Fort Point Channel and Fort Warren

Fort Point Channel

Hey! It's your friendly neighborhood JPA, Jasmine, here to talk about the amazing first week spent at the Fort Point Channel in the Seaport district. I got to spend the week with a pretty cool group of SHSB staff and from the looks of it we are going to have an amazingly fun and productive summer. We had the chance to get to know each other better, use underwater drones, and make an amazing video about Fort Point. However, while at first glance the Fort Point Channel and it's surroundings are beautiful, we quickly saw the flaws of this beautiful place when we made our way onto the docks below where we realized that not everything was pitch perfect in the channel. We noticed bottles and plastic zip lock bags floating in the water. We had the chance to come across two men in a small boat who were going around the channel collecting as much trash as they could reach and find. They are not the only ones there to help the Harbor, I recall last year with SHSB where we also did something similar. Last year we had the chance to ride on Kayaks with our plastic bags and nets trying to collect trash from the channel as well. we are not the only ones, there are many organizations and people who are trying to keep the harbor clean for this generation and future generations to continue enjoying. Will you be one of those people?

The Legend of the Lady in Black

Fort Warren, 1861

You ever wonder if ghosts really exist? Well soldiers who were once stationed on fort warren on George's island seemed to strongly believe in apparitions. According to legend it is said that in many Court Martialed cases, soldiers claimed to have seen a woman dressed in black who would walk among the beaches and around the fort. She became known as the The Lady in Black... but who was she? In life she was known Mrs. Andrew Lanier, the wife of a confederate soldier being held prisoner at Fort Warren. It is said that Mr. Lanier wrote and sent Mrs. Lanier a letter informing her of his capture. This news did not sit well with Mrs. Lanier and she decided to rescue her husband from this prison. She cut her hair and dressed up as a man (this gives me some serious Mulan vibes), and she then grabbed a gun and pickaxe. She then took a boat and made her way from Hull to George's Island. She made her way off the beach and slid through one of the small slits in the stone walls of the fort then made her way into the cell where her husband and other confederate soldiers were being held. The soldiers then hid Mrs. Lanier and for a few weeks used the pickaxe to dig a hole to the center of the fort in hopes to gain the bigger hand over the guards and escape. However when they were just about to make the last hit to their destination, the hit made a noise so loud that the guards overheard and immediately came to see what the problem was. They brought all the men out of the tunnel and out last came Mrs. Lanier with the pistol. Sadly Mrs. Lanier heroic action didn't go so far because the guard quickly knocked the pistol from her hand. Upon hitting the floor the pistol went off and shot one of the prisoners and killed him. Of course the man shot was none other than Mr. Lanier himself.Mrs. Lanier was then caught and taken to be punished for her actions, her punishment would be death by hanging. Her last request was to be buried in women's clothing, the men could only find some black robes fit for a woman. Ever since her death there have been instances where soldiers claimed to have seen a figure in all black who would not answer their calls and it is said that others heard her speak to them. 
It's very interesting what you can learn about this harbor, its islands, and it's history. This is only one of the many things you can learn about the islands. But it doesn't stop there you can learn about clean-ups, activities, and history.

Sea you next time,
Jasmine

The POINT in cleaning up Fort Point Channel

     From crabs to pigeons, the Fort Point Channel is home to wildlife of all kinds. Located in the Back Bay and Boston Seaport area, it is home to historical events such as the Boston Tea Party and many historical ships. Seaport is also known for its booming art facilities where aspiring artist have displayed their work. The area is filled with fishermen on the docks, runners near the water and docking boats such as the Roseway, a historic wartime ship used in World War II. During my time at Fort Point Channel, I was able to catch crabs, explore with underwater drones, and witness all the wildlife in the area. Being able to see the wildlife opened my awareness of what we are disposing of in the water and how it affects the organisms living there such as jellyfish, crabs, fish, and clams. While working with the drones, I saw the underwater terrain and how it was accompanied by trash of all kinds; plastic bags, bottles, needles, and much more. On the docks, I was able to meet a group of men who were fishing out trash in boats on the water and there were over two trash bins of trash that they only had collected that morning. The reason why there is so much wildlife in the water is because of the efforts of people who actively clean the area, without them, trash would either be eaten by the wildlife, cause injuries or deplete their food resources.
    In past years, the Boston Harbor, nicknamed the Harbor of shame, has made great strides over 30 years after sewage and industrial waste was continually dumped in the waters. Through policy and lawyers advocates, their voices were heard in the courts of the Commonwealth of Massachusettes and in Federal Court. It became a 20 million dollar investment and by 2016 the Boston Harbor was declared "substantially complete" and is now one of the cleanest harbors in the world. Although the Harbor is clean much work can be done, there is still a substantial amount of plastic and waste that can harm the marine wildlife. In addition, Bostons' waters such as the Charles River are in dire need of attention with the toxic algae outbreaks and much more. This experience has opened my eyes to pay closer attention to my surroundings and how my actions such as throwing away a bottle can benefit the organisms that live there.

Sea you later!

Regina

The Roseway on the docks of Seaport.

A spider crab was caught in our trap.

Cruisin' at Fort Point

    This week our team got to learn more about the Fort Point Channel, located in the Seaport District! The Fort Point neighborhood got its name from the old colonial fort that used to stand there. Since then, the entire neighborhood has been developed and transitioned in a variety of ways. Fort Point Channel was the most difficult undertaking of the Central Artery/Tunnel Project, which created the I-90 extension. Since then, the Channel has experienced great change. Cleaner water, parks, public docks, hotels, and restaurants have appeared among the historic bridges, buildings.

    The neighborhood of Fort Point is home to over 300 artists creating art in a wide array of media. This neighborhood is recognized as one of New England’s largest artists’ communities. The historic warehouse buildings of Fort Point are home to sculptors, painters, digital media artists, photographers, designers, performance artists, jewelers, book artists, and more. In addition to being home to many artists, Fort Point is home to many arts organizations and galleries; however, the neighborhood's gentrification has priced out most aspiring artists.

    This week we focused on the importance of keeping our harbor clean! We used crab traps to catch different types of crabs, to see what kinds of wildlife live in the harbor. Jasmine (a member of the team) lifted the trap and we found a huge king crab! We also had the chance to use the Poseidon sea drones! We were able to see all different sorts of sea life, such as crabs, jellyfish, muscles, clams, seaweed, and fish! We also had the chance to talk to someone who was working to clean the harbor. We took a look inside his boat and he had collected two large garbage cans of trash that morning! Week one was quite the adventure, I cannot wait for week two!