Some of the many Mission Hill apartments, home to many college students

Mission Hill is one of Boston’s most academically rich neighborhoods. It is considered a “home away from home” for many college students, as well as, young professionals. Mission Hill is the home of the world renowned Longwood Medical and Academic Area. Mission Hill is landmarked by the beautiful, stone Mission Church along Tremont Street, and the historic New England Baptist Hospital at the top of the hill. The Parker Hill Playground is a beautiful Mission Hill playground which overlooks Boston's scenic panoramic skyline.

It is here where you will find the famous Harvard Medical School, as well as Hospitals like Brigham and Women's, Children’s, Dana Farber Cancer Center, and Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center. While Mission Hill isn’t a mecca of shops and restaurants, there are definitely some real gems, such as the newly opened The Savant Project, which features amazing cuisine, as well as, Flann O'Brien's, the area’s popular watering hole. Also popular are the Mission Bar and Grill and The Squealing Pig. If you are to visit Mission Hill on any given day, you are bound to see college students lugging their books between classes, as well as some of the diverse population of local families that live on the hill.

City skyline from Mission Hill

Mission Hill was a part of the Town of Roxbury (founded 1630). It was originally called Parker Hill for John Parker, the area's first prominent resident. In fact, the library branch on Tremont Street is still referred to as the Parker Hill branch. Originally, the area was divided up between some large landowners who had farms (Louisa May Alcott and VP Al Gore's ancestors were among these early farmers). The breweries along the Stony Brook valley (where today's Orange Line and train tracks run) needed labor and German and Irish immigrants moved onto Mission Hill living in triple-deckers and infilling the former farmland. The Redemptorist Brothers came to minister to these immigrants, building a Mission Church and giving a new name to the area. Their church, the Basilica of Our Lady of Perpetual Help is the most prominent building on Mission Hill.

For public transportation, take Roxbury Crossing Station or Brigham Circle Station.

Tremont Street

Tremont Street Sidewalks: Obviously, keeping them clear is not a priority for residents and municipal authorities.