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Project Type

Park

Location

Marblehead, MA

Fort Sewall

Town of Marblehead

This 17th–19th-century military fort, which turned into a popular pleasure ground when it was turned over to the town of Marblehead in 1922, came under ADA requirements during 2019 preservation efforts. Our design team at Crowley Cottrell completed this renovation alongside an architectural preservation group, providing fully accessible routes to the elevated promenade and the face of the redoubt on the lower level. By recreating a gun platform at the upper site’s mid-ground, we were able to achieve a fully accessible walking loop and provide historic interpretation into the sites former military function. The 21st-century use of the site as a beloved park for walking and observing ships entering Marblehead Harbor has been preserved and enhanced through the refurbishment and resetting of Conservation Corps–era benches. Memorials that were previously scattered throughout the site have been incorporated into a stone retaining wall to further root the site in its historic context.

BSLA Merit Award for Design 2024

Birds eye view of a grassy fort surrounded by a rocky cliff on the ocean.

Crowley Cottrell, LLC
7 Liberty Square
Suite 3
Boston, MA 02109

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