[Reservoir Lane View 13] Looking north. The house and barn of John Wright are on the right.

Reservoir Lane is one of the earliest roads in Brookline and was originally a section in the trail used by Native Americans to travel from Roxbury to Nonantum Hill in Newton. In 1905, the lane became today’s Reservoir Road, a new section was added on the north end connecting to Middlesex Rd., and only a small length of the lane remains by Middlesex Rd.

In 1892, author Bradford Kingman described the lane as “one of the wildest and most picturesque spots, and the land thereabouts such as anyone who had never explored would hardly suppose could be found within the limits of such a town as Brookline, and so near to Boston. The present lane is narrow, rocky, winding, steep, up hill and down vale, bordered with briars and gay with wild flowers, or attractive with berries in their season.”
[Source: Digital Commonwealth]

[Reservoir Lane View 14] Looking north. The house of Ebenezer Reed is on the far right in the distance. Other houses in the area of the northeast corner of today’s Reservoir Road and Boylston St. can be viewed to its left.

Reservoir Lane is one of the earliest roads in Brookline and was originally a section in the trail used by Native Americans to travel from Roxbury to Nonantum Hill in Newton. In 1905, the lane became today’s Reservoir Road, a new section was added on the north end connecting to Middlesex Rd., and only a small length of the lane remains by Middlesex Rd.

In 1892, author Bradford Kingman described the lane as “one of the wildest and most picturesque spots, and the land thereabouts such as anyone who had never explored would hardly suppose could be found within the limits of such a town as Brookline, and so near to Boston. The present lane is narrow, rocky, winding, steep, up hill and down vale, bordered with briars and gay with wild flowers, or attractive with berries in their season.”
[Source: Digital Commonwealth]

Viewed from the railroad tracks in the vicinity of the Metropolitan Waterworks Museum. 24 Cleveland Rd. is on the left and the tops of houses on Reservoir Rd. can be seen on the right.
[Source: Digital Commonwealth]

Viewed from the railroad tracks in the vicinity of the Metropolitan Waterworks Museum. On the left newly-built houses can be viewed on Cleveland Rd. as it descends to Eliot St. Houses on Reservoir Rd. can be seen on the right.
[Source: Digital Commonwealth]

Looking southeast from the railroad tracks in the vicinity of the Metropolitan Waterworks Museum. From left to right at the base of the hill in the distance is Eliot St.
[Source: Digital Commonwealth]

Looking southward at Eliot St. from the vicinity of the rear of the Metropolitan Waterworks Museum. At the far left is 261 Eliot St. To the right a car exiting Willow Crescent onto Eliot St. Further on the right newly-built houses can be viewed on Cleveland Rd. as it descends to Eliot St.
[Source: Digital Commonwealth]

Looking southwest toward Reservoir Rd. from the vicinity of the rear of the Metropolitan Waterworks Museum. The house in the center is 171 Crafts Rd. Visible in front of it is a waste weir of the Cochituate Aqueduct which ran along Reservoir Rd. to the Brookline Reservoir on Boylston St. The waste weir is still standing. The aqueduct was not used after 1951.
[Source: Digital Commonwealth]

Looking southwest from the old Reservoir Lane at the raised aqueduct that runs along Reservoir Rd. The house is 171 Crafts Rd. Visible in front of it is a waste weir of the Cochituate Aqueduct which ran along Reservoir Rd. to the Brookline Reservoir on Boylston St. The waste weir is still standing. The aqueduct was not used after 1951.
[Source: Digital Commonwealth]

Looking northwest. Looking left to right from mid photo:

• Indistinct views of the rears of 285 and 295 Reservoir Rd.
• 57 Reservoir Lane
• 325 Reservoir Rd. (Newton), the white house next to the pumping station
• 2442 Beacon St., the rear of the pumping station

[Source: Digital Commonwealth]

Looking westerly at the rear of houses on Reservoir Rd.
[Source: Digital Commonwealth]

Looking northeast from Cotswold Rd. 301 Clark Rd. is on the left, #295 on the right, both still standing.
[Source: Digital Commonwealth]

This group, seen here during an outing by the Providence River, met every Sunday in the back room of Warren G. Currier’s drug store in Brookline Village. Most of the men lived close to the store located just north of Davis Ave. on Washington St. This photo appeared on page one of the December 7, 1907 issue of The Brookline Chronicle.

In the back row from left to right:

• Justin Jones, founder and editor of the Boston weekly, the Yankee Blade; he lived on Harrison Place (Kent St.)
• Oliver Cousens, a carpenter whose house and other buildings were on School St.
• Eben Morse, lived in the Village and ran a stable and hackney business there
• Warren G. Currier, owner of the drugstore in Harvard Square where the meetings were held
• Alfred Taylor, a young wool broker who lived in the family house on Harvard St. next to the Baptist Church
• Patrick Dillon, a policeman who lived on Davis Place

In the front row from left to right:

• Joseph Thomas Waterman, a carpenter who lived on Aspinwall Ave. and whose son, Alfred Patterson Waterman, provided the photo to the Chronicle
• Charles Chase, an operator of a delivery service who lived on Washington St. near the library
• Thomas S. Pettingill, sexton of the Baptist Church and town undertaker, who lived on Harvard St. by Aspinwall Ave.
• James H. Boody, a painter who lived in Brookline Village

[Source: Digital Commonwealth]

Looking east from today’s Brookline Hills MBTA stop before the erection of the bridge over the tracks on Cypress St. in late 1891. In the center is the factory building of the E. S. Ritchie Co. which still stands today as part of a 2005 condominium project at 110 Cypress St. On the right is an apartment building likely at 124 Cypress St. followed by the rear of apartment buildings on Boylston St.
[Source: Digital Commonwealth]

In the rear left is the house at 86 Cypress St. at the corner of Davis Ave. In the rear right is the factory building of the E. S. Ritchie Co. On top the bridge barely discernible is the chimney stack of a steam engine being used to mix the cement.
[Source: Digital Commonwealth]

Looking west from #148. The sign for Walnut Path can be seen in the left foreground followed by the Lincoln School buildings. On the right is the brick Boylston School building (no longer standing) followed by 199-201 Boylston St., still standing.
[Source: Brookline Preservation Department]

This is a picture of the house before the regrading of Boylston St. Photographer Richard Hills was a jeweler and watchmaker in Boston who later went into business with his brother. Between 1874 and 1876 he produced some of the most important and iconic photographic records of Brookline Village. The pictures were taken as stereoviews but little is currently known about this work.
[Source: Brookline Public Library]

This is a picture of the house after the regrading of Boylston St. Photographer Richard Hills was a jeweler and watchmaker in Boston who later went into business with his brother. Between 1874 and 1876 he produced some of the most important and iconic photographic records of Brookline Village. The pictures were taken as stereoviews but little is currently known about this work.
[Source: Brookline Public Library]

Looking north from the north side of Boylston St. On the left is 135/137 Boylston St. and squeezed right up next to it is #133. On the far right is a partial view of #115. Behind them the railroad tracks can be glimpsed. The large mansard house in the distance is the rear of 50-52 Davis Avenue, still standing.
[Source: Brookline Public Library]

This is the business of Burton W. Neal Sr., carpenter and builder, just west of the Lincoln School, He was succeeded in the business by his namesake son who became a prominent builder and citizen in Brookline.
[Source: Brookline Public Library]

House of Burton W. Neal Sr., carpenter and builder, just west of the Lincoln School, He was succeeded in the business by his namesake son who became a prominent builder and citizen in Brookline. There remains today a similar stone wall just west of the Lincoln School.

From Photographs of Brookline: taken about 1876 / Richard Hills. Call No.: BROOKLINE/Special (CAGE B.R. 974 H6), Brookline Public Library.
[Source: Brookline Preservation Department]