Landscape Information
Located in the hilly Roxbury Highlands neighborhood, this former residential property is now part of the Emmanuel College campus. Perched along a ridge, with views of downtown Boston, the two-story Italianate house (1844) was the residence of newspaper editor and abolitionist William Lloyd Garrison from 1864 until his death in 1879. The 1.65-acre campus faces Highland Park Street but is set back by both distance and elevation. The historic residence is accessed via a driveway and a winding set of stairs. Fronting the campus, along its eastern perimeter, is St. Monica’s Park, a small terraced garden at the base of the ridge that includes a prominent outcrop of Roxbury Puddingstone and provides a wooded buffer between the property and the neighborhood.
The Garrison House was acquired by St. Margaret's Convent in 1904. They built several additional structures on the grounds, including a hospital for chronically ill African American women and children (known as St. Monica’s Home). Emmanuel College purchased the property in 2012 and has constructed a chapel, a library, a conference center, and meeting and office spaces. The original residence and carriage house were designated National Historical Landmarks in 1965, listed in the National Register of Historic Places in 1966, and became contributing properties in the Roxbury Highlands Historic District in 1989.
