Charlestown Bridge

ABOUT THE HISTORICAL PHOTOGRAPHS As the world becomes more bland an dsanitized the rich industrial clutter of scenes like the one in the old photograph begins to feel vigorous and wonderful. This is the Charlestown Bridge, built in 1901, an extension of Washington Street, which carried horses, cars, and (until 1975) an elevated rail line across the Lower Basin of the Charles River between Boston 'lnd City Square, in Charlestown. The Bunker Hill Monument is visible against the sky at right center. The old photo dates from 1911 and reveals a waterway crammed almost to choking with boats, docks, and warehouses. The new photo, made in 1987, shows most of that life now gone, though a new marina has appeared at right. For better or worse, the Lower Basin has long been a transit corridor. A bridge here in 1786 was the first ever out of Boston, its tolls helping to make the fortunes of such investors as John Hancock. Today not only the Charlestown Bridge but also the Tobin Bridge, a railroad bridge, and a dam crowd this hapless body of water. By decade's end they will be joined, out of sight to the left, by the vast river crossing of the new Central Artery - an addition that will in no way engage the water or give it renewed meaning. -Robert Campbell and Peter Vanderwarker, "CITYSCAPES - The Lower Basin", Boston Globe, 29 November 1992