Cultural Landscape Report for Charlestown Navy Yard, Boston

YARD AND STREET NAMES
INTRODUCTION
Known variously as the Boston Navy Yard or Charlestown Navy Yard throughout its history, the yard officially
became the Boston Naval Shipyard in 1945, shortly after the end of World War II. When starting in World War I,
the yard acquired additional storage, docking, and repair facilities in South Boston, East Boston, and Chelsea, the
Charlestown yard was referred to as the “main yard.” When the property became a national park site, Congress
designated it as Charlestown Navy Yard. 2 The naval operations that continue within the Charlestown Navy Yard
are known as the Naval Historical Center Detachment Boston’s Maintenance & Repair Facility. In this report the
site is referred to as the Charlestown Navy Yard, or simply the “yard.”
Some of the surrounding streets names have changed since their seventeenth and eighteenth century origins.
Chelsea Street was previously known as the Salem Turnpike, and the first road to the site was referred to as the
“Lane to the Brickyards.” Early roads that led to Gates 1 and 2 of the yard—Water, Wapping, and Henley Streets—
were subsequently eliminated and replaced by Constitution Road, which approaches Gate 1 along the former
alignment of Water Street. Within the yard, the first road extended east from Henley Street and was known as New
Road until it became Main Avenue in 1857. In the 1860s when railroad tracks were introduced to the yard, the
waterfront road became the principal street called First Avenue, and Main Avenue became Second Avenue. In the
1870s, the Navy assigned letters to the avenue names with First Avenue being Avenue E and Second Avenue being
Avenue D. In 1902, to aid in yard organization, the Navy officially named roads running east-west as “Avenues” in
numerical order from south to north, and roads running north-south as “Streets” in numerical order from west to
east. 3
BUILDING, STRUCTURE, AND PIER NAMES
Beginning in the late 1860s, the Navy assigned a number or letter to each building, structure, and pier.
Unfortunately, during major periods of development of the yard, such as in 1900 and the 1940s, some renumbering
occurred. Similarly, building functions changed resulting in new descriptive names, such as the Dry Dock Engine
House that now serves as the USS Constitution Museum (Building 22). In this report the descriptive name of the
building or structure is paired with its numerical name in parenthesis to minimize confusion, e.g., the Paint Shop
(Building 125). Appendix 1 lists the proper names, numbers, and locations of buildings and structures referenced in
this report. Military documents typically capitalize the names of buildings, such as Dry Dock 1 and the
Commandant’s House (Quarters G). In keeping with this tradition, most building and major structure names are
capitalized in this report.
The earliest piers were termed “wharves” and the two located at the western end of the yard were known as White’s
Wharf and Shear Wharf. In the early 1900s, when the Navy extended the bulkhead line further into the harbor,
many of the wharves were extended and thereafter referred to as piers. The piers are numbered from one to eleven,
with Pier 1 on the western end of the yard. When closed in 1974, there were three dry docks in the yard, known as
Dry Docks 1, 2, and 5. Dry Docks 3 and 4 were located in the South Boston Annex, which was active during World
War II.
For more information on names, refer to Carlson, HRS, 2, f3.
For more information on building numbers and street names, refer to Carlson, HRS, 11, f17.
2
3
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