Restoration of Beale Estate Boundary Wall and Fence at Adams National Historical Park

Stone walls and wrought iron fences that characterized the colonial New England landscape are disappearing into modern development. Your entrance fees are literally holding up the walls that surrounded historic homes and communities around Adams National Historical Park, home to one of the nation's most prominent founding families. Learn more about Your Fee Dollars at Work at national parks across the country and other projects at this park.

Beale fence

NPS Photo

Restore Beale Estate Boundary Wall & Fence (PMIS # 228346 $71,541)

Preformed by park personnel.

Description

Performance of this project will commence on Adams Street at the Beale House. The Scope of Work will require raising 95 feet of granite boundary wall and the wrought iron fence by approximately 2 feet above the grade of the existing city sidewalk and then inserting a subsurface poured concrete footing between the raised caps and bottom course of the wall. Granite columns that mark the driveway entrance will also need to be raised and reset, as will the wooden entrance gate. Due to the weight of the granite and necessary excavation, heavy equipment will be required capable of lifting and moving large, heavy objects.

This project will involve disassembling and removing the historic iron fence, consisting of 190 pieces of 7/8” x 7/8” x 28” pickets, set into the granite capstone with a 100’continuous top rail. Steps to restore the iron fence to its original condition will be: - Remove cap stones 100’ - Form & pour concrete footing - Reinstall capstones - Raise & reset corner posts - Raise the existing granite wall 24”

Justifications

Stone walls and wrought iron fences are a signature feature of colonial New England landscapes and disappearing as development overtakes the historic fabric of many cultural landscapes. These features are critical to the interpretation of the Adams family to some 160,000 visitors to Adams NHP annually. Of the 75 acres of farmland that John and Abigail purchased in 1788, only some 7 acres remain. The adjacent Beale Estate, owned by John Adams’ contemporary, Captain Benjamin Beale, is critical to preserving the historic integrity and view shed as witnessed by John and Abigail Adams. These properties sit along Adams Street, formally the "Old Post Road" connecting Boston to Plymouth. Today, the park is surrounded by what Brooks Adams referred to as "creeping destruction." Preserving the historic stone wall and fence is critical to providing historic context and meaning to the park story. As the visitor approaches the park, the stone wall and fence are defining features of the landscape and park visitors with an immediate and immersive experience into the colonial landscape.

At the turn of the century, the grade of the city sidewalk was raised on Adams Street approximately 2 feet. In doing so, the entire top portion of the park’s historic granite wall and the lower section of the attached wrought iron rails were buried. If conditions are not corrected within a reasonable time frame, it will mean the complete loss of the entire iron fence portion due to deterioration (approximately 200 iron rails). Because the exposed portion of wall is so low, it posses a potential safety concern when children and visitors walking on the city sidewalk try to walk on the pointed iron rails.

Upon completion of this project - The public will be able to view the unique construction of the wall with each individual rail set in granite enhancing the visitor experience by preserving the historic stone wall and fence, adding increased value to the historic context and park story. - The existing threat impacting this historical resource will be eliminated. Preventative maintenance will stop further deterioration.