Thirteen Villages & One Goal... Oak Hill
The Newton Community Farm is perhaps the most recognizable feature of Oak Hill. There's something very appropriate about that, because this, the former Angino Family farm, is the last remaining farm in Newton. Oak Hill, the southernmost village of Newton, was long the least developed part of the city, with much of the area still semi-rural through the 1940s.
A Little History
One of the the first settlers to build a homestead in Oak Hill was Robert Murdock. He purchased land from Jonathan Hyde and John Woodward in 1703. After Murdock's death in 1754, the property passed to Captain Jeremiah Wiswall. The Wiswalls were a prominent family in the Massachusetts Bay Colony, dating back to 1635. This tract of land would remain the property of the Wiswall family from 1754 until well into the 20th century. With the exception of the adjoining Bigelow Estate and Esty Farm, most of the land upon which the Oak Hill Park part of Oak Hill was eventually built had, in fact, been the property of the Wiswall family. The Murdock-Wiswall House, one of several houses built by the family, is on the Mt. Ida College campus. |
Notable Places
Oak Hill enjoys more open space than many of Newton's other villages, perhaps because it was developed later. It is bounded by the Charles River, Nahanton Park and the Cutler Park Reservation to the west and southwest and by Brookline's Brook Farm and Hancock Woods to the southeast. The village also contains large open spaces in the form of the Charles River Country Club, Mt. Ida College and Skyline Park. Oak Hill is home to the Leventhal-Sidman Jewish Community Center, Mount Ida College, the Wells Avenue Office Park, Memorial Spaulding School, Oak Hill and Brown Middle Schools, and several private schools, as well as Newton South High School. Housing
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Nevertheless, the dominant feature of the village of Oak Hill is housing. In fact, Oak Hill, the most recent Newton village to come into existence, is the only one that was partially created by professional planners, and the only one that did not grow up naturally around rail or trolley lines, or as a mill village along the Charles River. Oak Hill Park, the only professionally-planned village in Newton, was planned around the automobile.
The Story of Oak Hill Park The great jump in Oak Hill’s population came after World War II with the development of Oak Hill Park, a planned community perhaps inspired by Levittown on Long Island. Within the space of a few years, 315 homes were built and quickly sold to returning servicemen and their families. |
An aerial photograph taken in 1949 shows the completed subdivision, entirely devoid of trees (though bordered by trees and fields), with houses built on small lots facing the three main roads and along its many characteristic “paths.” The paths and streets in Oak Hill Park were named for Newton servicemen lost in the war, and the entire community is, to this day, a memorial to what has been called the "Greatest Generation".
A 1998 article from The Newton Tab marking the fiftieth anniversary of the subdivision describes the many unusual circumstances associated with the creation and development of Oak Hill Park: “In January of 1948, 128 acres of land in Oak Hill—the old Estes and Wiswall farms and a deserted gravel pit—were taken by eminent domain. Meanwhile, City Engineer A. Q. Robinson drew up plot plans for 315 homes, an elementary school and a small shopping area… Mass-production developers were consulted for... the type and quality of the homes which were to be sold at prices veterans could afford. “Building began on May 15, 1948, and exactly six months later the first family moved in… Veterans could buy a basic house for $7,820 with no money down and pay as little as $45 per month on the mortgage… The entire project, except for the school (built in 1950) and shopping area (1954), was completed in about a year.”
According to a Newton Historical Commission guide to the neighborhood: "Shortly after the veterans moved in, they formed the Oak Hill Park Association (OHPA), which dealt with the city and developers, published a monthly newsletter and became the dominant social and political force in the community. The new residents built a playground, planted trees and helped each other build additions to their homes. They put on shows and plays, had block parties and barbecues, and would always be available to help one another. Because of the many children in the area, the Memorial School was built." |
Oak Hill Park's basic houses have housed Newton families for 65 years. They sit comfortably on their lots and have a pleasing quality that seems uniquely American. Their spacious backyards seem perfect for cook-outs and vegetable gardens. Over the years, second floors and small additions have been added to some. Here's a sampling:
Honoring WWII Heroes
One especially noteworthy feature of Oak Hill Park is the system of paths that link neighboring houses. These tree-lined passageways are for walking, running and biking only, and lend a village feeling to what would otherwise be a classic mid-century sub-division. The paths are named after Newton servicemen who perished in WWII. The paths, and all of Oak Hill Park, are a memorial to them. |
Where is the Village Center?
The small shopping area in Oak Hill Park designed by City planners has trouble today competing with larger shopping areas in other village centers and elsewhere. At one time Oak Hill Park had a market, a pharmacy, dry cleaners and a gas station, but today the shopping center has only a pizza parlor and a few other businesses. Oak Hill Park's Memorial School and branch library were closed, although both structures are in use today, as respectively, the Solomon Schechter Day School and the Shuman Center, home of the neighborhood association. |
Village Houses Demolished
However, Oak Hill Park and Oak Hill generally have changed considerably in recent years. The photograph at right shows the same typical Oak Hill house pictured above. To the left, one can see the kind of much larger house that has been built in Oak Hill in recent years. Throughout Oak Hill, modest, affordable and single-level houses that are suitable for downsizing seniors, young professionals starting their careers and young families have been, and are being, demolished at a rapid pace. The lot sizes haven't expanded, but the replacement houses built on the small lots, are often up to three times larger and three times more expensive. Read more here. |
The problem of demolitions of affordable houses and their replacement with oversized houses is even more acute in Oak Hill Park. At one time, the streets of Oak Hill Park were lined with affordable homes like those in the streetscape below, at left, designed to house GIs and their families. Increasingly, the streets of Oak Hill Park are looking like the one pictured below at right.
In some cases, developers have changed the original path names that honor lost soldiers to street addresses that they believe will help them sell a new house. For example an original house with an address that honored Army Pvt. George Shute (1923-1945) was replaced with a new, larger house using a new address on a parallel road that instead honors Marine Corps Private 1st Class William Spiers (1924-1944). This casual renaming of properties by developers is troubling to some longtime residents, who see it as disrespectful of the fallen heroes.
Oak Hill Park's original single-story houses are some of the only, truly affordable houses in Newton, with most selling in the mid-$300,000 range. Their loss to teardowns and McMansions is a devastating loss to our affordable housing stock. For example, a young couple bought the original OHP house pictured below left in 2009 for $314,000. After doing beautiful renovations (below, right), they sold the house for a still-affordable price of $360,000 in 2013. However, because a developer offered a guaranteed quick sale, they accepted his offer. Now this affordable house will be demolished to make way for a house that might cost three times as much, and will be out of reach to people like that young couple.
Challanges Confronting Oak Hill Residents:
Teardowns of Affordable Houses & Construction of Oversized Houses on Small Lots
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Oak Hill and Oak Hill Park have long been attractive neighborhoods for young families seeking starter homes. That status has come under threat in recent years as many of the original houses have been demolished and replaced by much bigger homes well beyond the price range of families starting out, and even of young professionals. And the process appears to be accelerating. Since 2012, 20 houses have been demolished in Oak Hill Park (Ward 8, Precinct 4), and another 20 in Oak Hill proper (Ward 8, Precinct 2).
Nearly all the houses torn down were modest homes built between 1948 and 1963, and where the replacement houses have been completed, each is nearly triple the size of the demolished home and has sold (or may be expected to sell) for at least triple the price of the old house. |