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The Diamond District
On November, 22,
1996, the Diamond Historic District of Lynn was added to the
National Register of Historic Places.
The 69.5-acre district is a suburban residential section of Lynn
containing the City’s most significant concentration of 19th and 20th-century
high-style architecture. The District contains an intact original Quaker
village along Broad Street and
Nahant Street at Washington
Square, as well as the 1722-1889 Friends Burying
Ground on Rear Broad Street. The area first contained about 20 large
estates that were developed principally along Ocean
Street, stretched to the beach, and served as
summer cottages for Boston’s
wealthy inhabitants. When these large
estates were subdivided and sold, Lynn
shoe manufacturers and merchants built large houses. The term “diamond district” was probably used
by residents of other neighborhoods in Lynn
to refer to the area where these wealthy individuals lived. Eventually, Lynn
Shore Drive and the sea wall were built, and the
beach was opened to the public. The entrance to the historic district is indicated by a
bronze sign at the corner of Nahant Street
and Ocean Street. The
district extends roughly from Washington Square
at Broad Street and Nahant
Street east one mile to the Lynn
city line at Swampscott and includes the sea wall along Nahant
Bay from the Nahant town line to
the Swampscott town line at Eastern Avenue.
Throughout the years, several well known people have called
the Diamond District home. These include:
Mary Baker Eddy (1821-1910) - writer, publisher, discoverer,
and founder of the Christian Science movement. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mary_Baker_Eddy
Maria Mitchell (1818-1889) – first professional woman astronomer
and first woman admitted into the American
Academy of Arts and Science. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maria_Mitchell
William Hickling Prescott (1796-1859) – historian who
published several important books on Spanish, Mexican, and Peruvian history. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Hickling_Prescott
Abigail Kelley Foster (1811-1887) - feminist, abolitionist,
and lecturer who spoke against slavery and for women’s rights. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abby_Kelley
Jean Margaret Davenport Lander (1829-1903) - 19th
century actress who starred in many plays in the United
States and Europe. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jean_Margaret_Davenport
Frances Hodgson Burnett (1849-1924) - author who wrote the
famous and influential children’s novel Little Lord Fauntleroy in the early
1880’s while summering here. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frances_Hodgson_Burnett
The term “Diamond District” probably was originally used by
residents of other neighborhoods in Lynn
to refer to the area where the wealthy shoe manufacturers and merchants lived.
The only printed reference to “Diamond District” would be the use of this term
by realtors to help them sell real estate within the District.
Above information provided by Duncan and Douglas Maitland
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