[MassHistPres] Metropolitan Water Works Museum?

[Brian Yates]

Perhaps the best way is to look at the site not as a stand alone attraction
but aa the introduction and visitors center for a regional attraction:  The
regional water system between Chestnut Hill and the Sudbury River and/or the
Cochituate River and perhaps all the way to the Quabbin Reservoir.  Much of
the Sudbury Aqueduct and perhaps much of the Cochituate Aqueduct is on the
National Register as a linear resource.  Perhaps you could research the
entire system, find spots where the system is visible and accessible, and
document those in exhibits at the Museum and in hand out maps and brochures
that visitors could take with them  Echo Bridge over Hemlock Gorge is one
spectacular example.(www.hemlockgorge.org).  There's a museum at Quabbin,
perhaps there are many such instances in between that could raise the
visibity of the Museum and its viability.


Alderman Brian Yates, Newton
President, Friends of Hemlock Gorge.

-----Original Message-----
From: masshistpres-bounces at cs.umb.edu
[mailto:masshistpres-bounces at cs.umb.edu] On Behalf Of Dennis De Witt
Sent: Saturday, March 10, 2007 2:30 PM
To: MHC listserve
Subject: [MassHistPres] Metropolitan Water Works Museum?

Many of you may be familiar with the wonderful Richardsonian "high  
service" Metropolitan Water Works pumping station that stands next to  
the Chestnut Hill Reservoir (and across the reservoir from from the  
Boston College Campus) -- just beyond the Cleveland Circle  
termination of Brookline's Beacon St. boulevard.

As you also may know, the site has been redeveloped with about 100  
DUs of housing in its four existing buildings and one new building,  
with the intent of supporting the preservation of the main engine  
room of the of the high service building, which contains three steam  
pumping engines, dating back to the 1890s.

Originally the entire interior of the high service building was to  
have contained a museum.  But, as economic realities set in, four  
ancillary spaces, such as the coal bunker, we designated to become  
large condo units.

Early in the process a museum pro forma was developed developed based  
on the larger model.  Given the now reduced space it doesn't credible  
in terms of visitations, budget, or operating model -- if, indeed, it  
ever was.

Can you think of a viable model or analogy, of any sort, in New  
England or elsewhere, for something like this situation -- i.e. a  
museum with three spectacular but static 100 year old steam  
leviathans in a wonderful building?

In some way the Larz Andrson auto museum might be an analogy in terms  
of architecture and location but everyone (OK, every male) to some  
extent can identify with cars.  Another analogy that comes to mind (a  
site I last visited 40 years ago, which says something) would be the  
Saugus iron works -- nothing much happened other than a water wheel  
turning, as I recall.

Is the "museum" model wrong?  Is a better analogy the house-museum  
(or maybe a fire house museum, of which there must be some, somewhere)?

Anyone got any suggestions of good analogies in New England or  
elsewhere?

Dennis De Witt
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