Letter from the City Surveyor to the Mayor of Boston, Thomas N. Hart, 24 June 1890. Click to enlarge. (Image copyright The City Record and Boston News-Letter, all rights reserved).
I've written earlier about the copy of the 1890 Boston Municipal Register I have in my possession. As the official repository of Boston facts and figures, a great deal of effort was put into verifying the information the book contains and Mayor Hart put reports from various city agencies into his copy of the Register while he (or more likely someone in his office) was double checking facts for the 1891 edition. This letter gives the City Surveyor's report on the area of Boston Common, which is 48 2/5 acres, a number which holds today (I think), although a Google search will show numbers varying from 44 to 50 acres.
You have an incredible collection of urban (Boston) historical materials. Can you provide tips on how a novice can build her collection?
Posted by: | 03 August 2007 at 20:34