City of Newton, MA
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Houghton Garden Access
Houghton Garden is just a half mile walk from the Chestnut Hill station on the Green Line D-Train. Houghton Garden has 3 entrance gates on Suffolk Road and one on “Lowell Lane”, the dirt lane that crosses the MBTA Green Line railway tracks, providing easy connectivity to Webster Conservation Area to the south and to the Old Deer Park Conservation Area to the west.
Houghton Garden History & Features
Houghton Garden Pond, like all of Newton, was once occupied and cared for by the Massachusett tribe, descendants of whom still live and make new history in the area.
The 10-acre parcel, listed on the National Register of Historic Places, contains close to a half mile of trails that meander along streams and a pond. In 1906, Mrs. Clement S. Houghton established an English-style “wild garden” for her elegant villa with diverse alpine, conifer, flower, and rock gardens, Pockets of the old formal gardens, stone benches, and bridges remain within the natural woodlands. The Houghtons, members of the Chestnut Hill Garden Club, gave a portion of their estate to augment the Webster Conservation Area. In the 1950s, the Chestnut Hill Neighborhood Association helped protect Houghton Garden from development, and in 1968 the City acquired the land by eminent domain. Over the years restoration efforts have focused on the plantings, the trails, and the pond. One is likely to encounter many species of birds in the woods and around the pond.
Houghton Garden Trail Characteristics
Houghton Garden has significant segments of Generally Accessible Trails accessed from Suffolk Road. Other trails are Natural Trails with more challenging conditions.
Newton’s Generally Accessible Trails are relatively flat, they have a firm, level footbed, and are mostly free of tripping hazards. They are wide enough to accommodate many mobility devices.
Newton’s Natural Trails are unimproved and may have steep, uneven, or rocky/rooty footbeds; elevated plank “bog bridges”, or other obstacles that make the trails challenging to negotiate.