Sarah and Angelina Grimké received long overdue recognition recently when the newly reconstructed Dana Avenue Bridge in Hyde Park was renamed in their honor.
The Grimké Sisters worked tirelessly for abolition and suffrage all their lives. The sisters lived in a house at the corner of Fairmount Avenue and Highland Street in Hyde Park from 1864 until their deaths, Sarah in 1873 and Angelina in 1879.
The city of Boston is making a concerted effort to honor long-overlooked female historical figures through the Greater Boston Women’s Vote Centennial, a special project led by the Mayor’s Office of Women’s Advancement that commemorates the 100 anniversary of the passage of Women’s suffrage.
The renaming of the bridge at the public dedication ceremony was supported by the Hyde Park Historical Society, Massachusetts Historical Society, Barbara Lee Family Foundation, and attended by elected officials, residents, and several members of the Boston Women’s Heritage Trail.
The Boston Women’s Heritage Trail has also been working with the Mayor’s Office of Women’s Advancement to recognize historical women in the naming of Boston schools.
For a more complete story of the Grimké Bridge renaming, read the Boston Globe article here.