Morrissey Boulevard
Encyclopedia
Morrissey Boulevard is a six-lane divided coastal road in the Dorchester neighborhood of Boston
, Massachusetts
. It is owned and maintained by the Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation (DCR).
, Morrissey Boulevard leaves Neponset Circle at its northeast quadrant as the left two lanes of a three lane exit, with the rightmost lane splitting to the east as an entrance ramp to the Southeast Expressway (Interstate 93). Traveling under the expressway within a landscaped park area fronting the DCR-operated Devine Memorial ice rink
, the road then travels north through the Neponset
and Popes Hill sections of Dorchester with commercial establishments on both sides. The road splits as it passes under the tracks of the MBTA Red Line
rapid transit route at what was previously Popes Hill Station of the Old Colony Railroad
. A Dunkin' Donuts
store now occupies the area between the two roadways. The entrance to Tenean Beach, part of the DCR's Dorchester Shores Reservation
, is located off the right roadway in this section.
Morrissey Boulevard proceeds north past the Richard J. Murphy Elementary School and is flanked by heavy commercial development over the following 0.5 mile (0.80467 km) to Freeport Street. At Freeport, the road again passes beneath the expressway and travels to the east of it from that point to the end of the boulevard. As a northbound exit ramp from the expressway enters on the right, the view east is dominated by a 140 feet (42.7 m) LNG storage tank
which is painted with Rainbow Swash
, an iconic work by Corita Kent
that has made the gas tank a Boston landmark. The parkway passes over the inlet from Dorchester Bay
to Savin Hill Bay carried by the John J. Beades Memorial Bridge, a drawbridge
which opens to allow passage to Dorchester Yacht Club. Savin Hill Beach, Malibu Beach, Savin Hill Yacht Club and the Vietnam Veterans Memorial of Dorchester are located along Morrissey Boulevard in this area adjacent to Savin Hill
and featured as part of Boston Harborwalk
.
The University of Massachusetts Boston
, Boston College High School
, John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum and The Boston Globe
are among the institutions located on Morrissey Boulevard in its northernmost stretch beyond Savin Hill. The road ends as it intersects Columbia Road and Day Boulevard
at Kosciuszko Circle, adjacent to the Harbor Point
section of Dorchester and JFK/UMass
subway and commuter rail station.
to be constructed along the route of the Old Colony Railroad
to give travelers to Quincy
and Massachusetts South Shore locations a way to bypass city streets. In planning for nearly two decades, it was finally completed in 1924 and named Old Colony Parkway. The originally proposed route paralleling the railroad was changed and moved to the shore of Dorchester Bay
on the Atlantic Ocean
due in part to land reclamation
efforts prior to completion of the road. Old Colony Parkway was renamed William T. Morrissey Boulevard in 1951 in honor of the former head of the Metropolitan District Commission, now the Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation (DCR). The older commission constructed many parkways within Greater Boston
and the DCR continues to own and maintain Morrissey Boulevard.
Boston
Boston is the capital of and largest city in Massachusetts, and is one of the oldest cities in the United States. The largest city in New England, Boston is regarded as the unofficial "Capital of New England" for its economic and cultural impact on the entire New England region. The city proper had...
, Massachusetts
Massachusetts
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...
. It is owned and maintained by the Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation (DCR).
Route description
A parkwayParkway
The term parkway has several distinct principal meanings and numerous synonyms around the world, for either a type of landscaped area or a type of road.Type of landscaped area:...
, Morrissey Boulevard leaves Neponset Circle at its northeast quadrant as the left two lanes of a three lane exit, with the rightmost lane splitting to the east as an entrance ramp to the Southeast Expressway (Interstate 93). Traveling under the expressway within a landscaped park area fronting the DCR-operated Devine Memorial ice rink
Ice rink
An ice rink is a frozen body of water and/or hardened chemicals where people can skate or play winter sports. Besides recreational ice skating, some of its uses include ice hockey, figure skating and curling as well as exhibitions, contests and ice shows...
, the road then travels north through the Neponset
Neponset, Massachusetts
Neponset, Massachusetts is a district in the southeast corner of Dorchester, Massachusetts which is the most populous neighborhood of Boston....
and Popes Hill sections of Dorchester with commercial establishments on both sides. The road splits as it passes under the tracks of the MBTA Red Line
Red Line (MBTA)
The Red Line is a rapid transit line operated by the MBTA running roughly north-south through Boston, Massachusetts into neighboring communities. The line begins west of Boston, in Cambridge, Massachusetts at Alewife station, near the intersection of Alewife Brook Parkway and Route 2...
rapid transit route at what was previously Popes Hill Station of the Old Colony Railroad
Old Colony Railroad
The Old Colony Railroad was a major railroad system, mainly covering southeastern Massachusetts and parts of Rhode Island. It operated from 1845 to 1893. Old Colony trains ran from Boston to points such as Plymouth, Fall River, New Bedford, Newport, Providence, Fitchburg, Lowell and Cape Cod...
. A Dunkin' Donuts
Dunkin' Donuts
Dunkin' Donuts is an international doughnut and coffee retailer founded in 1950 by William Rosenberg in Quincy, Massachusetts; it is now headquartered in Canton...
store now occupies the area between the two roadways. The entrance to Tenean Beach, part of the DCR's Dorchester Shores Reservation
Dorchester Shores Reservation
Dorchester Shores Reservation is a Massachusetts state park located in Boston. The park is managed by the Department of Conservation and Recreation. It consists of three areas totaling along the eastern edge of the Dorchester section of Boston.-Description:...
, is located off the right roadway in this section.
Morrissey Boulevard proceeds north past the Richard J. Murphy Elementary School and is flanked by heavy commercial development over the following 0.5 mile (0.80467 km) to Freeport Street. At Freeport, the road again passes beneath the expressway and travels to the east of it from that point to the end of the boulevard. As a northbound exit ramp from the expressway enters on the right, the view east is dominated by a 140 feet (42.7 m) LNG storage tank
LNG storage tank
A liquefied natural gas storage tank or LNG storage tank is a specialized type of storage tank used for the storage of Liquefied Natural Gas. LNG storage tanks can be found in ground, above ground or in LNG carriers. The common characteristic of LNG Storage tanks is the ability to store LNG at the...
which is painted with Rainbow Swash
Rainbow Swash
The Rainbow Swash is a work by Corita Kent in the Dorchester neighborhood of Boston, Massachusetts. The rainbow design painted on a tall LNG storage tank is the largest copyrighted work of art in the world...
, an iconic work by Corita Kent
Corita Kent
Corita Kent , aka Sister Mary Corita Kent, was born Frances Elizabeth Kent in Fort Dodge, Iowa. Kent was an artist and an educator who worked in Los Angeles and Boston. She worked almost exclusively with silkscreen and serigraphy, helping to establish it as a fine art medium...
that has made the gas tank a Boston landmark. The parkway passes over the inlet from Dorchester Bay
Dorchester Bay (Boston Harbor)
Dorchester Bay is the smallest of the three small bays of southern Boston Harbor, part of Massachusetts Bay and forming the south shoreline of the South Boston neighborhood and northeast shoreline of the Dorchester neighborhood of Boston, as well as the north shore of the city of Quincy in...
to Savin Hill Bay carried by the John J. Beades Memorial Bridge, a drawbridge
Bascule bridge
A bascule bridge is a moveable bridge with a counterweight that continuously balances the span, or "leaf," throughout the entire upward swing in providing clearance for boat traffic....
which opens to allow passage to Dorchester Yacht Club. Savin Hill Beach, Malibu Beach, Savin Hill Yacht Club and the Vietnam Veterans Memorial of Dorchester are located along Morrissey Boulevard in this area adjacent to Savin Hill
Savin Hill
Savin Hill is the first album by punk band Street Dogs. This is the first new material featuring lead singer Mike McColgan since he quit Dropkick Murphys in 1998...
and featured as part of Boston Harborwalk
Boston Harborwalk
Boston HarborWalk is a public walkway that follows the edge of piers, wharves, beaches and shoreline around Boston Harbor. Plans call for it to extend a distance of from Chelsea Creek to the Neponset River, and it is about 80% complete...
.
The University of Massachusetts Boston
University of Massachusetts Boston
The University of Massachusetts Boston, also known as UMass Boston, is an urban public research university and the second largest campus in the five-campus University of Massachusetts system. The university is located on on Harbor Point in the City of Boston, Massachusetts, United States...
, Boston College High School
Boston College High School
Founded in 1863, Boston College High School is an all-male Jesuit Roman Catholic college preparatory secondary school with historical ties to Boston College. It has an enrollment in grades 7-12 of approximately 1,500 students and is located on a campus on Morrissey Boulevard in the Dorchester...
, John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum and The Boston Globe
The Boston Globe
The Boston Globe is an American daily newspaper based in Boston, Massachusetts. The Boston Globe has been owned by The New York Times Company since 1993...
are among the institutions located on Morrissey Boulevard in its northernmost stretch beyond Savin Hill. The road ends as it intersects Columbia Road and Day Boulevard
Day Boulevard
William J. Day Boulevard, or Day Boulevard, is a coastal parkway in Boston, Massachusetts. Beginning at Morrissey Boulevard and Kosciuszko Circle at the northern extent of the Dorchester section of the city, it travels in a gently curving northeasterly direction through South Boston along beaches...
at Kosciuszko Circle, adjacent to the Harbor Point
Columbia Point (Boston)
Columbia Point, later referred to as Harbor Point, in the Dorchester neighborhood of Boston, Massachusetts sits on a peninsula jutting out from the mainland of eastern Dorchester into the bay.-History:...
section of Dorchester and JFK/UMass
JFK/UMass (MBTA station)
JFK/UMass Station is located at the intersection of Columbia Road and Morrissey Boulevard, in the Dorchester neighborhood of Boston, Massachusetts.Its facilities include:*a platform on the Boston subway's Red Line for the Ashmont Branch...
subway and commuter rail station.
History
The road was designed as early as 1906 as an urban parkwayParkway
The term parkway has several distinct principal meanings and numerous synonyms around the world, for either a type of landscaped area or a type of road.Type of landscaped area:...
to be constructed along the route of the Old Colony Railroad
Old Colony Railroad
The Old Colony Railroad was a major railroad system, mainly covering southeastern Massachusetts and parts of Rhode Island. It operated from 1845 to 1893. Old Colony trains ran from Boston to points such as Plymouth, Fall River, New Bedford, Newport, Providence, Fitchburg, Lowell and Cape Cod...
to give travelers to Quincy
Quincy, Massachusetts
Quincy is a city in Norfolk County, Massachusetts, United States. Its nicknames are "City of Presidents", "City of Legends", and "Birthplace of the American Dream". As a major part of Metropolitan Boston, Quincy is a member of Boston's Inner Core Committee for the Metropolitan Area Planning Council...
and Massachusetts South Shore locations a way to bypass city streets. In planning for nearly two decades, it was finally completed in 1924 and named Old Colony Parkway. The originally proposed route paralleling the railroad was changed and moved to the shore of Dorchester Bay
Dorchester Bay (Boston Harbor)
Dorchester Bay is the smallest of the three small bays of southern Boston Harbor, part of Massachusetts Bay and forming the south shoreline of the South Boston neighborhood and northeast shoreline of the Dorchester neighborhood of Boston, as well as the north shore of the city of Quincy in...
on the Atlantic Ocean
Atlantic Ocean
The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's oceanic divisions. With a total area of about , it covers approximately 20% of the Earth's surface and about 26% of its water surface area...
due in part to land reclamation
Land reclamation
Land reclamation, usually known as reclamation, is the process to create new land from sea or riverbeds. The land reclaimed is known as reclamation ground or landfill.- Habitation :...
efforts prior to completion of the road. Old Colony Parkway was renamed William T. Morrissey Boulevard in 1951 in honor of the former head of the Metropolitan District Commission, now the Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation (DCR). The older commission constructed many parkways within Greater Boston
Greater Boston
Greater Boston is the area of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts surrounding the city of Boston. Due to ambiguity in usage, the size of the area referred to can be anywhere between that of the metropolitan statistical area of Boston and that of the city's combined statistical area which includes...
and the DCR continues to own and maintain Morrissey Boulevard.
External links
- The Norman B. Leventhal Map Center at the Boston Public Library 1926 Boston street map published by the Boston City Planning Board