Mapping Roxbury Through Time

Mapping a Community through Time using Multiple Geographic

Resources

Roxbury, MassachusettsCompiled by Tim Rayworth

MassPLT and MA Department of Conservation and Recreation

Overview

The following slides track a neighborhood in Roxbury, MA from 1781 through 2008 using several types of geographic resources, including:

• A hand-drawn map from 1781• Fire insurance maps (Bromley and Hawkins Atlases)• A bird’s-eye view map• Aerial Photographs (Google/MassGIS)• MassGIS land use data layers viewed using OLIVER• Google maps• Google’s Street View images

Watch how the detailed area of Roxbury has changed from 1781 to 1931. Find the intersection of Centre and Bickford (marked with a star). Look especially for

• Changes in land use from agricultural to industrial• Changes to landscape features• Additions of structures and streets

OverviewBoston todayOverviewUSGS map, 7.5' series

Area of interest

Historic OverviewBoston 1781 Historic Overview

Area of interest

Roxbury 1781-3

Roxbury 1781 Detail of previous map

Roxbury 1873-3Roxbury 1873 Hawkins’ Fire Insurance Atlas

What happened to the stream?

Bromley Park will be a presence for years.

Roxbury 1886-3Roxbury 1886 Bromley’s Fire Insurance Atlas

Where did this pond come from?

Roxbury 1886-3Roxbury 1886 Bromley’s Fire Insurance AtlasRoxbury 1888 “Boston Highlands”, O.H. Bailey, Bird’s Eye(not to scale)

North

Roxbury 1899-3Roxbury 1899 Bromley’s Fire Insurance Atlas

Thomas Plant shoe factoryEstablished in 1896

School built on city lot

Roxbury 1906-3Roxbury 1906Bromley’s Fire Insurance Atlas

Roxbury 1915-3Roxbury 1915 Bromley’s Fire Insurance Atlas

Parcel developed as a park by Plant; designed by F.L. Olmstead Jr.

Roxbury 1931-3Roxbury 1931 Bromley’s Fire Insurance Atlas

There were 24 breweries in the area.The Burton Brewing company became the Moxie Soft Drink plant during prohibition.

• Data viewed in OLIVER, and online GIS tool provided by MassGIS

• Watch our corner for changes in type of urban cover.

• Watch surrounding areas for changes in use

• Note: the scale changes to include much more area

The most recent fire insurance map available is from the 1930s, so here we’ll switch to contemporary GIS resources to look at parcels by land use.

Roxbury Land Use 1971Roxbury 1971 Land-use data layer, MassGIS

Area of interest

Roxbury Land Use 1985Roxbury 1985 Land-use data layer, MassGIS

Urban Open? A devastating fire in 1976 destroyed the shoe factory (then converted to art studios and apartments), creating an area know locally as the ruins.

Area of interest

Roxbury Land Use 1999Roxbury 1999 Land-use data layer, MassGIS

Forested parcel disappears

Area of interest

Roxbury 2001-4Roxbury 2001 Orthophotos from MassGIS

Thomas Plant shoe factorysite: 1896-1976

Site of Bromley Park

Site of Plant’s Olmstead Park

Site of Burton brewery turned Moxie bottling facility

School siteLocation of Pond

Roxbury today- mapRoxbury 2008 Google Maps- map view

Streets have been rerouted and the character of the community has changed with the introduction of a housing development. Marks on this map indicate the location and direction of the street view images on the next few pages.

Roxbury today-strip mallRoxbury 2008 Google Maps- Street view

Roxbury today- Stop & ShopRoxbury 2008 Google Maps- Street view

Roxbury today- housing projectRoxbury 2008 Google Maps- Street view

Special thanks goes to Ronald E. Grim, curator of the Leventhal Map Center at the Boston Public Library for his direction, support, and provision of materials.

Sources:

• Leventhal Map Center at the Boston Public Library: http://maps.bpl.org• Boston Redevelopment Authority’s “The Boston Atlas”:

http://www.mapjunction.com/bra/• MassGIS: http://www.mass.gov/mgis/• Google Maps: https://maps.google.com• Jamaica Plain Historical Society: http://www.jphs.org/home/

Compiled by Tim Rayworth, MA Department of Conservation & RecreationContact: tim.rayworth@state.ma.us