Boylston Station is at the intersection of Tremont Street and Boylston Street and is the meeting point of several areas and districts of Boston. To the north is Boston Common. If you travel southwest along Tremont Street, you head toward the heart of the Theatre District. If you head southeast, you head toward Chinatown. If you head northeast along Tremont Street, you run along the Ladder District (which overlaps with the more trendy sounding name of Downtown Crossing). And if you head northwest along Boylston Street, you will eventually head into Back Bay. If you popped out at this location from the station, you might wonder what is at this corner of the common. All the things noted in this Lucky 7 are within a 0.1 mile radius and can almost all be seen at the corner by the station.
The following are included.
The original “7” is comprised of:
1) 2 – Art/Music, Mosaic Mural on the Grand Lodge of Masons in MA - Boston, MA WM2MXD (
visit link) in “Murals”: If you look around after exiting the station, one of the things that may catch your eye is the blue mosaic tile mural across the street. This mural is on the Grand Lodge of Masons in Massachusetts and has five parts to it all along the street level.
2) 4 – Buildings, Emerson College – Boston, MA WM2MWZ (
visit link) in “Colleges and Universities”: This corner is dominated by the Emerson College campus. However, Emerson’s presence is visible, but not overbearing due to using many of the buildings that have been standing here far longer than Emerson has been at this location. For example, the Little Building, once where Little, Brown and Company used to be, and where shops were located, has been transformed into administration and residential space.
3) 6 – Entertainment, WERS 88.9 FM, Boston WM2MWR (
visit link) in “A.M./F.M. Radio Broadcasting Stations”: If you hear music in this corner, and it is coming from a building nearby, then you are likely hearing WERS, 88.9 FM, which is a commercial-free radio station broadcasting from the Ansin Building of Emerson College. The station is powerful enough to be heard in much of the metropolitan area.
4) 7 – History/Culture, Boston Young Men’s Christian Union WM2PK3 (
visit link) in “Massachusetts Historical Markers”: Not to be missed is this beautiful gothic building just east of the intersection, which was once occupied by a Harvard religious study group. This and other buildings in the area were built after the great fire of 1872.
5) 8 – Memorials/Monuments, Central Burying Ground, Boston Common, Boston, MA, USA WM2MZ7 (
visit link) in “Worldwide Cemeteries”: This is cemetery is actually easy to overlook. It has many marked and unmarked graves, and when they dug the subway tunnel, they had to relocate over 900 remains.
6) 14 – Technologies, Boylston (MBTA Station) WM2NXR (
visit link) in “Wikipedia Entries”: The Boylston “T” Station is a busy station that has trolleys displayed on the inbound platform (you have to go through the gates to get close to them).
7) 15 – Waymarking Games, Scaffold’s Fall Kills 3, Boston, MA WM2N3F (
visit link) in “News Article Locations”: On this stretch of Boylston Street there is a memorial plaque at street level, and, if you look up, you see that the mangled top of a building. This waymark points to sources that relate the story.
12/30/07 - Two more (making 9) is comprised of:
8) 1 – Animals, Boston Common, Boston, MA WM2Q3C (
visit link) in “Off-Leash Dog Areas”: If you have a dog and you are there either early in the morning or in the evening, you could take him to this area for the dog to run around. Check the entry and linked web sites for details.
9) 11 - Signs, M. Steinert and Sons Steinway Pianos WM2W8Q (
visit link) in "Artistic Neon Signs": If you are walking along Boylston Street at night, this musically shaped neon sign may catch your eye. This block of buildings, today known as Piano Row, was once where piano and organ factories and warehouses were located. M. Steinert & Sons, stands as a reminder of that activity.
More...
4/15/2008
10) 5 - Business/Commerce, Dunkin' Donuts - Tremont and Boylston Streets - Boston, MA
(
visit link) in "National Restaurant Chains/Dunkin' Donuts": There isn't a shortage of places to eat in this part of town. If you need a quick cup of coffee maybe with something, just across the street is this Dunkin' Donuts store. Stay for a while and watch the people and cars go by!
11) 10 - Oddities, Cutler-Majestic Theatre Hauntings - Boston, Massachusetts (
visit link) in "Ghosts and Hauntings": Boston has its share of haunted buildings and stories. One of the most recognized (other than the Lady in Black in Ft. Warren in Boston Harbor), is the haunting at the Cutler-Majestic Theatre at Emerson College. If you are fortunate, you might even see a former mayor of Boston!
12) 12 - Sports and Recreation, Tennis Courts on Boston Common, Boston, MA (
visit link) in "Tennis Facilities": If you walk toward Charles Street, you will find a couple baseball fields and a pair of tennis courts. If you are lucky, you might sit and enjoy a good game/set/match.
4/27/2008
13) 9 - Nature, Boston Common - Boston, MA (
visit link) WM3MTK in "Municipal Parks and Plazas": When you exit the Boylston Street Station, you are on the edge of Boston Common, considered the oldest public park in the United States. There's a lot in this park, so don't get too distracted or you might not see the rest of the waymarks in this "Lucky 7!"