The class and culture of Boston’s Brahmins created Commonwealth Avenue, with its regal brownstones and broad-leafed trees. Winston Churchill called it “the grandest boulevard in North America.” Stroll through the park area that runs the length of the avenue from the Boston Public Garden to the Back Bay Fens. Catch a glimpse of the grand life and learn about some of the most iconic figures of Massachusetts history along the way. It is difficult to get lost while visiting Commonwealth Avenue, since the cross streets are in alphabetical order.
Walk west from the Public Garden. Between Arlington and Berkeley streets, see the distinguished face of Alexander Hamilton. A Founding Father and founder of the U.S. Treasury, he died in a duel with his rival, Aaron Burr.
Continue to the next intersection to see the bronze statue of John Glover, a Revolutionary general who led a regiment of fishermen from Marblehead, Massachusetts, during the war.
Pause for a moment at the Hotel Vendome Firefighters’ Memorial, dedicated to the many men and women who have kept this wood-heavy city safe for over 300 years.
Boston’s activist history is celebrated between Dartmouth and Exeter. Here is a seated bronze statue of the abolitionist William Lloyd Garrison, head of a movement that roiled early 19th-century Massachusetts.
At the street’s end, pay respects to the Boston Women’s Memorial, one of the city’s newest, which celebrates First Lady Abigail Adams, poet Phillis Wheatley and suffragist and orator Lucy Stone.
Located in the Back Bay neighborhood, Commonwealth Avenue is one of Greater Boston’s finest thoroughfares, winding out of the city into Brookline and beyond. Its most scenic areas are on the stretch between the Public Garden and Back Bay, which have easy connections with public transportation. Travel by train from Faneuil Hall to the Public Garden in about 20 minutes or a taxi in 5 minutes. Several bus and train lines serve the other end of the road near Fenway Park. Parking can be difficult to find in the areas near Commonwealth Avenue, and traffic can be heavy all times of the year. Metered parking garages are available, especially near Fenway Park.
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