Hunnewell was named for Boston financier and railway owner H. H. Hunnewell.
Rhododendron hunnewellianum (岷江杜鹃), named in honor of H. H. Hunnewell and Walter Hunnewell, is a rhododendron species native to southern Gansu and central and northern Sichuan in China, where it grows at altitudes of 1200–2400 meters.