Jamaica Pond covers 68 acres and it is about one and a half miles around. We will walk around the entire circumference today and learn about the history of this lovely body of water. The Pond is more than 50 feet deep and is fed by natural springs. There is about 60 acres of parkland, making this jewel the smallest in the ‘Emerald Necklace’.
When the first Europeans mapped this area they noted it was an area used by the Massachusett. These indigenous people lived within the perimeter of what we know today as Route 128 under a sachem, Kuchamakin (after whom Jamaica Plain is probably named). Kuchamakin made his primary residence at the mouth of the Neponset River. His sagamores (lesser chiefs) oversaw various family groups in the surrounding areas. It’s likely one such group might have made use of the Pond. We have not had any indigenous artifacts found at the Pond, which isn’t surprising based on its use patterns and settlement. But as the Arboretum was created, many artifacts of Massachusett occupation were found (in that lesser disturbed area). Those artifacts were stone implements and are now housed in the collections of the Peabody Museum at Harvard. By the time Jamaica Plain was being settled by Puritans, the Massachusett tribe had been decimated by European diseases. But we know they populated this area for thousands of years before the arrival of the English.
Jamaica Pond is a kettle pond: as the glaciers retreated, depressions in the ground carved out by the glaciers trapped large chunks of ice which then melted to form the ponds. As the only large, natural body of water within the confines of Boston, Jamaica Pond served as the water supply for the city of Boston starting in 1795. Private interests built a pipeline consisting of wooden pine-log pipes made from tree trunks which delivered water from Jamaica Pond to Boston. The Pond served the city until 1848, when declining water quality and diminished capacity forced city planners to create the Cochituate system as a source of water for the City. Nevertheless, Jamaica Pond is still maintained as an emergency reservoir for the city and therefore, no swimming is allowed in summer. Recreational sailing and fishing are allowed and add to the quality of life for residents.
Proceed counter-clockwise around the Pond.