Home of Rogue Boston Politician James Michael Curley Gets a Reprieve

2018 - After sitting dormant for 30 years, the historic Jamaica Plain home of the notorious Boston politician James Michael Curley is set to open to the public on a regular basis.

The 21-room mansion, located at 350 Jamaicaway, was built in 1915 by Curley, who served in elective office as a state representative, a congressman, Mayor of Boston and Governor of Massachusetts beginning in 1902 as a state rep., concluding in 1950 at the end of his 4th term as Boston's mayor.

The house is situated just across the street from Jamaica Pond, the largest standing body of water in the Emerald Necklace park system. The Emerald Necklace Conservancy, which is responsible for maintaining the Emerald Necklace, will use the upstairs of the home as office space.

The mansion is registered as a historical landmark. The City of Boston’s George Robert White Fund purchased the house in 1988, and seldom used it for anything aside from a few community meetings. However, in recent years, Jamaica Plain residents and community leaders have urged the city to make the historic home more accessible to the public. One person pleased by the news the home will be open to visitors is Governor Curley's 90-plus-year-old stepson, Richard Dennis, who reporter Marcus Jones interviewed in 1988 when the home was up for sale.