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ANNOUNCEMENT APRIL 2025: After a long and productive life of approximately 45 years, the organization known as the Friends of the Muddy River will officially cease to exist at the end of 2025. Isabella Callanan (1928 – 2008) unofficially founded the Friends in September 1980, which in turn became a charitable corporation under Massachusetts law, chapter 180 and the IRS code 501 (c) (3) in September 1981. It was formally incorporated in August 1985.
DONATIONS are no longer accepted.
The MEMORIALIZATION of ISABELLA CALLANAN: We are petitioning the Town of Brookline to name the island in the Muddy River between Brookline Avenue and Netherlands Road “Isabella Callanan Island”. It is the site of many concerts organized by the Friends of the Muddy River and is currently unnamed. A REQUEST for LETTERS of SUPPORT: The Town of Brookline has a formal process for place-naming requests. PLEASE if you knew Isabella Callanan personally or otherwise appreciated her work as founder and leader of the Friends of the Muddy River, do write a letter of support for our naming application. It should be emailed to [email protected] or mailed to Support c/o Fred Perry, 32 Bowker Street, Brookline 02445 for inclusion in the application materials.
RETROSPECTIVE: To summarize the establishment, mission, and achievements of the FMR and its long 44-year history is not an easy task. The Muddy River flows from Jamaica Pond to Wards Pond, Willow Pond, and Leverett Pond and along the man-made stream that runs through the Riverway, the recently recreated Liff Park, the Back Bay Fens, and Charlesgate where it empties into the Charles River. It is part of Frederick Law Olmsted’s Emerald Necklace, one of the great creations of the first recognized landscape architects in the US. It forms a part of our daily experience whether we know it or not.
Back in the last quarter of the 20th century, much of this unique watercourse was suffering from abuse and unfortunate developments.
Within relatively recent memory, River Road has been dead ended at the Hilton Garden Inn, and the river side has been extensively landscaped. The hotel has provided rest rooms and a bike repair station within its terrace dining area, and the street tree planting around the hotel has greatly improved a park-like setting at the upper end of the Riverway. Going downstream, the narrow park between Brookline Ave. and the Riverway has been restored, primarily on the Boston side, and the river and its banks dredged and stabilized. Soon the Boston side will have a new path (whether bike or pedestrian or both), to be paid for by funds that were set aside when the Mosaic apartment project was approved.
The river then flows through the island area below Brookline Ave. (the island is entirely in Brookline) and under Netherlands Rd. This area was extensively dredged and the slopes up to the Riverway and Brookline Ave. cleared and relandscaped.
Immediately downstream from the bridge are several areas that have been regraded and landscaped on both sides of the river. From Netherlands Rd. to Park Drive, the path along the Boston side of the park is unpaved. This was a controversial issue in the early 2000’s, but Isabella and the Friends prevailed, and this path is still an earthen, gravel path.
The most significant improvement in this heavily travelled section of the park has been the 2024 reopening of the Carlton Street Footbridge. At issue for decades, the successful reopening of this pedestrian and bike entry onto the Emerald Necklace Path is one of the most transformative improvements to this area of the Emerald
Necklace. Eventually, the further connection through the Back Bay Yard and Fenway T station onto the Fenway Path will lead directly to Maitland St., the Lansdown Commuter Rail station, and Fenway Park.
A historical mystery that might be unknown to some of our Fenway members is how the Muddy River and Fenway were transformed in the first quarter of the 20th century, especially at the extreme bend of the river at Park Drive, which was previously known as Audubon Drive.
DONATIONS are no longer accepted.
The MEMORIALIZATION of ISABELLA CALLANAN: We are petitioning the Town of Brookline to name the island in the Muddy River between Brookline Avenue and Netherlands Road “Isabella Callanan Island”. It is the site of many concerts organized by the Friends of the Muddy River and is currently unnamed. A REQUEST for LETTERS of SUPPORT: The Town of Brookline has a formal process for place-naming requests. PLEASE if you knew Isabella Callanan personally or otherwise appreciated her work as founder and leader of the Friends of the Muddy River, do write a letter of support for our naming application. It should be emailed to [email protected] or mailed to Support c/o Fred Perry, 32 Bowker Street, Brookline 02445 for inclusion in the application materials.
RETROSPECTIVE: To summarize the establishment, mission, and achievements of the FMR and its long 44-year history is not an easy task. The Muddy River flows from Jamaica Pond to Wards Pond, Willow Pond, and Leverett Pond and along the man-made stream that runs through the Riverway, the recently recreated Liff Park, the Back Bay Fens, and Charlesgate where it empties into the Charles River. It is part of Frederick Law Olmsted’s Emerald Necklace, one of the great creations of the first recognized landscape architects in the US. It forms a part of our daily experience whether we know it or not.
Back in the last quarter of the 20th century, much of this unique watercourse was suffering from abuse and unfortunate developments.
- The Brookline side from Pinder Circle to Brookline Ave. (Rt. 9) was a mishmash of paved roads and parking.
- On the Boston side, a large hockey rink bordered Willow Pond Rd.
- The Curley Overpass built in 1936 greatly altered the North end of Leverett Pond.
- The narrow island of land between Brookline Ave. and River Rd. was zoned for industrial use.
Within relatively recent memory, River Road has been dead ended at the Hilton Garden Inn, and the river side has been extensively landscaped. The hotel has provided rest rooms and a bike repair station within its terrace dining area, and the street tree planting around the hotel has greatly improved a park-like setting at the upper end of the Riverway. Going downstream, the narrow park between Brookline Ave. and the Riverway has been restored, primarily on the Boston side, and the river and its banks dredged and stabilized. Soon the Boston side will have a new path (whether bike or pedestrian or both), to be paid for by funds that were set aside when the Mosaic apartment project was approved.
The river then flows through the island area below Brookline Ave. (the island is entirely in Brookline) and under Netherlands Rd. This area was extensively dredged and the slopes up to the Riverway and Brookline Ave. cleared and relandscaped.
Immediately downstream from the bridge are several areas that have been regraded and landscaped on both sides of the river. From Netherlands Rd. to Park Drive, the path along the Boston side of the park is unpaved. This was a controversial issue in the early 2000’s, but Isabella and the Friends prevailed, and this path is still an earthen, gravel path.
The most significant improvement in this heavily travelled section of the park has been the 2024 reopening of the Carlton Street Footbridge. At issue for decades, the successful reopening of this pedestrian and bike entry onto the Emerald Necklace Path is one of the most transformative improvements to this area of the Emerald
Necklace. Eventually, the further connection through the Back Bay Yard and Fenway T station onto the Fenway Path will lead directly to Maitland St., the Lansdown Commuter Rail station, and Fenway Park.
A historical mystery that might be unknown to some of our Fenway members is how the Muddy River and Fenway were transformed in the first quarter of the 20th century, especially at the extreme bend of the river at Park Drive, which was previously known as Audubon Drive.
- “Audubon Drive” (now Park Drive) actually extended from Audubon Circle all the way to Boylston St. and the Richardson Bridge.
- On the other side of the river, the Riverway extended all the way to what Ave. Louis Pasteur is now. On the City of Boston’s historic atlas plate 36 of Wards 11 and 19, this length of the Riverway was called the “Longwood Entrance” (to the Back Bay Fens).