Boston Designates Shirley-Eustis Place Landmark, Honoring Enslaved Residents' Hidden History

BOSTON — July 22, 2026 — Boston formally designated Shirley-Eustis Place in Roxbury a historic landmark on August 20, 2021, recognizing the site as home to what officials described as the last remaining freestanding slave quarters in the northeastern United States. Mayor Kim Janey, herself a Roxbury native, signed the proclamation on the 402nd anniversary of the arrival of enslaved Africans in colonial America, pledging Community Preservation Act funding for the site's upkeep and renovation, though no specific dollar figure was announced. The designation extends recognition beyond the 1746-to-1749 colonial mansion to the barn on the property at 4244 Shirley Street where enslaved people are documented to have lived. State Representative Liz Miranda, who grew up one block from the estate, credited the Boston Landmark Study on Shirley Place with surfacing the names of children enslaved on the grounds. Bob Bellinger of the Shirley-Eustis House Association placed the action in regional context, noting comparable sites in Lexington and Revere are undergoing similar reexamination, and argued that accurate historical accounting is essential to "a healthier future."