Heartbreak Hill
Heartbreak Hill is a notorious incline on the Boston Marathon course located in Newton, Massachusetts, approximately 20 miles into the 26.2-mile race. Rising along Commonwealth Avenue between the villages of Newton Centre and Newton Highlands, the hill presents a formidable physical and psychological challenge to runners who have already spent the better part of three hours in competition before reaching its base. The name itself has become among the most recognizable landmarks in American distance running, symbolizing the point at which athletic ambition confronts bodily limitation in one of the world's oldest and most celebrated road races.
History
The origins of the name "Heartbreak Hill" are closely associated with the rivalry between American runners during the mid-twentieth century. The term entered the popular lexicon largely through the story of the 1936 Boston Marathon, when defending champion Johnny Kelley patted fellow competitor Tarzan Brown on the shoulder near the top of the incline, apparently in a gesture of condescension or encouragement. Brown responded by surging past Kelley and pulling away to win the race. The moment was reported by a Boston Globe sportswriter who described Kelley's heart as being "broken" by the reversal. From that point onward, the climb carried its evocative and enduring name.[1]
The Boston Athletic Association (BAA), which organizes the Boston Marathon, has maintained the course through Newton since the early decades of the race. The section known as Heartbreak Hill is actually the last and most punishing of four hills runners encounter during the Newton stretch of the course. While not exceptional in terms of absolute elevation — the hill rises roughly 88 feet over approximately half a mile — its placement at the 20-mile mark makes it disproportionately difficult. By this point in the race, runners are dealing with glycogen depletion, muscle fatigue, and the psychological burden of knowing they still have more than six miles remaining. These factors combine to make the hill feel far more severe than its gradient would suggest to a fresh athlete.[2]
Geography
Heartbreak Hill sits within the city of Newton, one of the more affluent communities in Greater Boston. Newton is bordered by Boston to the east, Brookline to the northeast, and several other communities, and its residential neighborhoods line much of the marathon course. The Commonwealth Avenue corridor, along which the hill climbs, is a broad tree-lined boulevard characteristic of the parkway system developed in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. The road follows the path that marathon runners have used for generations, weaving through residential neighborhoods of substantial Victorian and Colonial Revival homes.
The hill begins near the intersection of Commonwealth Avenue and Walnut Street and crests near the Chestnut Street intersection. While the elevation gain is modest by the standards of trail running or mountain racing, its position on the course means that runners experience it after having already navigated three preceding Newton hills. This sequence of climbs begins around the 16-mile mark, creating a cumulative muscular toll that peaks on Heartbreak Hill itself. After the crest, the course descends toward Cleveland Circle in Brighton and continues eastward through Brookline before entering Boston proper for the final stretch to Boylston Street and the finish line.
Culture
Heartbreak Hill occupies a prominent place in the culture of long-distance running, both locally and internationally. For residents of Newton and the surrounding communities, Patriots' Day — the Massachusetts state holiday on which the Boston Marathon is run each year — transforms Commonwealth Avenue into a corridor of spectators. Local residents set up lawn chairs, host gatherings on their front porches, and line the route to cheer runners. The tradition of spectators offering encouragement specifically at the base and along the length of Heartbreak Hill has become an important element of the race experience, with crowd noise often cited by runners as a significant motivating factor during among the most demanding segments of the course.[3]
The hill has been referenced in countless articles, books, and broadcast segments covering the Boston Marathon. Sports journalists, coaches, and athletes frequently invoke it as a metaphor for adversity encountered near the end of an extended effort — not only in athletic contexts but in broader discussions of perseverance and resilience. For elite runners, reaching the top of Heartbreak Hill with energy remaining is considered a benchmark of sound race strategy and physical preparation. For recreational runners, simply conquering the hill represents a personal milestone. The phrase "hitting the wall" in marathon running is closely associated with the vicinity of Heartbreak Hill, as this is where many runners experience the physiological phenomenon of glycogen depletion, often called "bonking" in athletic parlance.
Newton's identity as a community is meaningfully intertwined with the marathon. Local businesses, schools, and civic organizations acknowledge the race as a defining civic event. The Boston College campus, which sits near the base of Heartbreak Hill along Commonwealth Avenue, is among the most energetically charged spectator points on the course. Students and community members gather there annually in large numbers, contributing to an atmosphere that runners frequently describe as among the most memorable and emotionally intense segments of the race.[4]
Attractions
Although Heartbreak Hill is defined primarily by its role in the Boston Marathon, the surrounding area offers attractions and points of interest that draw visitors and residents beyond race day. The Commonwealth Avenue corridor itself is a designated scenic roadway, and the Newton section provides pleasant walking and cycling opportunities during warmer months. The broad median of Commonwealth Avenue supports tree canopy and pedestrian paths that connect various Newton villages and provide access to neighborhood parks and green spaces.
Boston College, situated directly adjacent to the base of the hill, is one of the major Jesuit universities in the United States and draws a substantial population of students, faculty, and visitors to the area year-round. The campus architecture, much of it built in the Collegiate Gothic style, is a notable visual feature of the neighborhood. Visitors to the area during non-marathon periods will find the campus open for walking and exploration, with various academic and cultural events scheduled throughout the academic year. The presence of a major university contributes to the local economy and the cultural vitality of the surrounding neighborhoods.
The villages of Newton Centre and Newton Highlands, both within close proximity to the hill, provide additional amenities including restaurants, independent shops, and access to the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) Green Line, which runs along a portion of the marathon route and offers transit connections to downtown Boston. These village centers are characteristic of Newton's decentralized community structure, in which several distinct neighborhood hubs each maintain their own commercial and civic character.
See Also
The Boston Marathon and Heartbreak Hill are inseparable from the broader story of Boylston Street, where the race finishes each year in Copley Square. The finish line area draws enormous crowds and is surrounded by significant landmarks including the Boston Public Library, Trinity Church, and the John Hancock Tower. Together, the start in Hopkinton, the Newton hills, and the Boylston Street finish constitute the defining geography of one of the world's great annual sporting events.
Heartbreak Hill's reputation as a defining challenge also connects it to the broader tradition of distance running in Massachusetts and New England. The Commonwealth of Massachusetts has long recognized the Boston Marathon as an integral part of the state's cultural heritage, and Patriots' Day itself is a Massachusetts-specific holiday that underscores the regional identity tied to the race and its landmarks.[5] Other notable points along the marathon course, including Framingham, Wellesley, and the final stretch through Back Bay, each carry their own traditions and lore, but none carries a name as immediately recognizable to runners around the world as Heartbreak Hill.