Paul's Bridge is a stone overpass over the Neponset River. It is a part of the Neponset Valley Parkway, which is in itself a Historic District. It replaced an earlier Hubbard's Bridge (prior to 1759), and a subsequent Paul's Bridge (so named at its 1807 reconstruction). It's span is approximately 88 feet. The name "Paul" can be attributed to the owner of the adjacent land on the Readville side, then part of Dedham.
The bridge was built in 1849 at a width of 23 feet, constructed of unmortared stone. It replaced two previous wooden bridges that had been on the site since the early 18th century. Each round arch measures 20 feet at the springline. Originally the pass was secured by a wooden fence with iron stanchions. It had a major rebuilding between 1932-1935 undertaken by Arthur A. Shurcliff, FASLA and founder of the AIP, who made it a priority to widen the bridge. Most of the original stone was reused and solid stone parapets replaced the wooden siderails.
At the bridge's location, the Neponset River acts as the border between Milton and the southernmost portion of Boston, Hyde Park neighborhood, which at that time was historically Dedham.
Paul's Bridge was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1972. It was designed by the Olmsted and Eliot firm, the same Frederick Law Olmsted responsible for the Emerald Necklace Park System which runs through Boston.
Famous quotes containing the words paul and/or bridge:
“That for which Paul lived and died so gloriously; that for which Jesus gave himself to be crucified; the end that animated the thousand martyrs and heroes who have followed his steps, was to redeem us from a formal religion, and teach us to seek our well-being in the formation of the soul.”
—Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803–1882)
“Oh, who will now be able to relate how Pantagruel behaved in face of these three hundred giants! Oh my muse, my Calliope, my Thalie, inspire me now, restore my spirits, because here is the ass’s bridge of logic, here is the pitfall, here is the difficulty of being able to describe the horrible battle undertaken.”
—François Rabelais (1494–1553)