Located on the last remaining cobblestoned section of Fore Street, it is named for Frederic E. Boothby, a former mayor of Portland.

[1] A water trough in the square is dedicated to Boothby's philanthropic wife, Adelaide.

[2] Now open, but surrounded by sections of granite blocks, the square was formerly enclosed by iron railings.

[4] In 2006, the City of Portland installed a piece of public art, titled "Tracing the Fore", in the square, created by landscape artist Shauna Gillies-Smith.

Gillies-Smith, based in Cambridge, Massachusetts, claimed the City did not want to put the funds towards making the sculpture look acceptable, while Alex Jaegerman, Portland's planning-division director, refuted the claim that money was the issue.