Long Wharf and Customhouse Block is an historic area located at the foot of State Street on Long Wharf (Boston) in Boston, Massachusetts. Constructed in the 17th century, the Long Wharf in downtown Boston, Massachusetts was once the focal point of that city's shipping industry. For many years the Customhouse Tower on State Street was the tallest building in New England. The area added to the National Historic Register in 1966.
History
Construction of the wharf began in 1711. As originally built the wharf extended from the shoreline adjacent to Faneuil Hall and was one-third of a mile long, thrusting considerably farther than other wharves into deep water and thus allowing larger ships to tie up and unload directly to new warehouses and stores. Over time the water areas surrounding the landward end of the wharf were reclaimed, including the areas now occupied by Quincy Market and the Customs House.2
Gardiner Building (center) and Marriott Hotel (left) on Long Wharf
Viewing plaza at end of Long Wharf
The 1760s Gardiner Building, once home to John Hancock's counting house and now a Chart House restaurant, is the wharf's oldest surviving structure.3
In the late 1860s, Atlantic Avenue was cut through this and other wharves, changing the face of the waterfront. The construction of the elevated Central Artery along Atlantic Avenue in the 1950s visually separated Long Wharf from Boston's business district. The recent Big Dig has put the Central Artery below ground level, thus going some way toward restoring the original close relationship between Long Wharf and downtown. Over the last twenty years, Long Wharf has been transformed from a failing commercial waterfront area into a recreational and cultural center.2
Nearby Attractions
Long Wharf is adjacent to the New England Aquarium, and is served by the Aquarium station on MBTA's Blue Line subway. MBTA boat services link the wharf to the Boston Navy Yard in Charlestown, Logan International Airport, Hull, and Quincy. Other passenger ferry services operate to the islands of the Boston Harbor Islands National Recreation Area, and to the cities of Salem and Provincetown. Cruise boats operate various cruises around the harbour. The wharf itself is occupied by the Marriott Long Wharf Hotel, several restaurants and shops. At the seaward end, there is a large plaza with extensive views of the harbor. Now much shortened by land reclamation at its landward end, today it serves as the principal terminus for cruise boats and harbor ferries operating on Boston Harbor.
References
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