{"nrhp_refnum":"03000747","name":"Nahant Beach Boulevard-Metropolitan Park System of Greater Boston","other_names":[],"category":"district","location":{"address":"Nahant Beach Blvd.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Lynn","county":"Essex County","state":"MA","lat":42.43671087900003,"lon":-70.93742137399994,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"2003-08-11","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Communications","Conservation","Engineering","Entertainment/Recreation","Landscape Architecture","Transportation"],"significance_levels":["state"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A roughly 1.5-mile ocean parkway causeway between Lynn and Nahant, Massachusetts, in the Metropolitan Park System of Greater Boston. The original road was built in 1905 and replaced by the current alignment in 1936-1937.","why_significant":"The parkway is one of eight ocean parkways run by the Metropolitan District Commission and was designed for the Metropolitan Parks Commission by the Olmsted firms. It first gave automobiles a route between the Nahant Peninsula and the mainland. The 1936-1937 rebuilding, funded by federal work-relief grants, added the Lynnway Rotary and a parking lot for Nahant Beach. The form finds state-level significance under Criteria A and C.","narrative":"Nahant Beach Boulevard is a flat, straight causeway about 1.5 miles long linking Lynn with the Nahant Peninsula, with sweeping views of the ocean, the Boston skyline and nearby shorelines. It is one of eight ocean parkways in Boston's Metropolitan Park System. The first road opened in 1905, giving automobiles their first route between Nahant and the mainland, and was designed for the Metropolitan Parks Commission by the Olmsted firms. After decades of proposals to widen it, federal work-relief funds paid for a rebuilt roadway in 1936-1937. The new road follows the former trolley line, and the old alignment became a parking lot for Nahant Beach. The project also added the Lynnway Rotary at the northern end, a promenade, and beach fireplaces. The parkway has four lanes, retaining walls and a seawall, and a Spanish-American War monument in the rotary. It was recognized for its role in planning, conservation, engineering, recreation, landscape architecture and transportation, with a significance period of 1936 to 1956.","period_of_significance":"1936-1956","architect_builder":"Charles Eliot, Olmsted Brothers, Works Progress Administration","architectural_style":null,"criteria":["A","C"],"status_note":"Described as a current roadway and park, used for outdoor recreation and transportation, with a few modern alterations such as a concrete median barrier and retaining walls.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:13:04.420327-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/4/7902/63790204/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_MA/03000747.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/03000747/797674af5d-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/03000747/797674af5d-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","author":"Jameslwoodward","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Nahant_Beach_Boulevard_MA.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Jameslwoodward</a>, <a href=\"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0\" rel=\"license noopener\">CC BY-SA 3.0</a>, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Nahant_Beach_Boulevard_MA.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/63790204","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nahant_Beach_Boulevard","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q167984"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/massachusetts/essex-county/nahant-beach-boulevard-metropolitan-park-system-of-greater-boston-03000747/"}