My first visit to the Bulfinch Triangle last week raised a lot of questions. However, when I revisit the site this weekend, my goal is to find specific questions that pertain to how the site was shaped by natural processes. In order to achieve this goal, I have been referring to How to Use Your Eyes as preparation for my site visit. Being able to notice evidence of changes wrought by natural processes will require a high attention to detail and the ability to not overlook things that may seem commonplace at first glance.
Since the Bulfinch Triangle used to be the Mill Pond before the land was filled in, my primary objective is to find traces of how water has affected the site over time. It is likely that these traces will be located along the boundaries where the shoreline of the Mill Pond used to lie. For this reason, I will focus my search to Causeway and Merrimac Streets. It may be helpful to bring a map in order to mark down areas where there is a change in elevation. It is possible that these differences in elevation form a pattern that hints towards where the old shoreline used to be.
Additionally, since the Mill Pond used to be wetlands, I suspect that the concentration of water in the soil that the Triangle was built on is significantly different than that of non-landfill areas. It will be useful to document what types of plants are able to grow in and around the Triangle (if any), since the amount of healthy plant life may hint towards the richness of the soil.
When I return to the site later this week, I will then focus on other natural processes that have affected and been affected by the evolution of the Bulfinch Triangle. Specifically, I will consider the wind currents present throughout the site, as well as the site’s exposure to sunlight. The tearing down of the Central Artery has made it possible for sunlight to better permeate through certain areas of the site that were previously obstructed. It will be interesting to observe how the increased exposure to sunlight has affected the plant life along and around the Greenway.