1870s

View from Bunker Hill Monument, Boston (2)

by

The view from the Bunker Hill Monument, sometime between the 1860s and 1880s. Photo courtesy of Boston Public Library.

088_1860-1880s-2Bbpl

The view in 2010:

088_2010

Looking west from the Bunker Hill Monument, the approaches to the Tobin Bridge dominate the landscape in the 2010 photo.  In the foreground, there is a stark contrast between the 19th century buildings to the right and the 1960s era redevelopment to the left.  Many of the buildings are easily recognizable in both photos, especially the ones along the street in the lower center of the 2010 photo.  In the background, beyond the approaches to the bridge. is the site of the former navy yard, which was still in active use in the first photo.

View from Bunker Hill Monument, Boston (1)

by

The view from the Bunker Hill Monument, sometime between the 1860s and 1880s. Photo courtesy of New York Public Library.

087_1860s-1880s-2Bnypl

The same view in 2010:

087_2010

The view from the top of the Bunker Hill Monument, looking east across the Mystic River.  The bridge in the first photo was the Chelsea Bridge, which was built in 1803.  It was replaced by the present-day Tobin Bridge, and much of the Charlestown neighborhood in the foreground was redeveloped in the 1960’s, giving it a far different appearance from the 19th century photo.

Court Square, Springfield (5)

by

Court Square in Springfield, sometime in the 1860s or early 1870s. Photo courtesy of New York Public Library.

085_1860s-1870s-2Bnypl

The same scene in 2013:

085_2013

Court Square has been the center of activity in Springfield since its founding.  The first meeting house was built just to the left in the foreground, and all of the subsequent churches have been built on Court Square.  The square was established as a park in 1821, two years after Old First Church was built.

The building on the right-hand side of the photo is the old Hampden County Courthouse, which was built in 1821 and used as a courthouse until the 1874 courthouse was built just to the left of Old First Church. The 1874 structure is still in use as the juvenile and housing court, but the preesent-day courthouse is visible beyond and to the right of the church in the 2013 photo.  The old 1821 courthouse was later used as an Odd Fellows hall, and was demolished at some point in the late 1800’s or early 1900’s. The small building in between was the church’s chapel, which was replaced by the present-day brick structure in 1874.

Springfield High School, Springfield, Mass

by

Springfield’s old high school, located on State Street, sometime in the 1870s or 1880s. Photo courtesy of New York Public Library.

083_1870s-1880s-2Bnypl

The scene in 2019:

Built in 1874, the building in the top photo was once Springfield’s high school building. It was used as the high school until 1898, when the older part (left-hand side) of Classical High School was completed.  After that, the building was used as a grammar school until 1922, when it was demolished to allow for the expansion of Classical High School.  It was used as a high school until 1986, and has since been converted into condominiums.

Church of the Unity, Springfield, Mass

by

The Church of the Unity in Springfield, sometime in the 1870s or 1880s. Photo courtesy of New York Public Library.

082_1870s-1880s-2Bnypl

The site in 2019:

The Church of the Unity was a building of architectural significance – it was the first commission of noted American architect Henry Hobson Richardson, and was built between 1866 and 1869.  However, it was demolished in 1961 to make way for an apartment building that was ultimately never constructed, and today the site is a parking lot for the main branch of the Springfield Public Library.

 

Old South Meeting House, Boston

by

The view looking north on Washington Street toward Old South Meeting House, sometime shortly before the Great Boston Fire of 1872. Photo courtesy of New York Public Library.

079_1870c-2Bnypl

The same view, in the immediate aftermath of the fire. Photo courtesy of New York Public Library.

079_1872-2Bnypl

Around 1875. Photo courtesy of Boston Public Library.

079_1875c-2Bbpl

Sometime in the late 1940s or early 1950s. Photo courtesy of Boston Public Library.

1940s

The same scene in 2011:

079_1940s-2011

The Great Boston Fire of 1872 was the most disastrous fire in Boston history.  It came just a year after the Great Chicago Fire, although Boston’s fire couldn’t hold a candle to Chicago’s (pun intended) when it came to the death toll and property losses.  Boston’s fire killed about 30, destroyed 776 buildings, and caused about $73.5 million in damages (about $1.4 billion in 2013 dollars).  Chicago, by comparison, killed 200-330, destroyed 17,500 buildings, and caused about $222 million in damage (around $4.2 billion today).

Still, Boston’s fire was extensive in its damage – it destroyed much of downtown Boston, including sections of Washington Street as seen in the first two photos.  However, the historic Old South Meeting House, built in 1729, survived thanks to volunteers using wet blankets to fend off the flames.

By the time the 1875 photo was taken, Boston was rebuilding, but so was Old South Church.  Because the fire destroyed so many homes, people began relocating to the newly filled in Back Bay, and the church followed them, constructing the oxymoronically-named New Old South Church at Copley Square.  No longer needed, the historic building was sold and was to be demolished.  However, given the building’s role in the events leading up the the Revolutionary War, Bostonians rallied to preserve it, making it one of the first such buildings to be preserved for its historical significance.

In the last two photos, most of the buildings in the foreground remain the same, although the skyline in the background has changed.  The building immediately to the right of the church is actually the same in the last three photos, and it looks similar to the burned-out building that occupied the spot before the fire.  I don’t know whether it is the same facade, or if it was just rebuilt with a similar style, but at the very least the existing building dates to the immediate aftermath of the fire.  As for the church, today it functions as a museum, although the congregation holds its annual Thanksgiving service at the building.