Olmsted Subdivision Historic District
National Register of Historic Places

Olmsted Subdivision Historic District

Swampscott, Essex County, Massachusetts
Listed
June 30, 2002
Type
District
Ref No.
02000696

About this property

Olmsted Subdivision Historic District is a historic district roughly bounded by New Ocean St/Paradise Road, Swampscott Avenue, Redington Street and Burrill Street in Swampscott, Massachusetts. According to the May 2005 Massachusetts Heritage Landscape Inventory Program (Swampscott Reconnaissance Report), “This large residential neighborhood was planned by Frederick Law Olmsted, Sr. in 1888 at the request of the Swampscott Land Trust. The 130-acre estate had belonged to E. Redington Mudge. Olmsted’s plan with its curvilinear roads layout, traffic islands, entrance parkway, use of the topographic features and fine architecture is remarkably well preserved. The roads and traffic islands are maintained by the town. The shapes have not been altered; however the town has been unable to maintain original plant material. Part of the original plan showed “Overlook Park” with steps leading to it at the end of Monument Avenue. It was never constructed and in its place is a huge house on top of the hill. The original subdivision had 191 lots of varying sizes and shapes.” It was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2002. At the same time, many argue that Olmsted never actually set foot in Swampscott, and the original plan was only for a strip of land that begins roughly at Humphrey Street and concludes where Monument Avenue turns into Walker Road.

Location

Swampscott, Essex County, Massachusetts
42.47095, -70.91388

Categories

ARCHITECTURECOMMUNITY PLANNING AND DEVELOPMENTLANDSCAPE ARCHITECTURESOCIAL HISTORY
National Register nomination ›
Sources

Property data from the National Register of Historic Places, National Park Service (public domain).

Description adapted from Wikipedia under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

Nearby Battles

Action at Hog Island
1775Revolutionary War
7.6 mi
Battle of Chelsea Creek (1775)
1775Revolutionary War
7.9 mi
Battle of Chelsea Creek
1775Revolutionary War
8 mi
USS Chesapeake vs HMS Shannon
1813Early Republic
8.6 mi

Questions about this property

When was Olmsted Subdivision Historic District listed on the National Register?

Olmsted Subdivision Historic District was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on June 30, 2002.

What type of historic resource is Olmsted Subdivision Historic District?

Olmsted Subdivision Historic District is classified as a district in the National Register of Historic Places.

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Overview
An interactive map of the location with historic sites, battles and Native heritage plotted, and its full story era by era.
The Land
The historic sites and place names around the location, and how this land was settled and used.
Geology
The bedrock beneath the site, its age and rock type, reaching back millions of years.
LiDAR Terrain
Laser-scanned terrain that reveals earthworks and old features hidden in the landscape.
Conflict & War
The battles, raids and skirmishes fought near here, across every era of American conflict.
The Civil War
The Civil War on this ground, 1861 to 1865: who held it, and the battles, camps and regiments nearby.
The Soldiers
The men who marched from here in the Civil War, named and traced where the record allows.
Native Heritage
The Native nations who held this land, mapped across time from before European contact to today.
Settlement
Who claimed and held this ground, from Indigenous homelands through the colonial powers to the United States.
The Community
How the town grew, who came, and what kind of place it became, traced through the census record.
Rivers & Rail
The rivers, canals and railroads that connected this place between 1830 and 1911.
Notable People
The people born, buried or genuinely tied to this exact place, with their stories.
Historical Maps
Historic maps of the location layered over how it looks today.
Finds & Access
Museum objects tied to the area, and the laws on searching, collecting and access here.
Literature
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Spotlight
A deep dive into the most remarkable, lesser-known history of the place, traced back to the record.
Points of Interest
The most significant historic sites and landmarks near the location, and why they matter.
Timeline
The whole story of the location told era by era, from first peoples to the present day.
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