On February 18, 2021, for Season 3, Episode 2 of N+T Asks, we zoomed in on one of Boston’s most historically notorious, but today, oft-forgotten neighborhoods: the West End. With the help of West End Museum Curator/Board President and Gallery East co-founder, Duane Lucia; third-generation neighborhood resident, Chiara Cherin; and local photographer, Lolita Parker Jr. we discussed the West End’s past, current needs, and possible futures.
By the mid-20th century, the West End was home to over 12,500 people representing 20+ racial and ethnic backgrounds. Largely a “working-poor” and immigrant community, wealthy Bostonians and city officials deemed it a “slum” despite its vibrancy and beloved status among residents. In the wake of The Housing Act of 1949, the Boston Housing and Redevelopment Authorities launched a nearly decade-long “deslumming” campaign, culminating in a mass eviction of the 7,500 remaining residents on April 25, 1958. By 1959, virtually the entire neighborhood was razed to the ground to make way for residential high-rises, shopping centers, and parking lots. It’s a renowned case study in urban renewal gone wrong.
Despite its comparatively limited residential space, many West End residents today are fighting to rebuild and maintain its artistic community, affordability, and diversity. Here’s the best of the local resources and facts we gathered:
A historic background of the neighborhood, via West End Place
Visit the West End Library
Beacon Hill Times on the future of urban renewal
DYK: BPDA stats note that 32.2% of the West End’s population is foreign born. Check out the West End at a glance, via BPDA
“A fix for the West End,” a 2011 article via Boston.com
Local public art map
The West End House, initially founded by European immigrant children who received funding for a clubhouse from philanthropist James J. Storrow, now serves kids of all backgrounds as a Boys and Girls Club in Allston (as the organization was forced to relocate in the wake of the 1950s’ urban redevelopment).
On the demolition of a building and accompanying mural in the bordering Government Center , via The Art Newspaper
And check out this 2016 presentation from Massachusetts Land Conservation Conference on “Easements & Rights of Way, Public and Private Roads.”
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