AIA Guide to Boston

by Michael Southworth, Michael Southworth

This book is a superbly written history of Boston's built environment, filled with insider details and engaging anecdotes about more than 600 buildings, including such historic landmarks as Faneuil Hall, the mansions on Beacon Hill, the commercial wharves in Boston Harbor, Fenway Park, and the Freedom Trail as well as Boston's latest contemporary buildings such as the ICA, MIT's Stata Center, and the infamous “Big Dig.” This guide has been completely rewritten and redesigned, with added theme tours, such as Boston Urban Design, Contemporary Landmarks, or the work of Charles Bulfinch. New, up-to-date locator maps have been created for this edition, and the glossary and index have been revised.

Genres: Architecture

384 pages, Paperback

First published April 1, 1984

Reviews

[Payton · Rating 4 out of 5]

I particularly like AIA guides written by individuals and not committees, since they have a stronger editorial voice. I've known of the Southworths' work in urban design for years, so I was excited to find out that they'd written the AIA Guide. It didn't really introduce me to completely new parts of town (I guess my youthful wanderings about town were more comprehensive than I suspected at the time) but it's good to have more historical perspective.

[Katherine · Rating 4 out of 5]

This has been helpful on my recent Boston visits, though I'm amused to see the Institute for Contemporary Art on the cover of this edition--it gets a scathing description in the book!