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THE EMERALD NECKLACE

The Emerald Necklace is a chain of 9 parks that stretch from the Charles River to Franklin Park in Dorchester, MA.

Encompassing this park system are, the Back Bay Fens, Riverway Park, Olmsted Park, Jamaica Pond Park, Arnold Arboretum, Franklin Park, Boston Common, Boston Public Garden, and the Commonwealth Mall. Within the Emerald Necklace, each park is unique; however, all of the parks are part of a linked system following the Muddy River and joined by paths and parkways.

Frederick Law Olmsted created parks composed of large expanses of woodlands, meadows, and water in which both wildlife could thrive and be protected and humans could get relief from the hectic demands of urban living. Olmsted designed a wide variety of internationally renowned open spaces, from New York City's Central Park to Stanford University's campus. More than one hundred years after its creation, the Emerald Necklace, itself a brilliantly designed 6 mile train of parks, deserves to be recognized along with its better known counterparts. More information can be found at www.emeraldnecklace.org.

Back Bay Fens
The Back Bay Fens encompasses a variety of features; the elegant Rose Garden, War Memorials, Clemente Ball Field, and the community Victory Gardens.
www.emeraldnecklace.org/fenway.htm

Riverway Park
Olmsted has described the Riverway as a fresh watercourse bordered by passages of brush meadow and varied slopes from the adjoining upland. The Riverway offers one of the most complete experiences of refuge from the surrounding city. The narrowest park in the Emerald Necklace, the Riverway lies in the valley of the Muddy River, which is the boundary between Boston and Brookline.
www.emeraldnecklace.org/riverway.htm

Olmsted Park
Olmsted Park is perhaps the strongest link in what Olmsted called his "chain of waters," because within its borders lie three substantial bodies of water: Ward's Pond, Willow Pond, and Leverett Pond.
www.emeraldnecklace.org/olmsted.htm

Jamaica Pond
Sometimes called the "jewel in the Emerald Necklace" Jamaica Pond is the largest and purest body of water within Boston. This 60-acre pond is surrounded by a scenic mix of woodlands, glades, formal promenades, informally planted hillsides and banks, and highly varied watershed landscapes.
www.emeraldnecklace.org/jamaica.htm

Arnold Arboretum
Arnold Arboretum is a 265-acre park leased by Harvard University from the City of Boston. The oldest arboretum in the country, it contains trees and shrubs from around the world, with special emphasis on plants native to Asia and New England.
www.arboretum.harvard.edu/main.htm

Franklin Park
Franklin Park is 500-acres in size and is the largest park in the Emerald Necklace. Within the park are the Franklin Park Zoo, Franklin Park Golf Course, 100-acres of woodlands, and a 7-acre pond. Olmsted designed this is a "country park" similar to Central Park in New York City and Prospect Park in Brooklyn, New York, which he also designed.
www.emeraldnecklace.org/franklin.htm