Trips Places Foods Stories Newsletters
Loading...
Loading...
Loading...
Loading...

No search results found for
“”

Make sure words are spelled correctly.

Try searching for a travel destination.

Places near me Random place

Popular Destinations

  • Paris
  • London
  • New York
  • Berlin
  • Rome
  • Los Angeles
Trips Places Foods Stories Newsletters
Sign In Join
Places near me Random place
All the United States Massachusetts Boston Potato Shed Memorial
Gastro Obscura

Potato Shed Memorial

Sacks of potatoes, made of cast stone, mark where the iconic potato sheds once stood along the river.

Boston, Massachusetts

Added By
Kerry Wolfe
Email
Been Here
Want to go
Added to list
CAPTION
The monument.   Cara Giaimo
The monument.   Cara Giaimo
The monument.   Cara Giaimo
The monument.   Cara Giaimo
The monument.   Cara Giaimo
The monument is located right off the highway.   Map Data © 2017 Google
  Collector of Experiences / Atlas Obscura User
Atop the monument.   Cara Giaimo
Pedestrian walkway and lights along Millers River between Boston and Cambridge, Massachusetts.   Bostonnow/CC BY-SA 4.0
  Collector of Experiences / Atlas Obscura User
  Collector of Experiences / Atlas Obscura User
  Collector of Experiences / Atlas Obscura User
Four 50-pound burlap potato sacks sculpted of cast stone recall the massive potato sheds that burned here in the 1930s.   Bostonnow/CC BY-SA 4.0
Been Here
Want to go
Added to list

About

A solid stack of sacks of potatoes, made of cast stone, looks as though it’s been wedged within a small, random slice of sidewalk off the side of a Boston Highway. A nearby plaque, featuring the words “potato” and “potatoes” in various sizes scattered across its top half, explains why.

The monument memorializes the potato sheds that once stood along the river. From the mid-19th century up until they were burnt to a crisp in the 1960s, the storage sheds lining the railway lines in the Millers River Basin were stuffed full of potatoes. Over the span of their lifetimes, the sheds were temporary homes for millions of the tasty tubers.

The massive potato sheds rooted throughout the area were beloved fixtures of the Charlestown neighborhood. Locals took weekly trips to stock up on the surplus of starchy spuds stored inside. Sadly, after the sheds burned down in 1962, they were never rebuilt; the plans for their reconstruction never even fully hashed out. Supposedly, the scent of smoky baked potatoes lingered in the air for weeks. 

Millers River, a small estuary which feeds into the Charles River and now runs beneath the I-93 overpass, used to be an important transportation center. Railway lines traced its shores and boats once cruised its waters. 

The majority of Millers River has been clogged with a mash of landfill, the once-thriving waterway now largely converted into land. A public art project, a revamped pedestrian walkway called the Millers River Littoral Way, celebrates the area’s historic past. The potato memorial is part of the project and marks where the storage sheds were once located.

Related Tags

Memorials Sculptures Potatoes Food Art Trails Fires Rivers

Community Contributors

Added By

Kerry Wolfe

Edited By

Collector of Experiences

  • Collector of Experiences

Published

September 21, 2017

Edit this listing

Make an Edit
Add Photos
Sources
  • http://charlestownbridge.com/2011/03/10/millers-river-soon-to-change/
  • http://bostonfirehistory.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/51/2015/09/photofirepotatosheds05101962.pdf
  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Millers_River_(Middlesex)
  • http://culturenow.org/entry&permalink=13179&seo=Millers-River-Littoral-Way_Ross-Miller-Nancy-Seasholes-and-Browne-Rowe--Richardson
  • https://www.cctvcambridge.org/node/4719
Potato Shed Memorial
Millers River Littoral Way
Boston, Massachusetts
United States
42.371945, -71.065751
Get Directions

Nearby Places

World's Largest Air-Insulated Van de Graaff Generator

Boston, Massachusetts

miles away

Bunker Hill Monument

Boston, Massachusetts

miles away

The Last Tenement

Boston, Massachusetts

miles away

Explore the Destination Guide

Photo of Boston

Boston

Massachusetts

Places 127
Stories 32

Nearby Places

World's Largest Air-Insulated Van de Graaff Generator

Boston, Massachusetts

miles away

Bunker Hill Monument

Boston, Massachusetts

miles away

The Last Tenement

Boston, Massachusetts

miles away

Explore the Destination Guide

Photo of Boston

Boston

Massachusetts

Places 127
Stories 32

Related Stories and Lists

10 Places That Will Take You to Potato Paradise

List

By Sam O'Brien

Related Places

  • ‘Dollar a Gallon III,’ Virgil Abloh (2019)

    Miami, Florida

    'Dollar a Gallon III'

    This sculpture in the Miami Design District is one of the few public works of Virgil Abloh, an internationally recognized fashion designer and creative.

  • Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates

    'The Constellation'

    This massive piece of artwork weighs more than 250 tons, and was designed as a tribute to the first president of the United Arab Emirates.

  • The SINCE 9/11 World Trade Center Artwork, with the London Aquatic Centre behind it.

    London, England

    World Trade Center Artwork

    This sculpture, residing in a quiet corner of a London park, honors the victims of 9/11.

  • Tübingen, Germany

    Silcher Monument

    This statue has a painful history, but activists have since recontextualized it as a way to educate visitors about the dangers posed by fascist regimes.

  • The bas-relief.

    Bouziès, France

    Daniel Monnier’s Le Lot

    The beautiful bas-relief lines a sliver of a 19th-century walking path between two charming French villages.

  • Vane Tempest sculpture

    Seaham, England

    Vane Tempest Sculptures

    Public art now takes pride of place on the site of one of County Durham's last deep coal mines.

  • Frank Bruce Sculpture Trail.

    Feshiebridge, Scotland

    Frank Bruce Sculpture Trail

    These skilfully executed, poignant works of art dot a verdant Scottish dell.

  • Spirit path: “Over Mountain.”

    Menlo Park, California

    The Great Spirit Path

    A trail weaves through the verses of a poem illustrated by stone sculptures inspired by Native American pictographs.

Aerial image of Vietnam, displaying the picturesque rice terraces, characterized by their layered, verdant fields.
Atlas Obscura Membership

Become an Atlas Obscura Member


Join our community of curious explorers.

Become a Member

Get Our Email Newsletter

Follow Us

Facebook YouTube TikTok Instagram Pinterest RSS Feed

Get the app

Download the App
Download on the Apple App Store Get it on Google Play
  • All Places
  • Latest Places
  • Most Popular
  • Places to Eat
  • Random
  • Nearby
  • Add a Place
  • Stories
  • Food & Drink
  • Itineraries
  • Lists
  • Video
  • Podcast
  • Newsletters
  • All Trips
  • Family Trip
  • Food & Drink
  • History & Culture
  • Wildlife & Nature
  • FAQ
  • Membership
  • Feedback & Ideas
  • Community Guidelines
  • Product Blog
  • Unique Gifts
  • Work With Us
  • About
  • FAQ
  • Advertise With Us
  • Advertising Guidelines
  • Privacy Policy
  • Cookie Policy
  • Terms of Use
Atlas Obscura

© 2025 Atlas Obscura. All Rights Reserved.