Chestnut Hill is a wealthy

New England New England is a region consisting of six states in the Northeastern United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is bordered by the state of New York (state), New York to the west and by the ...

village located west of downtown

Boston Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...

Massachusetts Massachusetts ( ; ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Maine to its east, Connecticut and Rhode ...

, United States. It is best known for being home to

Boston College Boston College (BC) is a private university, private Catholic Jesuits, Jesuit research university in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1863 by the Society of Jesus, a Catholic Religious order (Catholic), religious order, t ...

and a section of the

Boston Marathon The Boston Marathon is an annual marathon race hosted by eight cities and towns in greater Boston in eastern Massachusetts, United States. It is traditionally held on Patriots' Day, the third Monday of April. Begun in 1897, the event was ins ...

route. Like all Massachusetts villages, Chestnut Hill is not an incorporated

municipal A municipality is usually a single administrative division having corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality'' may also mean the gov ...

entity. It is located partially in

Brookline Brookline may refer to: Places in the United States * Brookline, Massachusetts, a town near Boston * Brookline, Missouri, a village * Brookline, New Hampshire, a town * Brookline (Pittsburgh), a neighborhood in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania * Brookl ...

in Norfolk County; partially in the city of Boston in Suffolk County, and partially in the city of Newton in Middlesex County. Chestnut Hill's borders are defined by the 02467 ZIP Code. The name refers to several small hills that overlook the 135-acre (546,000 m²)

Chestnut Hill Reservoir Chestnut Hill Reservoir is a reservoir located in the Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts, Chestnut Hill section of Boston, Massachusetts. It was created in 1870 on existing marshes and meadowland to supplement the city’s water needs. A 1.56 mile jogg ...

rather than one particular hill.

History

The boundary between Newton and

Brighton Brighton ( ) is a seaside resort in the city status in the United Kingdom, city of Brighton and Hove, East Sussex, England, south of London. Archaeological evidence of settlement in the area dates back to the Bronze Age Britain, Bronze Age, R ...

was originally more or less straight northwest–southeast, following today's boundary at the east edge of the Newton Commonwealth Golf Course, and the west boundary of the

MBTA The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (abbreviated MBTA and known colloquially as "the T") is the public agency responsible for operating most public transportation services in Greater Boston, Massachusetts. The MBTA transit network in ...

rail yards. It followed what is today St. Thomas More Road and Chestnut Hill Driveway through swampland that is today the western edge of the Chestnut Hill Reservoir, and then rejoined today's city limit that runs essentially with the portion of Beacon Street that forms the western boundary of the Reservoir, and continues southeast to today's triple point between Boston, Brookline, and Newton near the intersection of Reservoir Road and Middlesex Road. In 1874, the Lawrence farm land that is today the Boston College lower campus (bounded by Commonwealth Avenue, the slope dividing Boston College upper campus from lower campus, Beacon St., Chestnut Hill Driveway, and St. Thomas More Rd.) was ceded from Newton to Boston, so that Boston could add a western basin to the Chestnut Hill Reservoir. This area was excavated to become the Lawrence Basin of the Reservoir, paired with the surviving Bradlee Basin, to receive water from the

Sudbury Aqueduct The Sudbury Aqueduct is an aqueduct in Massachusetts. It runs for from Farm Pond at Waverly Street in Framingham to Chestnut Hill Reservoir in Boston’s Chestnut Hill neighborhood. A later built extension main runs from the Farm Pond gat ...

. Beacon St. was rerouted around the southern and western edges of the Bradlee Basin. The two halves of the Reservoir were separated to preserve the

Cochituate Aqueduct The Cochituate Aqueduct was an aqueduct (water supply), aqueduct in Massachusetts that brought water to Boston from 1848 to 1951. History The aqueduct formed a key link in Boston's first major water supply system. Its genesis dates to 1845, wh ...

, which ran under a causeway separating the two halves of the reservoir, now roughly St. Thomas More Rd. and Chestnut Hill Driveway, and a short stretch of Beacon Street. While most of Chestnut Hill remained

farmland Agricultural land is typically land ''devoted to'' agriculture, the systematic and controlled use of other forms of lifeparticularly the rearing of livestock and production of cropsto produce food for humans. It is generally synonymous with bot ...

well into the early 20th century, the area around the reservoir was developed in 1870 by landscape architect

Frederick Law Olmsted Frederick Law Olmsted (April 26, 1822 – August 28, 1903) was an American landscape architect, journalist, Social criticism, social critic, and public administrator. He is considered to be the father of landscape architecture in the U ...

, designer of

Central Park Central Park is an urban park between the Upper West Side and Upper East Side neighborhoods of Manhattan in New York City, and the first landscaped park in the United States. It is the List of parks in New York City, sixth-largest park in the ...

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

and of the

Emerald Necklace The Emerald Necklace consists of a chain of parks linked by parkways and waterways in Boston and Brookline, Massachusetts. It was designed by landscape architect Frederick Law Olmsted, and gets its name from the way the planned chain appears ...

in Boston and

. Because of the significance of its landscape and architecture, the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...

designated parts of Chestnut Hill as

historic district A historic district or heritage district is a section of a city which contains historic building, older buildings considered valuable for historical or architectural reasons. In some countries or jurisdictions, historic districts receive legal p ...

s in 1980s. Examples of Colonial,

Italianate The Italianate style was a distinct 19th-century phase in the history of Classical architecture. Like Palladianism and Neoclassicism, the Italianate style combined its inspiration from the models and architectural vocabulary of 16th-century It ...

, Shingle,

Tudor Revival Tudor Revival architecture, also known as mock Tudor in the UK, first manifested in domestic architecture in the United Kingdom in the latter half of the 19th century. Based on revival of aspects that were perceived as Tudor architecture, in rea ...

, and Victorian architectural styles are evident in the village's country estates and mansions. The Boston College campus is itself an early example of

Collegiate Gothic Collegiate Gothic is an architectural style subgenre of Gothic Revival architecture, popular in the late-19th and early-20th centuries for college and high school buildings in the United States and Canada, and to a certain extent Europ ...

architecture.

Parkland

Hammond Pond Reservation, an extensive forest preserve and protected wetlands, goes through Chestnut Hill and Newton where it is also known as Webster Woods. The Kennard Park and Conservation Area is a post-agricultural forest grown up on 19th century farmland. The mixed and conifer woodlands reveal colonial stone walls, a red maple swamp with century-old trees, and a sensitive fern marsh. The Chestnut Hill Reservation embraces 120 acres adjacent to the Boston College campus, including a 1.5 mile walking trail around a reservoir. The Reservation was designed by Frederick Law Olmsted’s son and constructed in the late 1860s to give Boston clean drinking water and a rural park. Just outside the park proper, the Boston Waterworks with its three gatehouses at water’s edge and three majestic pump houses on Beacon Street is considered a masterpiece of 19th century engineering and landscape design. The Heartbreak Hill Park, surrounding the Waban Hill reservoir, opened in 2015, and a major renovation was completed in 2020.

Shopping centers

* The Shops at Chestnut Hill * The Street at Chestnut Hill

Transportation

Chestnut Hill is served by two branches of the Green Line of the

, Boston's

light rail Light rail (or light rail transit, abbreviated to LRT) is a form of passenger urban rail transit that uses rolling stock derived from tram technology National Conference of the Transportation Research Board while also having some features from ...

system. Stations include: * B branch: Boston College; terminus of the line * D branch: Chestnut Hill The area is also served by the 51 and 60 MBTA buses.

Massachusetts Route 9 Route 9 is a major east–west state highway in Massachusetts, United States. Along with U.S. Route 20 (US 20), Route 2, and Interstate 90, Route 9 is one of the major east–west routes of Massachusetts. The western terminus is near th ...

runs through the area from west to east and serves as the main retail corridor for Chestnut Hill and many surrounding communities. Hammond Pond Parkway connects the area from north to south as a four-lane road through conservation areas, bypassing the busy retail areas and residential neighborhoods.

Registered historic districts

Boston College Main Campus Historic District Boston College Main Campus Historic District encompasses the historic heart of the campus of Boston College in the Chestnut Hill area of Newton, Massachusetts. It consists of a collection of six Gothic Revival stone buildings, centered on Ga ...

– 140 Commonwealth Ave. (in Newton) * Chestnut Hill Historic District – roughly bounded by Middlesex Rd., Reservoir Ln., Denny Rd., Boylston St. and Dunster Rd. (added November 17, 1985) (mostly in Brookline, but includes a few properties that spill into Newton) *

Chestnut Hill Reservoir Historic District The Chestnut Hill Reservoir Historic District is a historic district encompassing the Chestnut Hill Reservoir and the surrounding water works facilities which were historically used to provide fresh water to Boston, Massachusetts, and surroun ...

– within Boston city limits * Old Chestnut Hill Historic District – along Hammond St. and Chestnut Hill Rd. roughly bounded by Beacon St. and Essex Rd., and Suffolk Rd. (added October 4, 1986), within Newton city limits

Business

Education

The village is served by the Brookline Public Schools, Newton Public Schools, and Boston Public Schools, depending on the city or town in which a particular residence is located. The neighborhood also features several private schools including

Brimmer and May School Chestnut Hill is a wealthy New England village located west of downtown Boston, Massachusetts, United States. It is best known for being home to Boston College and a section of the Boston Marathon route. Like all Massachusetts villages, Che ...

(non-denominational, K–12), The Chestnut Hill School, and Beaver Country Day School. Chestnut Hill is home to both

and

Pine Manor College Messina College is an undergraduate constituent college of Boston College. Until 2020 the school was an independent private college in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts referred to as "Pine Manor College" (PMC). The school was founded in 1911 as a p ...

(formerly).

Notable people

Jane Alexander Jane Alexander (née Quigley; born October 28, 1939) is an American-Canadian actress and author. She is the recipient of two Primetime Emmy Awards, a Tony Award, and nominations for four Academy Awards, and three Golden Globe Awards. From 1993 ...

, hollywood actress of TV & Film 1970s to 2020s. Brookline High School graduate. *

Larry Bird Larry Joe Bird (born December 7, 1956) is an American former professional basketball player, coach, and executive in the National Basketball Association (NBA). Nicknamed "the Hick from French Lick" and "Larry Legend" Bird is widely regarded a ...

NBA The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada). The NBA is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United States and Ca ...

power forward, Boston Celtics 1979–1992, Chestnut Hill Resident 1979–1992 *

Tom Brady Thomas Edward Patrick Brady Jr. (born August 3, 1977) is an American former professional American football, football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 23 seasons. He spent his first 20 seasons with the New Engla ...

NFL The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The N ...

quarterback *

Michael Dukakis Michael Stanley Dukakis ( ; born November 3, 1933) is an American politician and lawyer who served as governor of Massachusetts from 1975 to 1979 and from 1983 to 1991. He is the longest-serving governor in Massachusetts history and only the s ...

, former governor of Massachusetts and 1988 Democratic nominee for President, Brookline High School graduate. *

Mary Baker Eddy Mary Baker Eddy (née Baker; July 16, 1821 – December 3, 1910) was an American religious leader and author, who in 1879 founded The Church of Christ, Scientist, the ''Mother Church'' of the Christian Science movement. She also founded ''The C ...

, founder of The First Church of Christ, Scientist and ''

The Christian Science Monitor ''The Christian Science Monitor'' (''CSM''), commonly known as ''The Monitor'', is a nonprofit news organization that publishes daily articles both in Electronic publishing, electronic format and a weekly print edition. It was founded in 1908 ...

'' newspaper, 1908–1910 *

Theo Epstein Theo Nathaniel Epstein (born December 29, 1973) is an American Major League Baseball executive who is, since 2024, the senior adviser and part-owner of Fenway Sports Group, which owns the Boston Red Sox of Major League Baseball and Liverpool FC o ...

, former general manager of the

Chicago Cubs The Chicago Cubs are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The Cubs compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League Central, Central Division. Th ...

, former general manager of the

Boston Red Sox The Boston Red Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Boston. The Red Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League East, East Division. Founded in as one of the Ameri ...

, Brookline High School graduate. *

Reginald Fessenden Reginald Aubrey Fessenden (October 6, 1866 – July 22, 1932) was a Canadian-American electrical engineer and inventor who received hundreds of List of Reginald Fessenden patents, patents in fields related to radio and sonar between 1891 and 1936 ...

, called "the father of broadcast radio", the Reginald A. Fessenden House in Chestnut Hill (Newton) is a US National Landmark as well as a US Historic Place. *

Paul Fireman Paul Fireman (born February 14, 1944) is an American businessman, who for 26 years led Reebok International, Ltd. as chairman and CEO. Fireman sold Reebok to Adidas in 2005. Early life and education Fireman was born February 14, 1944, in Cambr ...

, purchased American distribution rights to

Reebok Reebok International Limited ( ) is an American footwear and clothing brand that is a part of Authentic Brands Group. It was established in England in 1958 as a companion company to J.W. Foster and Sons, a sporting goods company which had bee ...

, Chairman of Fireman Capital Partners, Inc. Brookline High School graduate. *

Terry Francona Terrence Jon Francona (born April 22, 1959), nicknamed "Tito", is an American professional baseball manager and former player who is the manager of the Cincinnati Reds of Major League Baseball (MLB). He previously managed the Cleveland Indians/G ...

, former manager of the

, current manager of the

Cincinnati Reds The Cincinnati Reds are an American professional baseball team based in Cincinnati. The Reds compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League Central, Central Divisi ...

John W. Henry John William Henry II (born September 13, 1949) is an American businessman and the founder of John W. Henry & Company, an investment management firm. He is the principal owner of Liverpool Football Club, the Boston Red Sox, the Pittsburgh Pengu ...

, principal owner of the

and

Liverpool F.C. Liverpool Football Club is a professional Football club (association football), football club based in Liverpool, England. The club competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football league system, English football. Founded in ...

Jarome Iginla Jarome Arthur-Leigh Adekunle Tig Junior Elvis Iginla (; born July 1, 1977) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey winger (ice hockey), winger. He played over 1,500 games in the National Hockey League (NHL) for the Calgary Flames, Pittsbu ...

, former NHL player *

Kennedy Family The Kennedy family () is an American political family that has long been prominent in American politics, public service, entertainment, and business. In 1884, 35 years after the family's arrival from County Wexford, Ireland, Patrick Joseph "P ...

, prominent national, Irish political family. Birthplace of John F. Kennedy, Theodore "Ted" "Edward" Kennedy, Robert Kennedy, Eunice Kennedy & other children *

Seth Klarman Seth Andrew Klarman (born May 21, 1957) is an American billionaire investor, hedge fund manager, and author. He is a proponent of value investing. He is the chief executive and portfolio manager of the Baupost Group, a Boston-based private in ...

, Founder and CEO of the

Baupost Group The Baupost Group is a hedge fund founded in 1982 by William Poorvu and partners Howard Stevenson, Jordan Baruch and Isaac Auerbach. Seth Klarman, who was asked by Poorvu to help run the fund, remains at its head today. Baupost Group's investm ...

Karolyn Kirby Karolyn Kirby (born June 30, 1961) is an American female retired beach volleyball player. She won the bronze medal at the 1997 World Championships in Los Angeles, California, partnering with Nancy Reno. The pair also won the 1992 Olympic tourn ...

, World Champion Women's beach volleyball, winner of the 1992 Summer Olympic beach volleyball tournament. Brookline High School graduate. *

Robert Kraft Robert Kenneth Kraft (born June 5, 1941) is an American billionaire businessman. He is the chairman and chief executive officer (CEO) of the Kraft Group, a diversified holding company with assets in paper and packaging, sports and entertainmen ...

, owner of the

New England Patriots The New England Patriots are a professional American football team based in the Greater Boston area. The Patriots compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East division. The Pa ...

, Brookline High School graduate. *

Alice Hathaway Lee Roosevelt Alice Hathaway Roosevelt (; July 29, 1861 – February 14, 1884) was an American socialite and the first wife of President Theodore Roosevelt. Two days after giving birth to their only child, she died from undiagnosed Bright's disease. Early lif ...

, the first wife of

Theodore Roosevelt Theodore Roosevelt Jr. (October 27, 1858 – January 6, 1919), also known as Teddy or T.R., was the 26th president of the United States, serving from 1901 to 1909. Roosevelt previously was involved in New York (state), New York politics, incl ...

, and mother of

Alice Roosevelt Longworth Alice Lee Roosevelt Longworth (February 12, 1884 – February 20, 1980) was an American writer and socialite. She was the eldest child of U.S. president Theodore Roosevelt and his only child with his first wife, Alice Hathaway Lee Roosevelt. Lo ...

Philip Leder Philip Leder (November 19, 1934 – February 2, 2020) was an American geneticist. Early life and education Leder was born in Washington, D.C., and studied at Harvard University, graduating in 1956. In 1960, he graduated from Harvard Medical Sch ...

, cytogeneticist, died in Chestnut Hill *

Conan O'Brien Conan Christopher O'Brien (born April 18, 1963) is an American television host, comedian, writer, actor, and producer. He is best known for having hosted Late-night talk show, late-night talk shows, beginning with ''Late Night with Conan O'B ...

, TV host, "The Conan Obrien Show", Brookline High School graduate *

David Ortiz David Américo Ortiz Arias (born November 18, 1975), nicknamed "Big Papi", is a Dominican Americans, Dominican-American former professional baseball designated hitter and first baseman who played 20 seasons in Major League Baseball from 1997 ...

, Hall of Fame baseball player for the Boston Red Sox, 2002–2008 *

Leverett Saltonstall Leverett Atholville Saltonstall (September 1, 1892June 17, 1979) was an American lawyer and politician from Massachusetts. He served three two-year terms as the List of Governors of Massachusetts, 55th Governor of Massachusetts, and for more th ...

, Governor of Massachusetts (1939–1945) and

United States Senator The United States Senate consists of 100 members, two from each of the 50 U.S. state, states. This list includes all senators serving in the 119th United States Congress. Party affiliation Independent Senators Angus King of Maine and Berni ...

(1945–1967) * Lew Schneider, Hollywood producer of Everybody Loves Raymond and American Dad! Brookline High School graduate * David Siskind, Major TV host and producer in the 1950s, 1960s & 1970s. Sunday Night TV Talk host (news), Talent Manager (Jerry Lewis, Dinah Shore). First Cousin of TV producer Norman Lear. *

Alan Rachins Alan L. Rachins (; October 3, 1942 – November 2, 2024) was an American actor, known for his role as Douglas Brackman in ''L.A. Law'' which earned him both Golden Globe and Emmy nominations, and his portrayal of Larry (Dharma's hippie father) o ...

, TV actor, Dharma and Greg, L.A. Law. Brookline High School * Thomas G. Stemberg, founder of

Staples Inc. Staples Inc. is an American office supply retail company headquartered in Framingham, Massachusetts. Founded by Leo Kahn and Thomas G. Stemberg, the company opened its first store in Brighton, Massachusetts on May 1, 1986. By 1996, it had r ...

* Alan Trefler, founder and CEO of Pegasystems * John A. Wilson, sculptor * Jeffrey Lurie, owner of the

Philadelphia Eagles The Philadelphia Eagles are a professional American football team based in Philadelphia. The Eagles compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC East, East division. The team plays its ...

Mike Wallace Myron Leon Wallace (May 9, 1918 – April 7, 2012) was an American journalist, game show host, actor, and media personality. Known for his investigative journalism, he interviewed a wide range of prominent newsmakers during his seven-decade car ...

, TV host CBS, 60 Minutes, Brookline High School graduate