Dorchester Bay is the smallest of the three small bays of southern Boston Harbor

Boston Harbor

Boston Harbor is a natural harbor and estuary of Massachusetts Bay, and is located adjacent to the city of Boston, Massachusetts. It is home to the Port of Boston, a major shipping facility in the northeast.-History:...

, part of Massachusetts Bay

Massachusetts Bay

The Massachusetts Bay, also called Mass Bay, is one of the largest bays of the Atlantic Ocean which forms the distinctive shape of the coastline of the U.S. state of Massachusetts. Its waters extend 65 miles into the Atlantic Ocean. Massachusetts Bay includes the Boston Harbor, Dorchester Bay,...

 and forming the south shoreline of the South Boston neighborhood and northeast shoreline of the Dorchester neighborhood of Boston

Boston

Boston is the capital of and largest city in Massachusetts, and is one of the oldest cities in the United States. The largest city in New England, Boston is regarded as the unofficial "Capital of New England" for its economic and cultural impact on the entire New England region. The city proper had...

, as well as the north shore of the city of Quincy

Quincy, Massachusetts

Quincy is a city in Norfolk County, Massachusetts, United States. Its nicknames are "City of Presidents", "City of Legends", and "Birthplace of the American Dream". As a major part of Metropolitan Boston, Quincy is a member of Boston's Inner Core Committee for the Metropolitan Area Planning Council...

 in Massachusetts

Massachusetts

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...

.

The bay is home to Thompson Island

Thompson Island (Massachusetts)

Thompson Island is an island in the Boston Harbor, some 4 miles offshore from downtown Boston, Massachusetts. The island is managed by the Thompson Island Outward Bound Education Center, a non-profit education organization. The island is open to visitors on summer Sundays; otherwise access is by...

, one of the Boston Harbor Islands

Boston Harbor Islands

The Boston Harbor Islands National Recreation Area is a National Recreation Area situated among the islands of Boston Harbor of Boston, Massachusetts. The area is made up of a collection of islands, together with a former island and a peninsula, many of which are open for public recreation and some...

. The Neponset River

Neponset River

The Neponset River is a river in eastern Massachusetts in the United States. The headwaters of the Neponset are at the Neponset Reservoir in Foxborough, near the Gillette Stadium...

 empties into Dorchester Bay between south Dorchester and Squantum Point Park

Squantum Point Park

Squantum Point Park is a park located on the Squantum peninsula of Quincy, Massachusetts. It is located on the site of the former Squantum Naval Air Station. All that remains of the former air station is part of a runway which runs for 2,700 feet....

 in Quincy. The John F. Kennedy Library and Museum is located on the west shore of the bay at the end of the Columbia Point peninsula. Day Boulevard

Day Boulevard

William J. Day Boulevard, or Day Boulevard, is a coastal parkway in Boston, Massachusetts. Beginning at Morrissey Boulevard and Kosciuszko Circle at the northern extent of the Dorchester section of the city, it travels in a gently curving northeasterly direction through South Boston along beaches...

, one of the Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation parkways and part of the Metropolitan Park System of Greater Boston

Metropolitan Park System of Greater Boston

The Metropolitan Park System of Greater Boston is a system of reservations, parks, parkways and roads under the control of the Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation in and around Boston that has been in existence for over a century...

, travels 2.6 miles (4.2 km) along the northern shore of Dorchester Bay, offering panoramic views of the bay and islands.