Roslindale, Massachusetts

Roslindale, a community 6 miles from downtown Boston, was annexed to the city in 1873. At the time, it was an out of the way part of the expansive town of West Roxbury.

In the 1880's, the area was called South Street Crossing because the railroad crossed South Street at the street level. However, when the community applied for a post office district of its own, it was told that "South Street Crossing" was unacceptable to the government. And so, the community renamed itself.

The name, "Roslindale", was suggested by a well-traveled member of the community who told the assembled citizens that the area reminded him of the beautiful historic town of Roslyn, Scotland, outside Edinburgh. He thought the area was like a dale because of the hills surrounding it. Thus the combination of "Roslyn" and "dale" were submitted to the Post Office and the name "Roslindale" was formally established.

Roslindale grew residentially as a classic street car suburb. The railway, which currently serves as the Needham line of the MBTA, was built after the Civil War, and spawned a new round of commercial development. Roslindale saw steady growth in its residential population, beginning in the 1880s, with the introduction of the horse-drawn street railway service between Forest Hills and Dedham.

By the 1920's Roslindale Village had assumed the configuration it has today. It is beautifully laid out with well-kept Adams Park at its center. The area is convenient and allows easy access to its rail and bus lines. Roslindale continues to grow and offer great opportunity as a commercial and residential district.

Arnold Arboretum

This 265-acre park, owned by the City of Boston and on long-term lease to Harvard University, displays world-renowned collections of shrubs and trees for education and research, including maples, crabapples, lilacs, rhododendrons, and conifers. As the oldest arboretum in the country, the Arnold Arboretum contains trees and shrubs from around the world, with special emphasis on plants native to Asia and New England. The Arboretum is just a short walk up Walter Street from Homestead Bed and Breakfast.

Jamaica Pond

Sometimes called "the jewel in the Emerald Necklace", Jamaica Pond is a 60-acre kettlehole formed by an ancient glacier. Natural springs make this pond, which is up to 90’ deep, the largest and purest body of water within Boston. Prior to being acquired as a park in 1894, an ice-cutting industry flourished here. Fishing (trout, which is stocked by the state, as well as pickerel, bass, hornpout, salmon, and perch), rowing, sailing, and walking/jogging are the primary activities today.

Olmsted Park

This park, built by the City of Boston in collaboration with the Town of Brookline, with its woodlands, meadows, and 3 ponds, joins Boston and Brookline. Here, Olmsted designed pathways and planting patterns that created a series of dramatic vistas to display the shapes, proportions and relationships of the land forms. Here one can fish in the relative seclusion of Wards Pond, or stroll across the distinctive footbridges. Substantial restoration is ongoing, with bike and pedestrian paths already constructed along the Boston shore. A bike/pedestrian path system on the Brookline side from Jamaica Pond to Boylston Street (Route 9) was recently completed.

Franklin Park

The largest park in the Emerald Necklace, Franklin Park is 500 acres in size. Olmsted designed this as a "country park" similar to New York’s Central Park and Prospect Park, which he also designed. One can experience much of the same rural ambiance today. Within the park are the zoo, an 18-hole golf course, 100-acre woodland, and a 7-acre pond.

The Franklin Park Zoo (not part of Olmsted's original plan), founded in 1911, is a 72-acre site nestled in Boston's historic Franklin Park.. Zoo highlights include the Kalahari Kingdom, the grasslands of Bongo Congo, snow leopards, the Children's Zoo, the Tropical Forest, the Outback Trail, and the "Butterfly Landing," a butterfly enclosure open seasonally from June through September.