History Of Dedham, Massachusetts, 2000–present

The history of Dedham, Massachusetts from 2000 to present includes several large commercial and residential developments, the Town's 375th anniversary, municipal building projects, and changes to the Charter.

Development

Major developments in Dedham include the Jewish Rashi School, a $30 million building on the 162-acre campus of Hebrew SeniorLife's NewBridge on the Charles in the fall of 2010. The 82,000-square-foot LEED-certified school opened in the fall of 2010 with 300 students in kindergarten through eighth grade and room to grow the population. The first of the 700 residents of NewBridge on the Charles moved in on June 1, 2010.

After Legacy Place, a shopping mall with 80 stores, restaurants, and a 15-screen movie theater opened, businesses in Dedham Square suffered. Legacy Place opened in 2009, with the first movie being shown to the public on August 27, 2009. The first film was ''Inglourious Basterds'', and the first preview was for '' Shutter Island'', a movie partially filmed in Dedham.

In the early years of the century, the 103' water pipe that stood on Walnut Street across from Oakdale Avenue was torn down to make room for a new house. At the time, it was the oldest steel water tank in the country, having stood since 1881.

Municipal building projects

Town Hall and Senior Center

Town Meeting rejected a $40 million proposal in November 2014 to buy a portion of the former Rust Craft Greeting Card building at 100 Rustcraft Road for use as a Town Hall, Senior Center, and Police Station. The Town had already spent hundreds of thousands of dollars in due diligence when Town Meeting rejected the plan.

At the 2014 Annual Town Meeting it was voted instead to purchase the Ames Schoolhouse for $5.85 million and renovate it to be used as a Town Hall and Senior Center. An additional $1 million was appropriated to relocate the tenants of the schoolhouse, which was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1983. Town Meeting Representatives and other supporters of a Senior Center, a building discussed and debated for more than 30 years, "wooed and applauded loudly," and were dancing in the aisles after the article passed.

The price to renovate the building ballooned from $10.6 million to $14.1 million after a more thorough inspection of the building was conducted. On June 19 and 20, 2020, most departments moved from the old town hall into the Ames Schoolhouse.

Public safety building

After most of the Town's administrative offices move into the Ames Schoolhouse, the Police Department was expected to renovate the old Town Hall for their use at a cost of $9.5 million. Plans changed, however, to knocking down the existing Town Hall and instead building a combined public safety building for both the police and fire departments.

On March 5, 2021, a ceremonial groundbreaking took place for the new building. The new building at 26 Bryant Street was opened for the first time on March 12, 2023. The public was invited to take tours following the ribbon cutting.

William B. Gould statue

On November 9, 2020, the Town of Dedham renamed a 1.3 acre park as the William B. Gould Memorial Park. The park was formally dedicated on September 23, 2021 before a crowd of more than 100. The park on Mother Brook is about .5 miles from Gould's home on Milton Street. A committee was established to erect a sculpture of him on the site by Memorial Day 2023, the 100th anniversary of Gould's death. The names of four finalists, all artists of color, were announced at the dedication.

On May 28, 2023, the statue was unveiled before a crowd of hundreds by Timothy, Alina, and William B. Gould VI, three of Gould's great-great-great-grandchildren. There ceremony took place a few days after the 100th anniversary of Gould's death. The statue portrays Gould as an older man, as he would have been known to the people of Dedham. His hands are slightly enlarged and his posture is slightly stiff, demonstrating that he worked hard jobs his entire life. It includes the coat he wore as Commander of the Carrol Post of the Grand Army of the Republic, and a toolbox with symbolic tools he used in his life such as a compass, a trowel, and a pen. A copy of his diary sits open on his lap.

Town Green

Following the construction of the new Public Safety Building,the Dedham Square Planning Committee voted to recommend the old police headquarters be demolished and a new town green be built on the site in December 2021. A six-person working group was created to oversee the project in April 2022. A groundbreaking ceremony for the Town Green was held on May 16, 2024. The Green was officially opened with a ribbon cutting ceremony on April 30, 2025.

Government

Charter changes

In March 2012 the Board of Selectmen created a Charter Advisory Committee to review the Town's governing document and to recommend changes. The committee consisted of Thomas R. Polito, Jr., Joseph Pascarella, Kevin Mawe, Jay Donahue, Brian Keaney, Cherylann Sheehan, and Camille Zahka, and met more than 25 times before presenting their findings to the Selectmen in August 2013. The Selectmen sent the recommendations on to Town Meeting, who presented them to Town Meeting. The Town Meeting approved all but one, calling for term limits. At the 2014 Town Election, voters approved five of the six amendments, with the only exception being an increase in the term of the Town Clerk from three to five years.

In 2020 a new Charter Committee was appointed. It included Chairman Carmen Dello Iacono, Michelle Apuzzio, Gemma Martin, Andrew Haley, Lance Hartford, Michele Heffernan, and Tom Ryan.

Pandemic-era town meetings

Town Meeting was altered several times during the COVID-19 pandemic.

In the fall of 2020, Town Meeting was held over Zoom. Due to technological glitches, power outages in some parts of town as a result of a storm, and running a meeting of nearly 300 people plus other officials, it did not finish until after midnight the next day. A team of more than 20 people worked weekly since the previous August to iron out the issues related to the first ever virtual town meeting.

In May 2021, it was held outdoors at Stone Park. In November 2021, town meeting was held on the tennis courts at the Dedham Health and Athletic Complex, a space large enough for everyone to be indoors while still social distancing. The owners, Lloyd and Roberta Gainsboro, were given a plaque thanking them for shutting down their tennis courts for the evening and hosting the first ever town meeting held "in a building that's big enough to park airplanes in."

Select Board elections

2024

One seat for a three year term available.

2023

Two seats for three year terms available.

2022

Two seats for three year terms available.

2021

One seat for a full three year term available.

2020

Two seats for three year terms available.

2019

Two seats for three year terms available.

2018

One seat for a full three year term available.

2017

Two seats for three year terms available.

2016

Two seats for three year terms available.

2015

One seat for a full three-year term available.

A separate election was called for when Carmen Dello Iacono stepped down as Selectman to becoming the Town's electrical inspector.

2014

Two seats for full three year terms were available.

2013

Two seats for full three year terms were available.

2012

One seat for a full three-year term available.

2011

Two seats for full three year terms were available.

2010

Two seats for full three year terms were available.

2009

One seat for a full three-year term was available.

2008

Two seats for full three year terms were available.

2007

Two seats for full three year terms were available.

Representation in the General Court

Population

Schools

In 2024, students in the Dedham Public Schools spoke 36 different languages.

School Building / Rehabilitation Committee

Town Meeting created a School Building/ Rehabilitation Committee (SBRC) in 2000.

Dedham Storytellers

In 2017, the Dedham Storytellers initiative was founded as a collaboration between students in Michael Mederios' history class at Dedham High School, the Dedham Rotary Club, the Dedham Historical Society, the Dedham Council on Aging, and the Dedham High School Alumni Association. Students interviewed senior citizens who grew up in Dedham over a series of three lunches and a trip to the Historical Society. They then wrote three essays: an autobiography, a biography of the senior citizen they interviewed, and an essay about how their lives compare to those who grew up in town generations earlier. In 2025, the fifth collection of essays, which is stored at the Historical Society, was produced.

Dedham Middle School

In 2006 the new Dedham Middle School was opened next door to the existing Dedham Middle School, which previously served as Dedham High School from 1915 to 1959. The Certified Green School cost $22,353,209. The 1847 Charles and Mary Brown House, which was then being used as the school administration's offices, had to be razed to make room for it.

Avery School

In 2012 a new Avery Elementary School was opened at a cost of $19,285,949. Like, the Middle School, it was designed by the firm of Dore and Whittier.

The old Avery School became the Mother Brook Arts & Community Center.

Early Childhood Education Center

In 2015, the SBRC was considering where to build a new Early Childhood Education Center. The 2016 Annual Town Meeting spent two hours debating the construction of a new, stand-alone Early Childhood Education Center at the Dexter School. Despite a split vote of the School Building/ Rehabilitation Committee, and only one of the nine members of the Finance and Warrant Committee speaking in favor of it, the $18.9 million proposal passed with broad support. It was the first pre-school and kindergarten facility in the state financed with money from the state.

Oakdale School

In June 2023, the School Committee approved plans to shutter the Greenlodge School and merge it with the Oakdale School despite significant opposition to the project. On March 20, 2024, the School Committee reversed course after a public survey showed 81% respondents supported a standalone Oakdale, and only 9% supported a combined Oakdale-Greenlodge and a similar number supported a combined Oakdale-Riverdale.

In February 2025, voters rejected a proposal to tear down the existing school and build a new school on Madison Street.

Riverdale School

On August 29 and 30, 2023, the Active Transportation Working Group led a group in painting a mural on Needham Street outside the Riverdale School. The goal of the mural, which depicts rubber ducks floating down the nearby Charles River, was to slow down traffic near the school to improve safety. The image, which is an homage to the local Rotary Club's fundraiser, is expected to last between six months and two years. It was designed by Kate Bergeron and Jaimie Varasconi.

Ursuline Academy

On October 18, 2024, a mass was held in the gymnasium at Ursuline Academy to mark the transfer of sponsorship from the Ursuline Sisters to the Ursuline Education Foundation, a lay-led organization. During the mass, a silver ciborium was transferred from Sister Elisa Ryan, the prioress of the Ursuline Sisters of the Central Province, to Kate Levesque, the head of school.

The ciborium was originally used by the French Navy in the 1700s and eventually was given to a Boston priest, possibly Bishop Jean-Louis Lefebvre de Cheverus. It was used by the sisters in Charlestown before the Ursuline Convent riots in 1834, and was saved when a group of sisters hid it below a clump of asparagus in the garden. It eventually made its way into the Boston College archives before being returned to Ursuline Academy for the transfer of sponsorship.

375th Anniversary

In 2011 the Town of Dedham celebrated its 375 anniversary. A steering committee was appointed by the Selectmen to coordinate a year's worth of activities marking the occasion. The Committee was composed of Marie-Louise Kehoe, Donna Greer, Nancy Baker, Mayanne Brigss, Dan Hart, Michele Heffernan, Joan Jolley, Brian Keaney, Vicky Kruckeberg, and Sarah MacDonald, with Kehoe and Greer serving as co-chairs. In September, the same month the Town was incorporated by the Great and General Court, a 375th Birthday Party was held at the Endicott Estate with over 7,500 people attending. The food, rides, games, and trolley tours were free for Dedham residents, and non residents paid $5 a person or $20 for a family.

Other events included a cocktail party at the Endicott Estate, an Ecumenical Church Service where each congregation gave their history, an essay contest for schoolchildren, and more.

Awards and honors

Dedham Middle School Principal Debra Gatley was named the Massachusetts Secondary School Administrators' Association Principal of the Year in 2015.

In 2012 the Town Meeting created the Public Service Recognition Committee to recognize citizens who have performed outstanding acts of service to the community. In 2013 Don Gosselin was recognized before the Annual Town Meeting, and in 2014 Amy Black won the adult award and Caroline Bell won the youth award. In 2015 the winner was Bill Podolski.

In 2015, the Dedham Fire Department unveiled a plaque on the front of their headquarters honoring the line of duty death of Chief Henry J. Harrigan. During the ceremony, an alarm sounded and several firefighters left on Engine 4 to extinguish a cooking fire at a housing complex for senior citizens.

A few weeks later, the Henry J. Harrigan Medal of Honor was awarded to Lieutenant William Walsh and Firefighter Jared Blaney for "going above and beyond the call of duty and putting themselves at extreme risk" by entering a burning building on Harding Terrace to save a victim trapped inside.

In 2023, Roselyn "Rose" Murphy became the first female Eagle Scout from Dedham.

Television and film

Dedham has been the setting or filming location of a number of films and television shows:

* The Endicott Estate was also featured in the 2000 film '' The Perfect Storm''.
* The award-winning 2000 film ''State and Main'' was filmed in Dedham, and Alec Baldwin's character slept in the Endicott Estate.
* The 2014 film ''The Judge'' was filmed partly in Dedham Square, showing the Norfolk Superior Court and First Church.
*Kathryn Bigelow's 2017 film, Detroit, was filmed inside the Dedham District Court.
*The film I Care a Lot was filmed at the Norfolk County Courthouse and Norfolk County Registry of Deeds.
*In July 2023, the television show Pawn Stars came to the Endicott Estate to film an episode in their series, ''Pawn Stars do America.'' On July 26, Rick Harrison introduced the band playing at the Dedham Junior Women's Club community concert on the Estate lawn.
*Scenes from the 2023 film Finestkind were filmed in Dedham.

''The Friends of Eddie Coyle'' and the Citizen's Bank robbery

The movie The Friends of Eddie Coyle was released on DVD in May 2009. Several key scenes had been shot in Dedham, including a bank robbery.

On June 16, 2009, just a few weeks later, the same bank was robbed in a manner reminiscent of how it was done in the film. Delroy George Henry drove up to the bank minutes before it opened. He then forced his way in the bank and tried to get the staff to open the vault. He also ordered staff to sit on the ground while brandishing a gun, just as was done in the film.

An employee sent a text message to an employee in another branch who then called the Dedham Police Department. A police officer working a detail 100 yards away responded quickly and apprehended Henry.

Athletics

In 2007, the Dedham High School Marauders changed their logo from a Native American to a pirate. In 2015 discussions began about changing the logo again.

Commemorating its 30th year, the James Joyce Ramble in 2013, 2014 and 2015 was the host for the USA Track & Field National Masters 10K Championship. It was canceled in 2020 and 2021 due to COVID-19.

In 2015, Declan Harris won the Massachusetts Interscholastic Athletic Association's state wrestling championship at the 145 pound weight class, and Eric Reyes won at the 160 pound weight class. Reyes had won at 145 pounds in 2014, and at 126 pounds in 2013.

Joey Lenane won the United States Golf Association's 94th annual New England Amateur Golf Championship on July 20, 2023 during his second attempt at the tournament. The victory gave him an automatic invitation to the next U.S. Open and British Open.

Peter Megdal set a world record by racing 47.43 kilometers in one hour on his bicycle in 2023. The Dedham High School boys hockey team competed in the state championships at the Boston Garden on March 16, 2025.

Free Little Libraries

Beginning in 2013, the Dedham Library Innovation Team began installing Little Free Libraries around Dedham. In 2021, a grant from the Dedham Cultural Council enabled a restoration and maintenance plan to be implemented by Sal D'Antonia.

Flag Day Parade

The Flag Day Parade, one of Dedham's most beloved traditions, was nearly cancelled following the 2008 financial crisis, but a fundraising campaign saved it. The 48th annual parade was held on June 14, 2015 with honorary Grand Marshall Bob Aldous.

In 2017, for the 50th anniversary, the parade was moved from the traditional June 14, to Saturday, June 17 to accommodate the fireworks at Memorial Park that were part of the celebration. During the COVID-19 pandemic, the parade was canceled in 2020 and 2021. In its place, an unofficial "rolling rally" of cars was held in its place along the same route.

Other

Churches

An addition was added to the Fellowship Bible Church in 2005. The steeple of the First Church and Parish in Dedham was lit up to celebrate the 250th anniversary of the start of the American Revolutionary War on April 19, 2025.

Holidays

October 21, 2022, the 225th anniversary of the launching of the ''USS Constitution'', was celebrated as Commander John A. Benda Day in Dedham following a vote at Town Meeting and a proclamation from the Select Board. Benda was the second commanding officer of the ''Constitution'' to come from Dedham after Samuel Nicholson.

In honor of the extensive Christmas light display that the Cushman and Civitarese family put on at their house for 50 years, December 3, 2023 was declared to be Rita Mae Cushman Day in Dedham.

Karen Read trial

When Karen Read was tried for the murder of John O'Keefe at the Norfolk County Courthouse in 2024, the case drew a great deal of media attention and protesters who believed Read was innocent and was being framed by the Canton Police Department. The judge in the case, Beverly Cannone, ordered a 200-foot buffer zone to be established around the courthouse to "reduce the risk of exposing witnesses or jurors in this case to such outside influences."

Fires

The owner of the home at 147 Turner Street was able to get out of the house when it caught on fire on December 8, 2024, but his cats were not. The Dedham Fire Department was able to rescue them.

Notes

References

Works cited

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{{DEFAULTSORT:History of Dedham, Massachusetts, 2000-present
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