Quincy Market, facing west toward Faneuil Hall, sometime in the 1800s. Photo courtesy of Boston Public Library.
The scene in 2014:
Another view of Quincy Market, showing the difference between the business-oriented market in the 1800s, and the tourist-oriented scene today. In this particular 2014 view, it was taken during the Urban Raid, a 5k race and obstacle course that went through the City Hall area of Boston.
The view of Quincy Market looking east from in front of Faneuil Hall, sometime in the 1800s. Photo courtesy of Boston Public Library.
The same view of Quincy Market in 2014:
Built in 1825, Quincy Market has been a major commercial center for nearly 200 years. However, its role and the surrounding neighborhood have certainly changed. Originally, as seen in the first photo, it was a place for Bostonians to buy and sell food products, ranging from fruits and vegetables to cheese and meat. It was also built right along the waterfront; today it is several blocks from Boston Harbor. But, the building hasn’t moved – the waterfront has. Over the years, Boston has significantly expanded its land area, both through annexing surrounding towns but also through landfill, which included dumping dirt, rocks, construction debris, and even old ships into the harbor and building atop it.
Because of that, Quincy Market is no longer has a waterfront location, but it is still a commercial center, although today it consists of fast food vendors that primarily cater to tourists and workers from nearby City Hall. The Quincy Market area also offers shopping, gift stores, and in this particular scene, photos with Spider-Man. It is also located along the Freedom Trail, which is marked by the brick path in the foreground.
Looking up Beacon Street toward the State House, sometime in the 19th century. Photo courtesy of Boston Public Library.
The same scene in 2014:
The first photo was probably taken around the 1860s or 1870s, and many of the townhouses predate even that photo by half a century. One of the houses in this view, featured in this post when Theodore Roosevelt came to visit, was built in 1819, and many of the other houses likely date to the same period, which was around the time when Beacon Hill was first being developed.
For being close to 150 years apart, the two scenes are remarkably similar – most of the townhouses in the foreground appear virtually unchanged, and trees in Boston Common and a wrought iron fence (probably the same one) still line the left-hand side of Beacon Street. It’s a picturesque neighborhood, and also a pricey one – the house featured in the Roosevelt post is currently on the market with an asking price of $11.9 million.
Looking west on Beacon Street in Boston, near the State House, sometime in the 19th century. Photo courtesy of Boston Public Library.
The same scene in 2014:
These views show Beacon Street looking down the hill, just past the Massachusetts State House (the State House would be behind and to the left from this angle). The street to the right in the foreground is Joy Street, and Boston Common is to the left.
Ever since Beacon Hill was developed in the early 1800s, it has been a wealthy neighborhood, and given its location adjacent to the State House, it has been the home of a number of prominent politicians over the years. Aside from wider, paved streets, and automobiles instead of horse-drawn carriages, not much has changed with the appearance of the neighborhood. The streets are still lined with brick townhouses, and many of the ones from the first photo (which I suspect was probably taken around the 1860s-1870s) are still around today, including the one on the far right in the foreground, and the one in approximately the center of the 19th century photo, which is partially obscured by trees in the 2014 photo.
Another view of the interior of the Park Street station, around 1898. Photo from The New England Magazine, Volume 25, Issue 5.
The station in 2015:
This photo was taken just across the center tracks from the photos in this post, standing on the edge of the outbound platform facing in the inbound direction. The stairs in the very distance, which lead up to Boston Common, are the same ones visible in the other post.
As mentioned previously, Park Street is one of the two oldest subway stations in North America, having opened in 1897. Today, the Green Line platform configuration remains mostly the same, with two island platforms surrounded by tracks on both sides. The two center tracks lead to a turning loop, which can be used by inbound trains to reverse direction. Both tracks along the outbound platform are served by all trains; Boston does not have express trains.
The Park Street station, around the time that it opened in 1897. Photo courtesy of Boston Public Library.
The same view in 2014:
Although New York has by far the busiest subway system in the country, Boston’s actually came first. The idea was to relieve congestion on Boston’s surface streets by putting trolleys underground. Known as the Tremont Street Subway, trolleys entered the tunnel in two separate locations, at the corner of Arlington and Boylston Streets and at the corner of Tremont and Pleasant Streets. The two lines converged at Boylston Station, and then continued up to Park Street.
Boylston and Park Street were the first two stations to be opened, on September 1, 1897, and consequently they are the oldest subway stations in North America. The following year, the tunnel was extended to North Station.
Today, much of the original tunnel is still used by the MBTA Green Line, which still runs light rail trolleys, as opposed to the heavy rapid transit trains that Boston’s other subway lines operate. The branch to Pleasant Street is closed south of Boylston, and the tunnel and stations north of Government Center (originally Scollay Square) have been substantially changed.
As far as the Park Street station, the overall platform configuration remains mostly the same as it was 117 years ago. However, there have been a number of changes to the station, with probably the most significant one being the addition of the lower level in 1912 for the Red Line, as it is now known. One of the stairways to the Red Line platforms is visible on the far left of the 2014 photo. Today, it is one of the main hubs on the Green Line, and is the main transfer point between the Green and Red Lines.
As a side note, both photos were taken from the inbound platform. The station’s layout is unusual in that both platforms have tracks on both sides; these photos face across the two center tracks toward the outbound platform and the stairs leading up to Boston Common.