October 15, 2009

The Lead King of Boston




TheChadwick Mausoleum is a large limestone Gothic Revival tomb designed by William Gibbons Preston (1842-1910) and built on Fountain Avenue facing Lake Hibiscus. Nestled into the sloped hill in the rear, it is an elegant church-like structure with a heavy grilled lead door bearing the name “Chadwick.” The mausoleum exemplifies the picturesque ideal on which Forest Hills has been established, creating an impressive but charming place. Joseph Houghton Chadwick (1827-1902) was president of the Chadwick Lead Works, located on High Street in downtown Boston. A successful businessman, he was a founding trustee of Boston University and served as president and as a trustee of Forest Hills Cemetery. The Chadwick Lead Company still stands in Boston and is an impressive six-story building designed by William Gibbons Preston (1842-1910) and built in 1887. Chadwick’s home, also designed by Preston, was built in 1895 at 20 Cushing Avenue in Dorchester.

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