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1987 Map of Boston South

Name: 1987 Topographic Map of Boston South
Creator: U.S. Geological Survey
Published: 1987
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/

USGS Topo · Published 1987

About this map

The Charles River winds through this late-twentieth-century landscape, linking the industrial legacy of the Watertown Arsenal to the academic corridors of Northeastern University and Boston University. The map documents a densely developed urban and suburban corridor before the massive infrastructural shifts of the turn of the century, showing the Mass Turnpike and Southeast Expwy as they integrated the city's neighborhoods. Beyond the downtown core, the sheet details the residential and institutional character of places like Brookline Village, Newton Center, and Jamaica Plain.

Green spaces such as the Arnold Arboretum and Franklin Park provide a counterpoint to the busy waterfronts of Dorchester Bay and the Reserved Channel. For genealogists and local historians, the inclusion of numerous smaller landmarks like the Boston State Hospital, Calvary Cemetery, and various neighborhood schools like the Beethoven Sch offers a precise look at the community infrastructure of the 1980s.