"Thus has nature placed and preserved at the very gates of Boston riches of scenery such as many another American city would give millions to create, if it were possible."   (Charles Eliot)

Charles River Basin

The Charles River Basin defines the center of Boston's metropolitan area, giving residents and visitors alike an enduring sense of place and a refuge for recreation, contemplation, and renewal. The Basin comprises 19 miles of shore from the New Dam at the Charlestown Bridge to the dam near Watertown Square and includes over 20 parks and natural areas.

Conceived by Charles Eliot in the 1890s as a public parkland and urban lake, the Basin has yet to fulfill Eliot's vision for it. Once salt-water mud flats, the Basin was transformed in 1910 after James Jackson Storrow led the effort to dam the mouth of the Charles at what is now the Museum of Science. The dam stabilized the water level from Boston to Watertown, eliminating the mud flats, and creating what is now the Charles River Basin. Upon his death 1930, Storrow's widow, Helen, donated funds to create a park along the Esplanade. But in the 1950s, a highway separating the Back Bay from Boston was built instead, and the new Esplanade park was built extending out into the river.

Department of Conservation and Recreation

Today the Charles River Basin parklands are owned and managed by the Department of Conservation and Recreation (DCR)). Used by over a million people each year, the Basin is host to the Head of the Charles River Regatta, the annual 4th of July concerts at the Hatch Shell, walk-a-thons, and river fairs. (See the DCR's calendar of urban park activites and events, including the Charles River). The Basin's facilities, however, are inadequate to meet the demands put upon them. Public toilets are few, picnic tables are scarce, restaurants are nonexistent, bridges are in disrepair, lighting is bad, and recreational activities are limited.

In 2000 the DCR's precedessor (Metropolitan District Commission or MDC) completed a $32 million master plan calling for the restoration of the Basin. The plan has identified over 30 "improvement" zones and hundreds of subprojects within the Basin that need work. It features over 40 acres of new parklands; 7 miles of pedestrian, bicycle, and ADA-accessible pathways. A 1997 MDC plan addressed the reclamation of the "lost half mile" between the Science Museum and Charlestown Bridge. This area has been officially called the New Basin since the Charles River Dam was completed in 1978. With mitigation funding from the Central Artery project, about $80 million will be spent on parkland restoration and pedestrian bridges in the New Basin.

Charles River Conservancy

The Charles River Conservancy was founded as an advocacy group dedicated to the restoration, enhancement, and maintenance of the Charles River Basin and its surroundings, particularly it's parks, parkways, and bridges. The Conservancy's goal is to facilitate the restoration effort by approaching it from all sides--legislative initiatives, educational and awareness programs, funding partnerships between public and private organizations, and coalition building within the community. It has held legislative briefings (view Calendar), formed alliances with the MDC and other groups, and garnered support from the business and academic communities, as well as from citizens of Greater Boston. Its work is just beginning. Its goals and projects are ambitious, but so is Eliot's vision. And it's time for it to be realized.