern Europeans . During this period, the population peaked at around 23,000.

As a side effect of this immigration, the religious makeup of the West End changed dramatically. Protestant churches were closed or moved to other places and were replaced in particular by Catholic churches and synagogues . For example, the Old West Church, built in 1806, had to close in 1892 due to a lack of parishioners. Two years later it reopened as a library and branch of the Boston Public Library .

Irish immigrants

One of the first new groups of immigrants to settle in the West End was the Irish , who soon developed a vibrant community. After a while they became very close to Martin Lomasney , also known as "the Mahatma". Lomasney was the political leader of the 8th Boston Ward and was responsible for the West End . He was well known there for caring for the community in general and the Irish in particular.

Early in his career he set up the Hendricks Club in the heart of the district. Initially it was used as a social meeting point, but later became the focal point of Lomasney's clientele policy . From there, he began setting up social services, charities, and sheltering poor immigrants. In return, he was sure of the votes of most of the residents of the district.

Jewish immigrants

Irish immigration slowed towards the end of the 19th and early 20th centuries. Instead, Jews from Eastern Europe began moving to the West End in large numbers . Most of them wanted to avoid persecution in Lithuania , Russia and Poland . They formed their own community in the district and by 1910 had already become an integral part of the population. They quickly integrated and established health centers, libraries, unions , loan offices, orphanages and synagogues . The actor Leonard Nimoy grew up in this community.

The Vilna Shul (now a Synagogue Museum), built in 1919 and closed in 1985, and the African American Meeting House (now a Church Museum) are the only two of the original seven synagogues that still stand in the West End today.

The West End today

The Causeway Street 2010

Today the West End consists of both residential and commercial areas. Few commercial areas were exempted from urban renewal in the 1950s, including Massachusetts General Hospital , Charles Street Jail, and the Bulfinch Triangle , a small area enclosed by Causeway , Merrimac, and Market Streets . In the northern area of ​​the district are also the Boston North Station and the TD Garden . The character that the West End had before the renovation process can still be seen today in the mixed-use Bulfinch Triangle . There are a few pubs and restaurants there that live from the traffic to and from Faneuil Hall and TD Garden .

Economy and Infrastructure

media

The magazine West Ender Newsletter in 1985 by Jim Campano established who is still editor and author today. The magazine appears quarterly and was first sold in March 1985. The newspaper's target group are mainly former residents of the West End who were relocated as part of the urban renewal project and were unable to return due to increased rents and land prices. A well-known supporter of the newspaper is Leonard Nimoy , who also lived in the West End .

See also

literature

  • Nancy S. Seasholes: Gaining Ground: Landmaking in Boston's West End . In: Old-Time New England . tape 77 , no. 266 (spring / summer), 1999, p. 23–45 ( historicnewengland.org [PDF; accessed August 2, 2012]).

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b c d Thomas H. O'Connor: The hub . Boston past and present. Northeastern University Press, Boston 2001, ISBN 1-55553-474-0 .
  2. ^ A b Walter Muir Whitehill, Lawrence W. Kennedy: Boston: a topographical history . 3rd ext. Edition. Belknap Press of Harvard University Press, Cambridge, Mass. 2000, ISBN 0-674-00267-9 .
  3. ↑ a b c Herbert J. Gans: The urban villagers . group and class in the life of Italian-Americans. Free Press, Collier Macmillan Publishers, New York, London 1982, ISBN 0-02-911250-8 .
  4. ↑ a b Jane Jacobs: The death and life of great American cities . Vintage Books, New York 1992, ISBN 0-679-74195-X .
  5. ↑ a b c Martin Anderson: The Federal bulldozer; a critical analysis of urban renewal, 1949–1962 . MIT Press, Cambridge 1964, OCLC 261259 .
  6. ↑ a b c d e f g h Thomas H. O'Connor: Building a new Boston . politics and urban renewal, 1950-1970. Northeastern University Press, Boston 1993, ISBN 1-55553-161-X .
  7. ^ Robert C. Weaver: Dilemmas of urban America (=  Godkin lectures at Harvard University ). Harvard University Press, Cambridge, Mass. 1965, OCLC 264866 .
  8. ^ Urban Renewal in New Haven and Boston, Transgression or Triumph. (PDF) Archived from the original on February 6, 2009 ; Retrieved August 2, 2012 .
  9. ↑ Mayor Curley jeopardizes Election. Mass moments, accessed on August 2, 2012 .
  10. ↑ James Curley: Biography. Spartacus Educational, accessed August 2, 2012 .
  11. ^ E. Michael Jones: The slaughter of cities . urban renewal as ethnic cleansing. St. Augustine's Press, South Bend, Ind. 2004, ISBN 1-58731-775-3 .
  12. ↑ Vivienne Belmont: West End residents struggle to raise neighborhood's profile. In: Boston - City in Transition. Retrieved August 2, 2012 .
  13. ↑ Thomas H. O'Connor: Boston A to Z . Harvard University Press, Cambridge, Mass. 2000, ISBN 0-674-00310-1 .
  14. ↑ Jim Vrabel: When in Boston . a time line & almanac. Ed .: Bostonian Society. Northeastern University Press, Boston 2004, ISBN 1-55553-621-2 .
  15. ^ Anthony Mitchell Sammarco: Boston's West End . Arcadia, Charleston, SC 1998, ISBN 0-7524-1257-4 .

Web links

Commons : West End, Boston  - Collection of images, videos, and audio files