The Gilded Age – the era from the late 1860s to the late 1890s – was a period of significant growth and transformation in Boston.  Ingenious engineering projects allowed the city to expand, and a devastating fire led to swift and progressive redevelopment of the commercial district.  Designed to document Boston’s radically changing geography, this exhibition focuses on the evolving street pattern and emerging park system, developed for the City’s growing population.

This story begins with the Boston Common and Public Garden.  Moving west, the exhibition examines the growth of open spaces in Back Bay, then south to Frederick Law Olmsted’s Emerald Necklace, finishing with the development of Copley Square – the permanent home of the Boston Public Library.

Click on the thumbnails below to view the maps.

Filling in the Back Bay, 1858-1882

	George W. Boynton, New Map of Boston, 1857		Boston, Massachusetts. View of Back Bay, 1857
	George W. Boynton, New Map of Boston, 1860		Back Bay, 1895
	Oakley H. Bailey and James C. Hazen, The City of Boston, 1879		Albert E. Downs, Boston, 1899

The Great Boston Fire, 1872

	Charles R. Parsons, Bird’s-Eye View of Boston …, 1872		Thomas Nast, Columbia Lays Aside Her Laurels …, 1872
	J.H. Bufford’s Lith. Words and music by C.A. White, Homeless To-Night …, 1872		, Panoramic View of the Ruins …, 1872
	Thomas W. Davis, Plan of Burnt District …, 1873

Boston Common and Public Garden

	John Bachmann, Bird’s Eye View of Boston, 1850		G. W. Bromley & Co., Plan of Boston Common and Public Garden, 1888
	No. 13 Public Garden, Boston, Mass., 1880		Tremont Street Mall, Boston Common, 1880

Back Bay

	G. W. Bromley & Co., Part of Ward 11 …, 1890		G. W. Bromley & Co., Part of Ward 11 …, 1890
	Commonwealth Avenue in Process, 1872		No. 1 Commonwealth Ave. Boston, Mass., (1878-1910)
	Charles Davenport, Proposed Charles River Park, 1880		Charlesbank, 1905
	Barton St. Towards Leverett St., (1910)

 Suburban Parks

	Boston (Mass.) Park Department, Map of Boston …, 1886		Geo. H. Walker & Co., Arnold Arboretum …, 1900
	G. W. Bromley & Co., Part of Ward 23 …, 1896		Charles H. Woodbury, Boston Park Guide, 1896

Copley Square

	G. W. Bromley & Co., Part of Wards 11, 17 & 18 …, 1883		Copley Square, 1909
	Louis H. Ruyl, Public Library – Copley Sq., 1908