14 Oct 2026 Historic Boston Inc. acquires 1896 Philips Brooks Memorial Reading Room in Hyde Park
For immediate release.
October 14, 2026
Historic Boston Incorporated has acquired the 1896 Phillips Brooks Memorial Reading Room in Hyde Park, in partnership with the Hyde Park Historical Society and the Southwest Boston Community Development Corporation.
With this acquisition, Historic Boston Inc., the Hyde Park Historical Society, Blue Hill Community Church, and the Southwest Boston Community Development Corporation are working together to chart a new path forward for this 1896 reading room that is so loved by its neighbors. As a collective, we look forward to reactivating this space once again for the community that organized to save it.
Mimi Turchinetz, President of the Hyde Park Historical Society said: “The Hyde Park Historical Society appreciates the commitment of our elected leadership, Historic Boston Inc, the CPA team and all involved in helping return the Brooks Library to a positive, community-serving use. HPHS archives contain many references to Brooks Library, and in collaboration with HBI we look forward to adding another chapter in the +100 year story of this beloved Readville building.”
This move comes on the heels of a considerable period of uncertainty surrounding the reading room’s future in which the building was at risk after falling into disrepair.
“Historic Boston Incorporated is honored to bring the Phillips Brooks Memorial Reading Room back into use for the community. We are grateful for the trust the congregation, Hyde Park Historical Society, and the City of Boston has given us to serve Readville by respecting Mrs. Stetson’s original gift. The ability to work with all parties to secure this legacy is a gift for generations to come” said Dr. Rebecca Kemper, Executive Director of Historic Boston Inc.
The reading room was built adjacent to the 1889 Queen Anne style Blue Hill Evangelical Society Chapel that changed hands to the nondenominational Blue Hill Community Church in 1991. In 1897, Mrs. Ellen Stetson gifted the land and building to the church with the requirement that the small building be kept in perpetuity as “a free and public reading room” in honor of the rector of Trinity Church, Phillips Brooks, who had given one of his final sermons at the chapel next door prior to his death.
For several decades the Brooks Reading Room was operated as a branch of the Boston Public Library (BPL) and used by members of the Readville neighborhood. The BPL stopped operating at the Brooks building in 1956, and the church used the building for other purposes until 2019. After being vacant for several years, the reading room fell into a deteriorated state and was at risk.
Blue Hill Community Church and its congregation were unable to support the church grounds as it once had. In order to sustain the congregation, the governing board originally sought to redevelop the lot with housing. However, neighborhood residents sought to protect its history; through these pursuits they located the original deed from Mrs. Ellen Stetson protecting the structure and limiting its use. Legal questions surrounding the library’s future were resolved when the office of the Attorney General Andrea Campbell confirmed the continuing validity of Mrs. Stetson’s original charitable gift.
With the active support of City Councilor Enrique Pepén, State Representative Rob Consalvo, and State Senator Mike Rush, residents were able to respond to the threat with a positive alternative plan for restoring the library to community use. Historic Boston Incorporated’s Director of Real Estate Development Tony Lopes intervened and achieved mutually agreeable terms of sale in mid-2026. HBI’s acquisition of this property was made possible by a grant from the City of Boston’s Community Preservation Act Committee.
Reverend Johnson Samuel of the Blue Hill Community Church said: “The Phillips Brooks Memorial Reading Room has long been a cherished part of our church and neighborhood for decades. We are thankful to see it enter a new chapter that honors its history and serves future generations. We also thank God for the people who helped facilitate the smooth transition, especially Mr. Tony Lopes and the HBI team. May it continue to be a blessing to the community for years to come.” 
Historic Boston’s first priority is securing the Brooks Reading Room with a new roof to protect it from another damaging winter. In partnering with the Southwest Boston CDC, the Brooks Library Roof Fund is bolstered by its inclusion into the Community Investments Tax Credit Fund (CITC). Through the Southwest CDC, the Brooks Library CITC Fund can provide a 50% tax credit for qualifying donations.
Mary Celeste Brown, Interim Executive Director of the Southwest CDC added: “Southwest Boston CDC is proud to be a partner with Hyde Park residents who have fought for the preservation and restoration of this community space, along with the Hyde Park Historical Society and Historic Boston. It is in keeping with our mission to partner with our neighbors to sustain a thriving economically diverse neighborhood. A thriving community requires and deserves community spaces, and it is the intention of this coalition of partners and Southwest Boston CDC to restore this beautiful, historic building to its communal purpose.”
Consider a gift to support this effort at the Brooks Memorial Reading Room today.
Photos by Flavio D Photography.