Editor’s Note: Sebastian Restrepo is a multimedia specialist at MassLive. The “Forgotten Mass.” photo series represents some of the work he captures from his travels across Massachusetts and beyond. It focuses on abandoned places, hidden gems, historical relics and forgotten lands. If you’d like to submit a tip to New England Uncovered, email srestrepo@masslive.com.
HOLYOKE — The wind whipped up a strong stench of urine. Seemingly every porous surface that could hold paint sat layered in graffiti, caricatures or some political statement. Despite the missing or broken steps, and the regret of not having told my loved ones where I’d be, I forged onward through Scott Tower.
In the early 1960s, construction of I-91 bisected Holyoke’s largest park. The highway that was built to help people travel, effectively cut off Scott Tower and split Anniversary Hill Park.
On a cold January afternoon, the tower looked hopeless and abandoned. The narrow circular staircase dotted with narrow slits for openings seemed difficult to climb. While enjoying the view from the top, small, kind sayings are hidden in the tumult — “Anything worth doing can be done.” There was a path that looked graded for wheelchair access, a few benches that looked brand new and a path with fresh mulch.
Restoration efforts at the park began in November of 2023. The City of Holyoke and Kestrel Land Trust in 2022 acquired $1.7 million in funding to continue improvements to Anniversary Hill Park as part of what is a multiyear effort. For now, however, I’ll take solace in the words that overlook the valley: “We got this.”
