Doug Cornelius .com

The Neponset River Greenway is a plan to connect existing and proposed Boston parkland stretching across Hyde Park, Mattapan and Dorchester and the Town of Milton. When complete, the Neponset River Greenway will be a ten mile multi-use recreational trail from the mouth of the Neponset River to the 894-acre Fowl Meadows at the city limits. The Greenway will also connect to the 5,800-acre Blue Hills Reservation, the largest open space within thirty-five miles of Boston.

The most accessible part of the Greenway is the Pope John Paul II Park on the mouth of the Neponset River. The park consists of three former uses: the former drive-in movie site,
the former Hallet landfill site, and a former lumber yard. The old Hallet Landfill site had pollution in the soil that could run into the river, so four feet of clay and soil was added as a protective layer.

The Neponset River Greenway may be a bit premature to be on the list of 1,000 Great Places in Massachusetts because it’s not done yet. But the pieces that are in place are great places.

He said to his friend, “If the British march
By land or sea from the town to-night,
Hang a lantern aloft in the belfry arch
Of the North Church tower as a signal light,–
One if by land, and two if by sea;

- excerpt from “The Midnight Ride of Paul Revere” by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

So is the claim to fame of Boston’s Old North Church as the starting point for Paul Revere‘s ride.

The enduring legend of the Old North Old Church began on April 18, 1775. Robert Newman, the church’s sexton, climbed the steeple. Having seen the British and held high two lanterns as a signal from Paul Revere that the British were marching to Lexington and Concord by sea and not by land.

Actually “sea” is only sort of right, although more poetic. The British could have marched down the long peninsula or crossed the Charles River to start their march toward Lexington and Concord. The two lights alerted the militia that the British troops were taking the boat route to land in Charlestown.

Revere rode out through present-day Somerville, Medford, and Arlington, warning towns along the way. William Dawes rode the land route to get out the warning.

The church was built in 1723 and survives as the oldest standing church building in Boston.

With its history and its legend, the Old North Church is an obvious choice for inclusion on the list of the 1,000 Great Places in Massachusetts.

Ames Nowell State Park in Abington is delightful little park a centered around Cleveland Pond. The park includes a picnic area, ball field and several miles of trails along the pond edge and through the surrounding woods.

It’s a great spot in Abington and a good spot for inclusion on the 1,000 Great Places in Massachusetts.

Stoughton has a single entry on the list of 1,000 Great Places in Massachusetts. The Mary Baker Eddy Historic House sits on the busy Central Street, just west of the Christmas Tree Shoppes retail road.

The story of the house (from the Longyear Museum):

Having been deserted by her husband, Daniel Patterson, the future Mary Baker Eddy reverted to the name of her late first husband, Glover. In late 1868, after staying in a series of boarding houses and friends’ homes, Mrs. Glover arrived in this country home south of Boston. Her stay was a year-and-a-half respite from all the packing and unpacking.

Alanson Wentworth’s wife, Sally, invited Mrs. Glover to live here in exchange for Mrs. Glover’s teaching her the art of healing through Christian prayer — after which Sally eagerly took up the healing work on her own. It provided her with a purpose and an income for the rest of her life.

Here in Stoughton, Mrs. Glover’s treatments through prayer healed Alanson Wentworth of sciatica — healed his wife of a chronic throat ailment — healed one of their daughters of partial deafness — healed neighbors of enteritis, pulmonary disease, and addiction to medicinal drugs.

The house is only open by appointment. My visit was brief since I failed to make an appointment.

Personally, I would have preferred Town Spa over a vacant house that is usually closed.

There are very few restaurants on the list of 1,000 Great Places in Massachusetts. The ones that are on the list, as far I’ve seen so far are contained in buildings of historic significance. Somehow, Sullivan’s made the list. Castle Island was already on the list, so it seem strange that to also name Sullivan’s to the list. In large part it’s the snack bar for the visitors to Castle Island.

They do make a good lobster roll.

Castle Island is the most mis-named of the place on the list of 1,000 Great Places in Massachusetts. It’s neither a “castle” nor an “island”.

We should forgive the “island” label since it once was an island. Boston has a long historic of filling in the harbor and its rivers to create new livable land areas. That occurred here as South Boston grew bigger and bigger and finally reached the old fort. As far back as 1892 it was were connected to the mainland by a wooden footbridge. This was replaced by an earthen causeway in 1925 and an automobile road in 1932.

In 1634, Governor Dudley selected the spot for the sea defense of Boston Harbor. The first fortification were built in 1644 and consisted of a pine log fort, some earthworks, and three cannons. It eventually earned the nickname of “The Castle”. Since then, it has been rebuilt seven times. The current structure was built in 1851 with granite from the quarries in Rockport, Massachusetts.

In 1798 Massachusetts gave the fort to the United States Government. President John Adams dedicated it as “Fort Independence” in 1799. It was given back in 1962.

The park offers a great view of Boston, Logan Airport, and the harbor islands. If you visit on a summer weekend, you can take a tour of the fort from noon until 3:30.

In 1906, Oakes Ames and his wife Blanche purchased land on the border of Sharon and Easton. The country estate they named “Borderland” remained in the family for 65 years. In 1971, two years after the death of Blanche Ames, the Commonwealth of Massachusetts acquired the estate and opened it as a state park. The family’s home, a three-story stone mansion built in 1910, still stands.

Even though the park resides in Easton and Sharon, it get listed only in Easton as one of the 1,000 Great Places in Massachusetts.

I restarted my quest to visit the 1,000 Great Places in Massachusetts by visiting the Children’s Museum of Easton. The Ames Free Library was only one block away, so I needed to pay it a visit.

Oliver Ames II left $50,000 in his will for the construction and support of a library for the benefit of the inhabitants of Easton, Massachusetts. The main building was designed by Henry Hobson Richardson in 1877 and first opened its doors in 1883.

Given that they have the same architect, you probably see some similarity between this library and Trinity Church in Boston. The similarity goes deeper. The library is built of Milford granite with the same Longmeadow trim used on the church.

The children’s wing at the rear was built in 1931. The construction was funded by a gift from Mrs. William H. Ames (Fanny Holt Ames), a member of the Board of Trustees for 40 years, in memory of her husband William Hadwen Ames. The addition was designed by Shepley, Rutan, and Coolidge of Boston, the architectural firm formed by three members of H.H. Richardson’s office upon his death in 1886.

In addition to getting back to writing for GeekDad, I’m also trying to continue my quest to visit the 1,000 Great Places in Massachusetts. How about combining the two?

The Children’s Museum of Easton has been on my list of places to visit for several years and I finally got around to making the trip on a rainy June day. You can read more at GeekDad Visits the Children’s Museum in Easton.

With all the snow on the ground, I was getting a little snow crazy. So it was back to the list of 1,000 Great Places in Massachusetts.

I packed up the kids in the family truckster and we ended up in Worcester at the Higgins Armory Museum.

It had caught my eye, but I have to admit that I was skeptical. I figured it was just some crazy guy’s collection of swords and some beat up armor.

I was wrong. I came away impressed.

The kids had a great time. I had a great time. I figured it would make a decent story for GeekDad, so you can read more about it over there on Wired.com: GeekDad Visits the Higgins Armory Museum.

What really surprised me was that I didn’t know about this place. It had first come to my attention as a comment to my 2009 list of 100 Geeky Places to Take Your Kids this Summer. Higgins has been around for decades and I have been in Massachusetts for decades. So how did I not know about this place?!?!

Now I know and now you know.