Dudley Square
Encyclopedia
Dudley Square is the primary commercial center of the Roxbury
neighborhood of Boston, Massachusetts, located at the intersection of Dudley Street and Washington Street
. It has long been the center of African American
culture in Boston, prior to which the area was primarily Jewish
.
For most of the twentieth century, Dudley Square was a multi-mode transportation hub, centered at Dudley Station
of the Washington Street Elevated
, which closed in 1987. Several streetcar lines radiated to surrounding neighborhoods from the elevated station. Today it is a substantial bus terminal and terminus for the MBTA's bus rapid transit
Silver Line
.
Roxbury, Massachusetts
Roxbury is a dissolved municipality and current neighborhood of Boston, Massachusetts, United States. It was one of the first towns founded in the Massachusetts Bay Colony in 1630, and became a city in 1846 until annexed to Boston on January 5, 1868...
neighborhood of Boston, Massachusetts, located at the intersection of Dudley Street and Washington Street
Washington Street (Boston)
Washington Street is a street originating in downtown Boston, Massachusetts that extends southwestward to the Massachusetts-Rhode Island state line. The majority of it was built as the Norfolk and Bristol Turnpike in the early nineteenth century...
. It has long been the center of African American
African American
African Americans are citizens or residents of the United States who have at least partial ancestry from any of the native populations of Sub-Saharan Africa and are the direct descendants of enslaved Africans within the boundaries of the present United States...
culture in Boston, prior to which the area was primarily Jewish
American Jews
American Jews, also known as Jewish Americans, are American citizens of the Jewish faith or Jewish ethnicity. The Jewish community in the United States is composed predominantly of Ashkenazi Jews who emigrated from Central and Eastern Europe, and their U.S.-born descendants...
.
For most of the twentieth century, Dudley Square was a multi-mode transportation hub, centered at Dudley Station
Dudley Square (MBTA station)
Dudley Square is a ground-level bus depot in Dudley Square, Roxbury, Boston, Massachusetts, USA, served by local buses of the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority and their Silver Line bus rapid transit service...
of the Washington Street Elevated
Washington Street Elevated
The Washington Street Elevated was an elevated segment of Boston's Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority subway system, comprising the southern stretch of the Orange Line . It ran from Chinatown through the South End and Roxbury, ending in Forest Hills in Jamaica Plain...
, which closed in 1987. Several streetcar lines radiated to surrounding neighborhoods from the elevated station. Today it is a substantial bus terminal and terminus for the MBTA's bus rapid transit
Bus rapid transit
Bus rapid transit is a term applied to a variety of public transportation systems using buses to provide faster, more efficient service than an ordinary bus line. Often this is achieved by making improvements to existing infrastructure, vehicles and scheduling...
Silver Line
Silver Line (MBTA)
The Silver Line is the only bus rapid transit line currently operated by the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority . It operates in two sections; the first runs from Dudley Square in Roxbury to downtown Boston, Massachusetts and South Station, mostly via Washington Street, with buses...
.
Further reading
- DePasquale, Ron, "Sense of history, new tenants, and money enliven Dudley Square", Boston Globe, March 14, 2004
- Yoon, SamSam YoonSam Yoon is a former at-large member of the Boston City Council. He currently serves as the executive director for the National Alliance of Community Economic Development Associations in Washington, DC. He was the first Asian American to hold elected office in Boston...
, "The Dudley Square Retail District", The Rappaport Institute for Greater Boston, John F. Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University, April 12, 1995