Society for the Study of Social Problems

TOURS

Bay Village, tucked into a triangular area near the SSSP hotel, is a small, quaint neighborhood that was built on reclaimed land at the edge of the Back Bay former tidal marsh in the 1820s and 1830s. Most of the small brick rowhouses were built by and for the workmen who were building Beacon Hill mansions. In the 1860s the entire neighborhood was raised about 15 feet because water backed up from newly filled areas to the west; hundreds of homes were jacked up and land was filled around them. The South End was developed after about 1850 on both sides of the narrow “Neck” of land that originally connected Boston to the mainland in Roxbury. Wealthy Protestants bought houselots on “park streets” and built elegant townhouses between 1850 and 1870. In the 1870s conditions changed because a depression and the availability of more attractive land led families to move to the Back Bay and to the suburbs. For nearly 100 years the South End was a slum neighborhood with many ethnic groups, having thousands of rooming houses. In the 1960’s “urban pioneers” sought out some of the elegant old buildings and renovated them, and starting in the 1970s gentrification followed with its condominium conversions and upscale businesses. Today the young professionals and gay community share the South End with a large Latino housing development, a hospital complex, and homeless shelters. The tour will begin at the Columbus Avenue entrance of The Boston Park Plaza Hotel and Towers.

TOUR OF DUDLEY STREET NEIGHBORHOOD INITIATIVE AREA (limit 15):
Friday, August 1, 1:00pm - 4:00pm, tickets $20 each

DSNI is well known for its successful development of housing and social services in one of Boston’s poorest neighborhoods where many multifamily buildings had been burned down in the 1970s by their owners for the insurance money. Many participants will know the book about DSNI, Streets of Hope, and the video, “Holding Ground.” Professor Will Holton of Northeastern University will drive a van from the conference site and lead a walking tour in the DSNI development area in Roxbury and Dorchester. A DSNI staff member will host the group, presenting on its successes and answering questions. The tour will begin at the Columbus Avenue entrance to The Boston Park Plaza Hotel and Towers.

WALKING TOUR OF THE FILLING OF BOSTON’S BACK BAY (limit 25):
Saturday, August 2, 1:00pm - 3:00pm, tickets $15 each

A recent book has explored the social class motivations behind the planning of the massive urban development project that transformed a horribly polluted former tidal marsh into the wealthiest neighborhood in America. The tour covers the social motivations, powerful personalities, and technological innovations that made the project possible. Learn about the unique neighborhood where the conference is located. The tour guide, Will Holton, is an Associate Professor at Northeastern University and co-author of Boston's Back Bay: The Story of America's Greatest 19th Century Landfill Project (University Press of New England, 2006). The tour will begin at the front entrance to The Boston Park Plaza Hotel and Towers on Park Square at Arlington Street.