An Evening of History and Restoration – Emerald Necklace Conservancy

Emerald Necklace Conservancy guests were transported to the late 19th Century – to the time of Frederick Law Olmstead’s creation of the Emerald Necklace parklands – upon entering the historic Ames-Webster Mansion in the Back Bay. 

On April 2, The Party in the Park Committee presented An Evening of History and Restoration to benefit the Justine Mee Liff Fund Luncheon.

The opulent Ames-Webster Mansion, designed in 1871 by the firm Peabody and Stearns, is prominently located in the Back Bay on the corner of Dartmouth Street and Commonwealth Avenue, connecting the Boston Public Garden to Frederick Law Olmstead’s Emerald Necklace at Charlesgate.

“This was not just a house. It was a place where social, political, and cultural events occurred,” explained architect and designer, Kahil Hamady, who has been restoring the estate for the past seven years with Leslie-jon Vickory, of Hamady Architects.

Attendees explored the rooms of the former private residency of railroad and manufacturing heir, Frederick L. Ames (1835-1893), on an exclusive tour.

“Dartmouth was very important because it was wide and lead to Copley Square,” Hamady described. “They had great events every year with elites from Washington, New York, and Baltimore.”

Hamady guided guests through the Ames-Webster Mansion, rich with embellished, hand-carved woodwork, secret passageways, and grandiose stained-glass windows. Magnificent murals painted by French artist, Jean-Joseph Benjamin-Constant (1845-1902), depict figures from Renaissance Venice and the Late Antique Byzantium periods.

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