The Carriage House
for the Arts
30 Gaston St | Boston, MA 02121The first major CHA project is the rehabiliation of the 1893 Joseph Hubbard Carriage House. Located in the historic Gaston-Otisfield area in Roxbury, Boston, the Carriage House was first represented on fire maps in 1890. While Dr. Joseph Hubbard clearly used the space to house the carriage and horses necessary for house calls, later residents included Blue Hill Avenue shopkeepers who used the building for storing extra goods, and a mid-century innovator who replaced the building’s original sliding barn door with the more modern motorized rolling garage door. This seemingly innocuous update, as we now know, destabilized the then approximately 70-year-old structure. Despite that structural modification and the strong roots of an American elm and Ailanthus (aka ‘ghetto palm’), the building still stands.
The Carriage House for the Arts recognizes how the history of the building and its residents are interwoven with the rich history of Roxbury and Boston. The preservation project promotes reflection on this history, recognizing that how we relate to the past catalyzes our imagining possible futures. Once used to store vehicles, the house itself will become a vehicle for creative collaboration, community gathering, and education.
Through a nonprofit coalition, the Hubbard Carriage House and its surrounding garden will be rehabilitated to preserve their rich character while ensuring their future service to the local community as spaces to gather, create, and share art.