Rainsford Island
Encyclopedia
Island
An island or isle is any piece of sub-continental land that is surrounded by water. Very small islands such as emergent land features on atolls can be called islets, cays or keys. An island in a river or lake may be called an eyot , or holm...
in the 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:...
, situated between Long Island
Long Island (Massachusetts)
This article is about the island Long Island, Boston. For other islands called Long Island, see Long Island .Long Island is situated in the middle of Boston Harbor, Massachusetts. The island is part of the City of Boston, and of the Boston Harbor Islands National Recreation Area...
and Peddocks Island
Peddocks Island
Peddocks Island is one of the largest islands in Boston Harbor. Since 1996 it has formed part of the Boston Harbor Islands National Recreation Area. The island is located at 42° 17' 32.6" North longitude and 70° 56' 21.6" West latitude. The area of the island is . The island is managed by the...
. The island is composed of two drumlin
Drumlin
A drumlin, from the Irish word droimnín , first recorded in 1833, is an elongated whale-shaped hill formed by glacial ice acting on underlying unconsolidated till or ground moraine.-Drumlin formation:...
s, reaching an elevation of 49 feet (14.9 m) above sea level
Sea level
Mean sea level is a measure of the average height of the ocean's surface ; used as a standard in reckoning land elevation...
. The shoreline is predominantly rocky with a sandy cove in the south side, and a variety of wildflowers abound. Access is by private boat only. Since 1996 it comprises part of the Boston Harbor Islands National Recreation Area
Boston Harbor Islands National Recreation Area
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...
.
This island was named for one of earliest recorded settlers, Edward Rainsford, nephew of Richard Raynsford
Richard Raynsford
Richard Raynsford SL was an English judge and Chief Justice of the King's Bench.-Career:The second son of Robert Raynsford of Staverton, Northamptonshire, by his first wife, Mary, daughter of Thomas Kirton of Thorpe Mandeville in the same county, he was born in 1605. He matriculated at Exeter...
; he owned the island by 1632.
The island is known to have been used by Native American Indians
Native Americans in the United States
Native Americans in the United States are the indigenous peoples in North America within the boundaries of the present-day continental United States, parts of Alaska, and the island state of Hawaii. They are composed of numerous, distinct tribes, states, and ethnic groups, many of which survive as...
and, during the colonial period, was occupied, farmed and grazed. Between 1737 and 1925 the island has served as a quarantine hospital
Quarantine
Quarantine is compulsory isolation, typically to contain the spread of something considered dangerous, often but not always disease. The word comes from the Italian quarantena, meaning forty-day period....
, unmarked burial ground for the diseased and criminals, almshouse
Almshouse
Almshouses are charitable housing provided to enable people to live in a particular community...
, veterans hospital
Veteran
A veteran is a person who has had long service or experience in a particular occupation or field; " A veteran of ..."...
, reform school
Reform school
A reform school in the United States was a term used to define, often somewhat euphemistically, what was often essentially a penal institution for boys, generally teenagers.-History:...
, and resort
Resort
A resort is a place used for relaxation or recreation, attracting visitors for holidays or vacations. Resorts are places, towns or sometimes commercial establishment operated by a single company....
. However only foundations and a dilapidated seawall still survive from these uses.
Rainsford Island hospital facilities were expanded and improved in the early 19th century. A huge Greek Revival
Greek Revival architecture
The Greek Revival was an architectural movement of the late 18th and early 19th centuries, predominantly in Northern Europe and the United States. A product of Hellenism, it may be looked upon as the last phase in the development of Neoclassical architecture...
-style building, the Stone Hospital or Greek Temple , was built in 1832 by Josiah Rogers. The Stone Hospital may have been designed by his brother, the American architect Isaiah Rogers
Isaiah Rogers
Isaiah Rogers was a US architect who practiced in Mobile, Alabama, Boston, Massachusetts, New York City, and Cincinnati, Ohio.-Background:...
, who was celebrated for his designs of the Boston and New York Merchants' Exchange, the U.S. Treasury Building in Washington, D.C., and the Tremont Hotel in Boston.
External links
- http://www.nps.gov/boha/historyculture/facts-rain.htm