Somerville, MA
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Somerville ( ) is a city located directly to the northwest of
Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...
, and north of
Cambridge Cambridge ( ) is a university city and the county town in Cambridgeshire, England. It is located on the River Cam approximately north of London. As of the 2021 United Kingdom census, the population of Cambridge was 145,700. Cambridge bec ...
, in
Middlesex County, Massachusetts Middlesex County is located in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts, in the United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 1,632,002, making it the most populous county in both Massachusetts and New England and ...
, United States. As of the
2020 United States Census The United States census of 2020 was the twenty-fourth decennial United States census. Census Day, the reference day used for the census, was April 1, 2020. Other than a pilot study during the 2000 census, this was the first U.S. census to of ...
, the city had a total population of 81,045 people. With an area of , the city has a density of , making it the most densely populated municipality in
New England New England is a region comprising six states in the Northeastern United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is bordered by the state of New York to the west and by the Canadian provinces ...
and the 16th most densely populated incorporated municipality in the country. Somerville was established as a town in 1842, when it was separated from Charlestown. In 2006, the city was named the best-run city in Massachusetts by ''
The Boston Globe ''The Boston Globe'' is an American daily newspaper founded and based in Boston, Massachusetts. The newspaper has won a total of 27 Pulitzer Prizes, and has a total circulation of close to 300,000 print and digital subscribers. ''The Boston Glob ...
''. In 1972, 2009, and 2015, the city received the
All-America City Award The All-America City Award is a community recognition program in the United States given by the National Civic League. The award recognizes the work of communities in using inclusive civic engagement to address critical issues and create stronge ...
. It is home to
Tufts University Tufts University is a private research university on the border of Medford and Somerville, Massachusetts. It was founded in 1852 as Tufts College by Christian universalists who sought to provide a nonsectarian institution of higher learning. ...
, which has its campus along the Somerville and Medford border.


History


Early settlement

The territory now comprising the city of Somerville was first settled by Europeans in 1629 as part of Charlestown. In 1629, English surveyor Thomas Graves led a scouting party of 100
Puritans The Puritans were English Protestants in the 16th and 17th centuries who sought to purify the Church of England of Roman Catholic practices, maintaining that the Church of England had not been fully reformed and should become more Protestant. P ...
from the settlement of
Salem Salem may refer to: Places Canada Ontario * Bruce County ** Salem, Arran–Elderslie, Ontario, in the municipality of Arran–Elderslie ** Salem, South Bruce, Ontario, in the municipality of South Bruce * Salem, Dufferin County, Ontario, part ...
to prepare the site for the Great Migration of
Puritans The Puritans were English Protestants in the 16th and 17th centuries who sought to purify the Church of England of Roman Catholic practices, maintaining that the Church of England had not been fully reformed and should become more Protestant. P ...
from
England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...
. Graves was attracted to the narrow Mishawum Peninsula between the
Charles Charles is a masculine given name predominantly found in English language, English and French language, French speaking countries. It is from the French form ''Charles'' of the Proto-Germanic, Proto-Germanic name (in runic alphabet) or ''*k ...
and Mystic rivers, linked to the mainland at the present-day
Sullivan Square Sullivan Square is a traffic circle located at the north end of the Charlestown neighborhood of Boston, Massachusetts. It is named after James Sullivan, an early 19th-century Governor of Massachusetts. Sullivan Square station on the MBTA Orange ...
. The area of earliest settlement was based at City Square on the peninsula, though the territory of Charlestown officially included all of what is now Somerville, as well as Medford, Everett, Malden, Stoneham, Melrose, Woburn,
Burlington Burlington may refer to: Places Canada Geography * Burlington, Newfoundland and Labrador * Burlington, Nova Scotia * Burlington, Ontario, the most populous city with the name "Burlington" * Burlington, Prince Edward Island * Burlington Bay, no ...
, and parts of Arlington and
Cambridge Cambridge ( ) is a university city and the county town in Cambridgeshire, England. It is located on the River Cam approximately north of London. As of the 2021 United Kingdom census, the population of Cambridge was 145,700. Cambridge bec ...
. From that time until 1842, the area of present-day Somerville was referred to as "beyond the Neck" in reference to the thin spit of land, the
Charlestown Neck Charlestown or Charles Town may refer to: Places Australia *Charlestown, New South Wales ** Electoral district of Charlestown, an electoral district in the New South Wales Legislative Assembly including the area * Charlestown, Queensland Ireland ...
, that connected it to the Charlestown Peninsula. The first European settler in Somerville of whom there is any record was John Woolrich, an Indian trader who came from the Charlestown Peninsula in 1630, and settled near what is now Dane Street. Others soon followed Woolrich, locating in the vicinity of present-day
Union Square Union commonly refers to: * Trade union, an organization of workers * Union (set theory), in mathematics, a fundamental operation on sets Union may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Music * Union (band), an American rock group ** ''Un ...
. In 1639 colonists officially acquired the land in what is now Somerville from the
Squaw Sachem of Mistick Squaw Sachem of Mistick (c. 1590-1650 or 1667) was a prominent leader of a Massachusett tribe who deeded large tracts of land in eastern Massachusetts to early colonial settlers. Squaw Sachem was the widow of Nanepashemet, the Sachem of the Pawtuc ...
. The population continued to slowly increase, and by 1775 there were about 500 inhabitants scattered across the area. Otherwise, the area was mostly used as grazing and farmland. It was once known as the "Stinted Pasture" or "Cow Commons", as early settlers of Charlestown had the right to pasture a certain number of cows in the area.
John Winthrop John Winthrop (January 12, 1587/88 – March 26, 1649) was an English Puritan lawyer and one of the leading figures in founding the Massachusetts Bay Colony, the second major settlement in New England following Plymouth Colony. Winthrop led t ...
, the first colonial governor of the
Massachusetts Bay Colony The Massachusetts Bay Colony (1630–1691), more formally the Colony of Massachusetts Bay, was an English settlement on the east coast of North America around the Massachusetts Bay, the northernmost of the several colonies later reorganized as the ...
, was granted of land in the area in 1631. Named for the ten small knolls located on the property, Ten Hills Farm extended from the Cradock Bridge in present-day Medford Square to Convent Hill in
East Somerville East Somerville is a neighborhood in the eastern part of the city of Somerville, Massachusetts, Somerville, Massachusetts. The community stretches east along Broadway from McGrath Highway, Massachusetts Route 28 to Sullivan Square (Boston), Sull ...
. Winthrop lived, planted, and raised cattle on the farm. It is also where he launched the first ship in Massachusetts, the "
Blessing of the Bay ''Blessing of the Bay'' was the second oceangoing, non-fishing vessel built in what is now the United States, preceded only by the ''Virginia'', in 1607. Construction The ''Blessing of the Bay'' was a thirty-ton barque or a pinnace, built largel ...
". Built for trading purposes in the early 1630s, it was soon armed for use as a patrol boat for the New England coast. It is seen as a precursor to the
United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...
. The "
Ten Hills Ten Hills is a neighborhood in the northeastern part of the city of Somerville, Massachusetts. The area is roughly wedge-shaped, about in size, and is bounded by the Mystic River to the north, McGrath Highway to the east, and is largely separat ...
" neighborhood, located in the northeastern part of the city, has retained the name for over 300 years. New research has found that less than a decade after John Winthrop moved to the farm in 1631, there were enslaved Native American
prisoners of war A prisoner of war (POW) is a person who is held Captivity, captive by a belligerent power during or immediately after an armed conflict. The earliest recorded usage of the phrase "prisoner of war" dates back to 1610. Belligerents hold priso ...
on the property. Each successive owner of Ten Hills Farm would depend upon slavery's profits until the 1780s, when Massachusetts abolished the practice. In a short time, the settlers began laying out roads in all directions in search of more land for planting and trade with various Native American tribes in the area. Laid out as early as the mid-1630s, the earliest highway in Somerville was probably what is now Washington Street, and led from present-day Sullivan Square to
Harvard Square Harvard Square is a triangular plaza at the intersection of Massachusetts Avenue, Brattle Street and John F. Kennedy Street near the center of Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. The term "Harvard Square" is also used to delineate the busin ...
. In its earliest days, Washington Street was known as the "Road to Newtowne" (renamed Cambridge in 1638). During the 1700s and early 1800s, Washington Street, together with Somerville Avenue, comprised "Milk Row", a route favored by Middlesex County dairy farmers as the best way to get to the markets of Charlestown and Boston. Laid out in 1636, Broadway was likely the second highway built in the area. Originally called "Menotomie's Road", it ran from the Charlestown Neck to the settlement at Menotomy (present-day Arlington). Initially bordered by farmsteads, Broadway would come into its own as a commercial thoroughfare after horse-drawn trolleys were introduced to the highway in 1858.


Role in the Revolutionary War

Somerville was home to one of the first hostile acts of the
American Revolutionary War The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was a major war of the American Revolution. Widely considered as the war that secured the independence of t ...
. The removal of gunpowder by British soldiers from a powder magazine in 1774, and the massive popular reaction that ensued, are considered to be a turning point in the events leading up to war. First built by settlers for use as a windmill in the early 1700s, the
Old Powder House Powder House Square is a neighborhood and landmark rotary in Somerville, Massachusetts, United States. It is also known locally as Powder House Circle. It is the 6-way intersection of College Avenue, Broadway, Warner Street, and Powder House Bo ...
was sold to the colonial government of Massachusetts for use as a
gunpowder magazine A gunpowder magazine is a magazine (building) designed to store the explosive gunpowder in wooden barrels for safety. Gunpowder, until superseded, was a universal explosive used in the military and for civil engineering: both applications requ ...
in 1747. Located at the intersection of Broadway and College Avenue in present-day
Powder House Square Powder House Square is a neighborhood and landmark rotary in Somerville, Massachusetts, United States. It is also known locally as Powder House Circle. It is the 6-way intersection of College Avenue, Broadway, Warner Street, and Powder House Bo ...
, the Old Powder House held the largest supply of gunpowder in all of Massachusetts. General
Thomas Gage General Thomas Gage (10 March 1718/192 April 1787) was a British Army general officer and colonial official best known for his many years of service in North America, including his role as British commander-in-chief in the early days of the ...
, who had become the military governor of Massachusetts in May 1774, was charged with enforcement of the highly unpopular
Intolerable Acts The Intolerable Acts were a series of punitive laws passed by the British Parliament in 1774 after the Boston Tea Party. The laws aimed to punish Massachusetts colonists for their defiance in the Tea Party protest of the Tea Act, a tax measure ...
, which
British Parliament The Parliament of the United Kingdom is the supreme legislative body of the United Kingdom, the Crown Dependencies and the British Overseas Territories. It meets at the Palace of Westminster, London. It alone possesses legislative supremacy ...
had passed in response to the
Boston Tea Party The Boston Tea Party was an American political and mercantile protest by the Sons of Liberty in Boston, Massachusetts, on December 16, 1773. The target was the Tea Act of May 10, 1773, which allowed the British East India Company to sell tea ...
. Seeking to prevent the outbreak of war, he believed that the best way to accomplish this was by secretly removing military stores from storehouses and arsenals in
New England New England is a region comprising six states in the Northeastern United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is bordered by the state of New York to the west and by the Canadian provinces ...
. Just after dawn on September 1, 1774, a force of roughly 260 British regulars from the 4th Regiment, under the command of Lieutenant Colonel George Maddison, were rowed in secrecy up the
Mystic River The Mystic River is a riverU.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map accessed April 1, 2011 in Massachusetts, in the United States. In Massachusett, means "large estuary," alluding to t ...
from
Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...
to a landing point near Winter Hill. From there they marched about to the Powder House, and after sunrise removed all of the gunpowder. Most of the regulars then returned to Boston the way they had come, but a small contingent marched on to
Cambridge Cambridge ( ) is a university city and the county town in Cambridgeshire, England. It is located on the River Cam approximately north of London. As of the 2021 United Kingdom census, the population of Cambridge was 145,700. Cambridge bec ...
, seizing two field pieces from the
Cambridge Common Cambridge Common is a public park and National Historic Landmark in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. It is located near Harvard Square and borders on several parts of Harvard University. The north end of the park has a large playground. T ...
.
Fischer Fischer is a German occupational surname, meaning fisherman. The name Fischer is the fourth most common German surname. The English version is Fisher. People with the surname A * Abraham Fischer (1850–1913) South African public official * Ad ...
, pp. 44–45
The field pieces and powder were then taken from Boston to the British stronghold on Castle Island, then known as Castle William (renamed Fort Independence in 1779). In response to the raid, amid rumors that blood had been shed, alarm spread through the countryside as far as
Connecticut Connecticut () is the southernmost state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. Its cap ...
and beyond, and
American Patriots Patriots, also known as Revolutionaries, Continentals, Rebels, or American Whigs, were the colonists of the Thirteen Colonies who rejected British rule during the American Revolution, and United States Declaration of Independence, declared the ...
sprang into action, fearing that war was at hand. Thousands of militiamen began streaming toward
Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...
and
Cambridge Cambridge ( ) is a university city and the county town in Cambridgeshire, England. It is located on the River Cam approximately north of London. As of the 2021 United Kingdom census, the population of Cambridge was 145,700. Cambridge bec ...
, and mob action forced
Loyalists Loyalism, in the United Kingdom, its overseas territories and its former colonies, refers to the allegiance to the British crown or the United Kingdom. In North America, the most common usage of the term refers to loyalty to the British Cr ...
and some government officials to flee to the protection of the
British Army The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gurk ...
. This action provided a "dress rehearsal" for the
Battles of Lexington and Concord The Battles of Lexington and Concord were the first military engagements of the American Revolutionary War. The battles were fought on April 19, 1775, in Middlesex County, Province of Massachusetts Bay, within the towns of Lexington, Concord ...
seven months later in the famous "shot heard 'round the world", and inflamed already heated feelings on both sides, spurring actions by both British and American forces to remove powder and cannon to secure locations. After the raid on the Powder House, the colonists took action to conceal arms and munitions of war in
Concord Concord may refer to: Meaning "agreement" * Pact or treaty, frequently between nations (indicating a condition of harmony) * Harmony, in music * Agreement (linguistics), a change in the form of a word depending on grammatical features of other ...
. When General Gage found out, he was resolved to take the powder by force if necessary. The Americans learned that the British intended to start for Concord on April 18, 1775, and couriers
Paul Revere Paul Revere (; December 21, 1734 O.S. (January 1, 1735 N.S.)May 10, 1818) was an American silversmith, engraver, early industrialist, Sons of Liberty member, and Patriot and Founding Father. He is best known for his midnight ride to ale ...
and
William Dawes William Dawes Jr. (April 6, 1745 – February 25, 1799) was one of several men who in April 1775 alerted colonial minutemen in Massachusetts of the approach of British army troops prior to the Battles of Lexington and Concord at the outse ...
set out on their famous ride to warn the farmers and militiamen in between Boston and Concord, including
Sam Adams Samuel Adams ( – October 2, 1803) was an American statesman, political philosopher, and a Founding Father of the United States. He was a politician in colonial Massachusetts, a leader of the movement that became the American Revolution, and ...
and
John Hancock John Hancock ( – October 8, 1793) was an American Founding Father, merchant, statesman, and prominent Patriot of the American Revolution. He served as president of the Second Continental Congress and was the first and third Governor of the ...
. That night, he set out from the North End through Charlestown towards
East Somerville East Somerville is a neighborhood in the eastern part of the city of Somerville, Massachusetts, Somerville, Massachusetts. The community stretches east along Broadway from McGrath Highway, Massachusetts Route 28 to Sullivan Square (Boston), Sull ...
. In Revere's own written account of his ride, he mentions a specific location in Somerville (then part of Charlestown).Focus on: Paul Revere's ride
masshist.org. Accessed November 30, 2022.
The location was the site where the executed body of a local slave known as "Mark", owned by John Codman, was publicly
gibbet A gibbet is any instrument of public execution (including guillotine, decapitation, executioner's block, Impalement, impalement stake, gallows, hanging gallows, or related Scaffold (execution site), scaffold). Gibbeting is the use of a gallows- ...
ed and displayed for several years after his execution. The location is probably near the site of the present day Holiday Inn on Washington Street. Revere wrote "nearly opposite where Mark was hung in chains, I saw two men on Horse back, under a Tree", which he then realized were two British officers stationed on Washington Street. They immediately pursued him, and Revere galloped up Broadway towards Winter Hill and eventually eluded them. His warning gave the militia enough time to prepare for battle, and launch the American Revolution. Shortly after Paul Revere set out on his ride, Lieutenant Colonel
Francis Smith Francis Smith may refer to: Government and politics *Francis Smith (by 1516-1605), member of parliament (MP) for Truro and Stafford *Francis Smith, 2nd Viscount Carrington (c. 1621 – 1701), English peer *Francis Ormand Jonathan Smith (1806–1 ...
and 700 British Army regulars landed near
Lechmere Square Lechmere Square ( ) is located at the intersection of Cambridge Street and First Street in East Cambridge, Massachusetts. It was originally named for the Colonial-era landowner Richard Lechmere, a Loyalist who returned to England at the beginnin ...
. As it was nearly high tide,
East Cambridge East Cambridge is a neighborhood of Cambridge, Massachusetts. Referred to in modern times as Area 1, East Cambridge is bounded by the Charles River and the Charlestown neighborhood of Boston on the east, the Somerville border on the north, Broa ...
was an island and the troops, skirting the marshes, were obliged to wade "thigh deep" to reach Somerville. They probably came through Prospect Street into Washington Street, and through Union Square. Defeated and in retreat, the British army passed again through Somerville en route back to Boston. Upon reaching Union Square, the British marched down Washington Street as far as the base of Prospect Hill, where a skirmish took place. The handful of rebellious locals, having heard of the storied battles at Lexington and Concord earlier that day, caught an exhausted retreating British contingent off guard. As the story goes, 65-year-old minuteman James Miller lost his life in the scuffle while standing his ground against the British. He was shot thirteen times after famously telling a retreating colleague, "I am too old to run." Somerville occupied a conspicuous position during the entire
Siege of Boston The siege of Boston (April 19, 1775 – March 17, 1776) was the opening phase of the American Revolutionary War. New England militiamen prevented the movement by land of the British Army, which was garrisoned in what was then the peninsular town ...
, which lasted nine months, and Prospect Hill became the central position of the Continental Army's chain of emplacements north of Boston. Its height and commanding view of Boston and the harbor had tremendous strategic value and the fortress became known as the "Citadel". Originally occupied by just 400 men, Prospect Hill became a primary encampment for American forces after General
Israel Putnam Israel Putnam (January 7, 1718 – May 29, 1790), popularly known as "Old Put", was an American military officer and landowner who fought with distinction at the Battle of Bunker Hill during the American Revolutionary War (1775–1783). He als ...
's retreat from the
Battle of Bunker Hill The Battle of Bunker Hill was fought on June 17, 1775, during the Siege of Boston in the first stage of the American Revolutionary War. The battle is named after Bunker Hill in Charlestown, Massachusetts, which was peripherally involved in ...
. It is believed that on January 1, 1776, the
Grand Union Flag The "Grand Union Flag" (also known as the "Continental Colours", the "Congress Flag", the "Cambridge Flag", and the "First Navy Ensign") is considered to be the first national flag of the United States of America. Similar to the current U.S. f ...
flew for the first time at the Citadel, the first official raising of an American flag.


Independence, urbanization and rapid growth

With the Revolutionary War over, the residents of Somerville were able once again to devote their energies wholeheartedly to the business of making a living. From the 1780s until Somerville's separation from Charlestown in 1842, material progress was continuous, if a bit slow. As transportation infrastructure gradually transformed the area, new industries sprang up, such as brickmaking, quarrying and dairy farming. Transportation improvements in the early to mid-1800s factored significantly in the growth of a more urban residential form and Somerville's incorporation as a City in 1872. These improvements included the opening of the
Middlesex Canal The Middlesex Canal was a 27-mile (44-kilometer) barge canal connecting the Merrimack River with the port of Boston. When operational it was 30 feet (9.1 m) wide, and 3 feet (0.9 m) deep, with 20 locks, each 80 feet (24 m) long and between 10 and ...
through Somerville in 1803, various turnpikes such as Medford and Beacon streets, built during the 1810s and 1820s, and especially the introduction of rail lines. In 1841, the
Fitchburg Railroad The Fitchburg Railroad is a former railroad company, which built a railroad line across northern Massachusetts, United States, leading to and through the Hoosac Tunnel. The Fitchburg was leased to the Boston and Maine Railroad in 1900. The main li ...
was built between Boston and Fresh Pond in Cambridge, paralleling the route of Somerville Avenue. This led to the establishment of industries along its path. Soon after, in 1843 the Fitchburg Railroad commenced passenger service and enabled residential development along the southern slopes of Prospect and Spring hills. By the early 1840s, the population of present-day Somerville topped 1,000 for the first time. Despite the growth, however, discontent was growing steadily outside the "neck". The area's rural farmers paid taxes to the local government in Charlestown, but received little in return. By 1842, the area had no churches, few schools, no taverns, and suffered from poor and impassable roads. For many years after the Revolution the two parts of Charlestown styled "within" and "without the neck" were nearly equal in population; the former had by this time completely outstripped the latter. With this growth of population and trade came the need of city institutions, and consequently greater expenses were involved. Therefore, the rural part of Charlestown found herself contributing to the paving of the streets, the maintenance of a night watch, to the building of engine houses, and various other improvements from which they derived little benefit. In 1828, a petition was presented to the
Legislature A legislature is an assembly with the authority to make law Law is a set of rules that are created and are enforceable by social or governmental institutions to regulate behavior,Robertson, ''Crimes against humanity'', 90. with its p ...
asking that a part of Charlestown be set off as a separate town, to be known as Warren. This petition was subsequently withdrawn. The desire for a separate township continued to spread, and by 1841, becoming impatient at the neglect of the government to adequately provide for their needs, the inhabitants again agitated a division of the town, and a meeting in reference to the matter was held November 22 in the Prospect Hill school house. A petition was accordingly drawn up and signed by Guy C. Hawkins and 151 others, and a committee deputed to further its passage through the Legislature, then in session. A bill incorporating a new town was signed by the governor on March 3, 1842. The original choice for the city's new name, after breaking away from Charlestown, was Walford, after the first settler of Charlestown, Thomas Walford. However, this name was not adopted by the separation committee. Charles Miller, a member of this committee, proposed the name "Somerville", which was ultimately chosen. It was not derived from any one person's name, and a report commissioned by the Somerville Historical Society found that Somerville was a "purely fanciful name". Before Somerville became a township in 1842 the area was primarily populated by British farmers and brick makers who sold their wares in the markets of Boston, Cambridge and Charlestown. As the markets grew, the population of Somerville increased six-fold between the years of 1842 and 1870 to 14,685. With the sharp influx of immigrants to the Somerville area, industry boomed and brick manufacturing became the predominant trade. Before mechanical presses were invented, Somerville produced 1.3 million bricks a year. Thereafter, production increased rapidly to 5.5 million bricks a year, and the success of the brickyards began to attract numerous other industries. In 1851, American Tubes Works opened, followed by meat processing and packaging plants. Other Somerville factories came to produce steam engines, boilers, household appliances, glass, and iron. Shortly thereafter Somerville incorporated as a city in 1872. The population growth was due in part to improvements in pre-existing transportation lines, as well as a new rail line, the
Lexington and Arlington Railroad Lexington may refer to: Places England * Laxton, Nottinghamshire, formerly Lexington Canada * Lexington, a district in Waterloo, Ontario United States * Lexington, Kentucky, the largest city with this name * Lexington, Massachusetts, the old ...
, introduced through
Davis Square Davis Square is a major intersection in the northwestern section of Somerville, Massachusetts where several streets meet: Holland Street, Dover Street, Day Street, Elm Street, Highland Avenue, and College Avenue. The name is often used to refer ...
in 1870. At its height, Somerville was served by eight passenger rail stations. Somerville's buoyant economy during this period was tied to industries that tended to locate at the periphery of the residential core, near freight rail corridors. By the mid 1870s
meat packing The meat-packing industry (also spelled meatpacking industry or meat packing industry) handles the slaughtering, processing, packaging, and distribution of meat from animals such as cattle, pigs, sheep and other livestock. Poultry is generally no ...
plants were the primary employers and profit centers of the community. The Late Industrial Period (1870–1915) was a time of phenomenal growth for Somerville in all spheres including civic and commercial ventures. Infrastructure such as rail, water lines, telegraph and electricity were established and connected to surrounding towns. The population soared from 15,000 to 90,000. While brickmaking had taken a hold in the area after the railroads first arrived in the 1830s, Somerville's brickyards boomed through 1870. Meatpacking soon displaced brickmaking as the primary industry in the city, dubbed "The Chicago of New England". Additionally, Somerville's location adjacent to Boston and proximity to rail and road transportation made it an ideal location for distribution facilities. It was in this period that Irish immigrants moved to Somerville to work in the brickyards and on the railroad. At the same time, older residents of East Boston and Charlestown moved to Somerville to seek a more bucolic setting than that of more densely populated areas. They also worked to maintain political control over immigrant groups, using slogans such as "Keep Somerville Republican" and establishing a local branch of the anti-Catholic
American Protective Association The American Protective Association (APA) was an American Anti-Catholicism, anti-Catholic secret society established in 1887 by Protestants. The organization was the largest anti-Catholic movement in the United States during the later part of the ...
. Between 1915 and 1930 population growth slowed slightly as Somerville's industries consolidated rather than expanded, and the period's most important enterprises were meat packing, dairy processing, ice and food distribution. In 1920, 73% of meatpacking in Massachusetts occurred in Somerville. Construction of the McGrath Highway in 1925 marked the turning point of Somerville as an industrial city, which accelerated when the
Ford Motor Company Ford Motor Company (commonly known as Ford) is an American multinational automobile manufacturer headquartered in Dearborn, Michigan, United States. It was founded by Henry Ford and incorporated on June 16, 1903. The company sells automobi ...
built a plant in
Assembly Square Assembly Square is a neighborhood in Somerville, Massachusetts. It is located along the west bank of the Mystic River, bordered by Ten Hills and Massachusetts Route 28 to the north and the Charlestown neighborhood of Boston to the south. The dis ...
in 1926. In the years that followed, Somerville would see itself transformed into a major industrial center as automobile assembly surpassed meat packing as Somerville's most important industry. By 1930, 70% of Somerville residents had either been born outside of the United States or had parents who were. The population was then estimated to be 60% Catholic. Although Union Square and Davis Square continued to be the largest commercial areas during the first decades of the 20th century, smaller, less-developed squares grew as well.
Ball Square Ball Square is a neighborhood primarily in Somerville, Massachusetts, but also extending into Medford, at the intersection of Boston Avenue and Broadway, located between Powder House Square and Magoun Square. It is primarily a residential area wit ...
,
Magoun Square Magoun Square is a neighborhood centered on the intersection of Broadway and Medford Streets on the border of Medford and Somerville, Massachusetts. It is located between the neighborhoods of Ball Square and Winter Hill. It is a mixed-use urban ...
and
Teele Square Teele is a surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Arthur Teele (1946–2005), American lawyer and politician * Jack Teele (1930–2017), American football executive and sportswriter * Stanley F. Teele (1906–1967), American academic ...
were developed with one- or two-story masonry commercial buildings, and the public green at
Gilman Square Gilman Square is a neighborhood in the area around Central Hill in Somerville, Massachusetts. Historic Gilman Square is at the junction of Medford, Pearl, and Marshall streets and has been a small commercial center since the mid 19th-century but w ...
was surrounded by multiple four-story commercial buildings. Retail development and banking facilities also spread. During this time of industrial prosperity, continuing through World War II, the city of Somerville reached its population apex at 105,883 residents in 1940. The building boom continued until the 1940s, creating the dense residential fabric the "city of homes" is known for.


Deindustrialization and decline

By mid-century, powerful social and economic forces precipitated a period of industrial and population decline that lasted into the 1980s. The postwar period was characterized by the ascent of the private automobile, which carried significant implications for Somerville. Streetcar lines that had crisscrossed the city since 1890 were systematically ripped out and commuter rail service was discontinued at the city's eight railway stations, one by one. Passenger rail service along the Fitchburg and Lowell lines had been declining for some time, and stations such as the Winter Hill station at
Gilman Square Gilman Square is a neighborhood in the area around Central Hill in Somerville, Massachusetts. Historic Gilman Square is at the junction of Medford, Pearl, and Marshall streets and has been a small commercial center since the mid 19th-century but w ...
were removed as early as the late 1940s. Passenger rail service stopped altogether by 1958. The number of cars on Somerville's streets continued to rise, and road construction projects proliferated. The
Alewife Brook Parkway Alewife Brook Parkway is a short parkway in Cambridge and Somerville, Massachusetts. It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. It begins at Fresh Pond in Cambridge (linking to Fresh Pond Parkway via Concord Avenue), and heads nor ...
,
Mystic Valley Parkway Mystic Valley Parkway is a parkway in Arlington, Medford, Somerville, and Winchester, Massachusetts. It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places, and forms part of Route 16. Route description The parkway runs roughly north–sou ...
and the
Fells Connector Parkways The Fells Connector Parkways are a group of historic parkways in the cities of Malden and Medford, Massachusetts, suburbs north of the city of Boston. The three parkways, The Fellsway, Fellsway West, and Fellsway East serve to provide access fr ...
, originally conceived in the 1890s as a means for city residents to reach the metropolitan parks, evolved into congested commuter routes for suburban drivers. Highway projects were advanced in the wake of the Federal Highway Aid Act (1956), in some instances displacing entire neighborhoods. The Brickbottom neighborhood was razed in 1950 to prepare for a proposed
Inner Belt Expressway The Inner Belt in Boston was a planned six-lane, limited-access highway that would have run through parts of Boston, Brookline, Cambridge, and Somerville. Original plan The highway would have been called Interstate 695 and would have provided ...
, and construction of
Interstate 93 Interstate 93 (I-93) is an Interstate Highway in the New England states of Massachusetts, New Hampshire, and Vermont in the United States. Spanning approximately along a north–south axis, it is one of three primary Interstate Highways ...
resulted in demolition of homes in The States neighborhood during the late 1960s. Industry slowly moved outward to the metropolitan fringes, encouraged by highway access and cheap, undeveloped land. The Ford Motor Plant in
Assembly Square Assembly Square is a neighborhood in Somerville, Massachusetts. It is located along the west bank of the Mystic River, bordered by Ten Hills and Massachusetts Route 28 to the north and the Charlestown neighborhood of Boston to the south. The dis ...
, which had been one of the region's largest employers, closed its doors in 1958 with severe consequences for the local economy. From the late 1950s through the early 1970s, Finast Supermarkets used the building that had earlier housed the Ford assembly plant on Middlesex Avenue, but in 1976 it too closed its doors. By 1976, Assembly Square was becoming a ghost town: Finast Stores, the
Boston and Maine Railroad The Boston and Maine Railroad was a U.S. Class I railroad in northern New England. Originally chartered in 1835, it became part of what was the Pan Am Railways network in 1983 (most of which was purchased by CSX in 2022). At the end of 1970, B ...
, and Ford Motor Company, which had each paid the city over $1 million in annual taxes, were gone. By the late 1970s, Somerville was losing population, revenue and jobs. Somerville also has a history of racial tension. It only hired its first black police officer, a person named Francis Moore, in 1974. Moore subsequently won a suit charging that the police department was "blatantly discriminatory" against him, including an episode in which he was told to patrol the East Somerville neighborhood of Glen Park at night without his issued
firearm A firearm is any type of gun designed to be readily carried and used by an individual. The term is legally defined further in different countries (see Legal definitions). The first firearms originated in 10th-century China, when bamboo tubes ...
, night stick, Mace, or communication devices. Moore's name had been written on a barrel in the neighborhood and used for target practice by local youth.


Contemporary revitalization

In the last years of the 20th century, the situation in Somerville stabilized and growth returned—first to West Somerville, and then the rest of the city. Almost thirty years after passenger rail service to Somerville was halted, the Red Line Northwest Extension reached
Davis Square Davis Square is a major intersection in the northwestern section of Somerville, Massachusetts where several streets meet: Holland Street, Dover Street, Day Street, Elm Street, Highland Avenue, and College Avenue. The name is often used to refer ...
in 1984. The city and community used the creation of the new station as a catalyst for revitalizing the faded square, promoting new commercial development and sponsoring other physical and infrastructural improvements. However, when the new transit station opened, business around Davis Square did not immediately thrive. The number of retail stores in the area declined from 68 in 1977 to 56 in 1987. However many non-retail uses, such as beauty salons and real estate offices, had already begun to fill the empty retail spaces. With the Boston area's emergence from its long recession, the area truly began to revive. Clearly, the community's vision of a rebirth of commercial and retail activity has, in the past few years, been fully realized. All benefit from their proximity to the MBTA station, with connections to Cambridge and Boston. Retail vacancy rates around the square were close to zero as of 2013. The telecommunication and biotechnology booms of the mid-to-late 1990s significantly contributed to Somerville's revitalization. As with the housing boom a century earlier, the sudden increase in the number of jobs available in the cities of Somerville, Boston, and particularly Cambridge—as well in as the other communities immediately surrounding Somerville—led to a new surge in the demand for housing. Additionally, the end of
rent control Rent regulation is a system of laws, administered by a court or a public authority, which aims to ensure the affordability of housing and tenancies on the rental market for dwellings. Generally, a system of rent regulation involves: *Price cont ...
in Cambridge coincided with the economic recovery in 1995, increasing demand for Somerville's affordable housing options. The city also had a very high car theft rate, once being the car theft capital of the country, and its Assembly Square area was especially infamous for this. However, after the
gentrification Gentrification is the process of changing the character of a neighborhood through the influx of more Wealth, affluent residents and businesses. It is a common and controversial topic in urban politics and urban planning, planning. Gentrification ...
period the city went through in the 1990s, and an influx of artists to the area, this name has mostly faded from use and the city has instead gained a reputation for its active arts community and effective government, including being named the best-run city in Massachusetts in 2006. Nowadays lobbying by grassroots organizations is attempting to revive and preserve Somerville's "small-town" neighborhood environments by supporting local business, public transit and gardens.


Geography

According to the
United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau (USCB), officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the U.S. Federal Statistical System, responsible for producing data about the American people and economy. The Census Bureau is part of the ...
, Somerville has a total area of , of which is land and , or 2.61%, is water. Somerville is bordered by the cities of
Cambridge Cambridge ( ) is a university city and the county town in Cambridgeshire, England. It is located on the River Cam approximately north of London. As of the 2021 United Kingdom census, the population of Cambridge was 145,700. Cambridge bec ...
, Medford, Everett, Arlington and the
Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...
neighborhood of Charlestown. It is located on the west bank of the
Mystic River The Mystic River is a riverU.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map accessed April 1, 2011 in Massachusetts, in the United States. In Massachusett, means "large estuary," alluding to t ...
. Millennia ago, glaciation left a series of
drumlins A drumlin, from the Irish word ''droimnín'' ("littlest ridge"), first recorded in 1833, in the classical sense is an elongated hill in the shape of an inverted spoon or half-buried egg formed by glacial ice acting on underlying unconsolidated ...
running west to east across the landscape of what would become Somerville. These ridges would later become known as the "Seven Hills" of Somerville (like many other cities claiming to be built on seven hills, following the
seven hills of Rome The seven hills of Rome ( la, Septem colles/montes Romae, it, Sette colli di Roma ) east of the river Tiber form the geographical heart of Rome, within the walls of the city. Hills The seven hills are: * Aventine Hill (Latin: ''Collis Aventi ...
): # Central Hill # Clarendon Hill # Cobble Hill # Ploughed Hill (or Mount Benedict) # Prospect Hill (or Mount Pisgah) # Spring Hill # Winter Hill These hills rise from the
floodplain A floodplain or flood plain or bottomlands is an area of land adjacent to a river which stretches from the banks of its channel to the base of the enclosing valley walls, and which experiences flooding during periods of high discharge.Goudi ...
of the Mystic River, and generally run west to east, providing for beautiful vistas of Boston to the south and Medford/Everett to the north. Physical boundaries are also defined by prominent waterways: the Mystic River to the north, its tributary
Alewife Brook Alewife Brook Reservation is a Massachusetts state park and urban wild located in Cambridge, Arlington, and Somerville. The park is managed by the state Department of Conservation and Recreation and was established in 1900. It is named for Alewi ...
to the west, and the
Miller's River Millers River (frequently written as Miller's River) was a river in Middlesex County, Massachusetts. It has since mostly been obscured by landfill and "made land" (land created by filling of waterways). The small remaining estuary is a remnant o ...
to the southeast. Land in early Somerville was used primarily as grazing commons and small farms. After the proliferation of the railroads in the area during the mid-1800s, industrialization transformed the landscape. In the 1800s, the Millers River was used as a sewer and dumping ground for local industry and would be ordered filled by the Commonwealth before the end of the century, for health reasons. As a result of landfill and the elimination of former Cobble Hill, the Millers River marsh was turned into
railyard A rail yard, railway yard, railroad yard (US) or simply yard, is a series of tracks in a rail network for storing, sorting, or loading and unloading rail vehicles and locomotives. Yards have many tracks in parallel for keeping rolling stock or ...
s,
slaughterhouse A slaughterhouse, also called abattoir (), is a facility where animals are slaughtered to provide food. Slaughterhouses supply meat, which then becomes the responsibility of a packaging facility. Slaughterhouses that produce meat that is no ...
s and other large-scale land uses.


Squares and neighborhoods

Somerville's commercial property is not concentrated in a recognized downtown
central business district A central business district (CBD) is the commercial and business centre of a city. It contains commercial space and offices, and in larger cities will often be described as a financial district. Geographically, it often coincides with the "city ...
but instead is spread over many different nodes or corridors of business activity. The difference in character ranges from the vibrant nightlife, live music and theaters of
Davis Square Davis Square is a major intersection in the northwestern section of Somerville, Massachusetts where several streets meet: Holland Street, Dover Street, Day Street, Elm Street, Highland Avenue, and College Avenue. The name is often used to refer ...
to the large scale retail and highway access of
Assembly Square Assembly Square is a neighborhood in Somerville, Massachusetts. It is located along the west bank of the Mystic River, bordered by Ten Hills and Massachusetts Route 28 to the north and the Charlestown neighborhood of Boston to the south. The dis ...
. This spatial allocation is directly related to the early influence of rail and streetcar systems which caused economic activity to occur at stops. The other key factor in the creation of commercial squares is the area's topography. The numerous hills making up Somerville's landscape determined where road networks would allow neighborhood commercial development. Somerville has a number of squares that are centers for business and entertainment, as well as a number of other neighborhoods: *
Assembly Square Assembly Square is a neighborhood in Somerville, Massachusetts. It is located along the west bank of the Mystic River, bordered by Ten Hills and Massachusetts Route 28 to the north and the Charlestown neighborhood of Boston to the south. The dis ...
*
Ball Square Ball Square is a neighborhood primarily in Somerville, Massachusetts, but also extending into Medford, at the intersection of Boston Avenue and Broadway, located between Powder House Square and Magoun Square. It is primarily a residential area wit ...
* Brickbottom (north of
McGrath Highway Route 28 is a nominally south–north state highway in the U.S. state of Massachusetts, running from the town of Eastham via Boston to the New Hampshire state line in Methuen. Following the route from its nominally southern end, Route 28 ...
, south of Inner Belt District) * Clarendon Hill (near Broadway and Arlington border) *
Davis Square Davis Square is a major intersection in the northwestern section of Somerville, Massachusetts where several streets meet: Holland Street, Dover Street, Day Street, Elm Street, Highland Avenue, and College Avenue. The name is often used to refer ...
(considered West Somerville) * Duck Village (north of Beacon Street, just west of Union Square) *
East Somerville East Somerville is a neighborhood in the eastern part of the city of Somerville, Massachusetts, Somerville, Massachusetts. The community stretches east along Broadway from McGrath Highway, Massachusetts Route 28 to Sullivan Square (Boston), Sull ...
(East of McGrath Highway, between Washington and Broadway Streets) *
Gilman Square Gilman Square is a neighborhood in the area around Central Hill in Somerville, Massachusetts. Historic Gilman Square is at the junction of Medford, Pearl, and Marshall streets and has been a small commercial center since the mid 19th-century but w ...
(at the junction of Medford Street, Pearl Street, and Marshall Street) *
Inner Belt District The Inner Belt District is a industrial district located in the southeastern portion of Somerville, Massachusetts. Along with nearby Brickbottom, the Inner Belt is a historically industrial zone of Somerville, with factories, warehouses, distri ...
*
Magoun Square Magoun Square is a neighborhood centered on the intersection of Broadway and Medford Streets on the border of Medford and Somerville, Massachusetts. It is located between the neighborhoods of Ball Square and Winter Hill. It is a mixed-use urban ...
* Nunnery Grounds (Mount Benedict) *
Powder House Square Powder House Square is a neighborhood and landmark rotary in Somerville, Massachusetts, United States. It is also known locally as Powder House Circle. It is the 6-way intersection of College Avenue, Broadway, Warner Street, and Powder House Bo ...
* Prospect Hill (part of Union Square) * Spring Hill * The States (streets named after U.S. states, between Broadway in East Somerville and I-93 near Assembly Square) *
Teele Square Teele is a surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Arthur Teele (1946–2005), American lawyer and politician * Jack Teele (1930–2017), American football executive and sportswriter * Stanley F. Teele (1906–1967), American academic ...
*
Ten Hills Ten Hills is a neighborhood in the northeastern part of the city of Somerville, Massachusetts. The area is roughly wedge-shaped, about in size, and is bounded by the Mystic River to the north, McGrath Highway to the east, and is largely separat ...
*
Tufts Tufts University is a private research university on the border of Medford and Somerville, Massachusetts. It was founded in 1852 as Tufts College by Christian universalists who sought to provide a nonsectarian institution of higher learning. ...
*
Union Square Union commonly refers to: * Trade union, an organization of workers * Union (set theory), in mathematics, a fundamental operation on sets Union may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Music * Union (band), an American rock group ** ''Un ...
* Wilson Square (Elm Street and Somerville Avenue), known as Oak Square before 1920 * Winter Hill
Sullivan Square Sullivan Square is a traffic circle located at the north end of the Charlestown neighborhood of Boston, Massachusetts. It is named after James Sullivan, an early 19th-century Governor of Massachusetts. Sullivan Square station on the MBTA Orange ...
, in the Charlestown neighborhood of Boston, is just over the border from East Somerville;
Inman Square Inman Square is a neighborhood and historic district in Cambridge, Massachusetts. It lies north of Central Square, at the junction of Cambridge, Hampshire, and Inman Streets near the Cambridge– Somerville border. Location Like many squar ...
and
Lechmere Square Lechmere Square ( ) is located at the intersection of Cambridge Street and First Street in East Cambridge, Massachusetts. It was originally named for the Colonial-era landowner Richard Lechmere, a Loyalist who returned to England at the beginnin ...
, both in Cambridge, are also just outside Somerville. Porter Square is in both Somerville and Cambridge.


Demographics

Somerville has experienced dramatic growth since the Red Line of Boston's
MBTA The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (abbreviated MBTA and known colloquially as "the T") is the public agency responsible for operating most public transportation services in Greater Boston, Massachusetts. The MBTA transit network in ...
subway system was extended through Somerville in 1985, especially in the area between Harvard and Tufts. This was especially accelerated by the
dot-com bubble The dot-com bubble (dot-com boom, tech bubble, or the Internet bubble) was a stock market bubble in the late 1990s, a period of massive growth in the use and adoption of the Internet. Between 1995 and its peak in March 2000, the Nasdaq Compo ...
of the late 90s, rising incomes, and concomitant rises in demand for urban housing. Tensions between long-time residents and recent arrivals exist, with many of the former accusing the latter of ignoring problems such as drugs and gang violence. Incidents such as anti-"
yuppie Yuppie, short for "young urban professional" or "young upwardly-mobile professional", is a term coined in the early 1980s for a young professional person working in a city. The term is first attested in 1980, when it was used as a fairly neu ...
"
graffiti Graffiti (plural; singular ''graffiti'' or ''graffito'', the latter rarely used except in archeology) is art that is written, painted or drawn on a wall or other surface, usually without permission and within public view. Graffiti ranges from s ...
, appearing around town in 2005, highlighting this rift. The economic clash between several areas of the city of Somerville and its neighboring cities of Boston, and in particular Cambridge, has created an underlying tension between residents that has persisted for multiple generations. Due to Somerville's proximity to various institutions of
higher education Higher education is tertiary education leading to award of an academic degree. Higher education, also called post-secondary education, third-level or tertiary education, is an optional final stage of formal learning that occurs after completi ...
, the city has a constant influx of college students and young professionals, who reside in sections near
Cambridge Cambridge ( ) is a university city and the county town in Cambridgeshire, England. It is located on the River Cam approximately north of London. As of the 2021 United Kingdom census, the population of Cambridge was 145,700. Cambridge bec ...
where
Harvard University Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of higher le ...
,
Lesley University Lesley University is a private university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. It is accredited by the New England Commission of Higher Education. As of 2018-19 Lesley University enrolled 6,593 students (2,707 undergraduate and 3,886 graduate). History ...
, and the
Massachusetts Institute of Technology The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) is a private land-grant research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Established in 1861, MIT has played a key role in the development of modern technology and science, and is one of the ...
are located and near
Tufts University Tufts University is a private research university on the border of Medford and Somerville, Massachusetts. It was founded in 1852 as Tufts College by Christian universalists who sought to provide a nonsectarian institution of higher learning. ...
, which straddles the Somerville-Medford city line. The city is inhabited by
blue collar A blue-collar worker is a working class person who performs manual labor. Blue-collar work may involve skilled or unskilled labor. The type of work may involving manufacturing, warehousing, mining, excavation, electricity generation and powe ...
Irish American , image = Irish ancestry in the USA 2018; Where Irish eyes are Smiling.png , image_caption = Irish Americans, % of population by state , caption = Notable Irish Americans , population = 36,115,472 (10.9%) alone ...
,
Italian American Italian Americans ( it, italoamericani or ''italo-americani'', ) are Americans who have full or partial Italian ancestry. The largest concentrations of Italian Americans are in the urban Northeast and industrial Midwestern metropolitan areas, ...
,
Greek American Greek Americans ( el, Ελληνοαμερικανοί ''Ellinoamerikanoí'' ''Ellinoamerikánoi'' ) are Americans of full or partial Greek ancestry. The lowest estimate is that 1.2 million Americans are of Greek descent while the highest es ...
, and
Portuguese American Portuguese Americans ( pt, português-americanos), also known as Luso-Americans (''luso-americanos''), are citizens and residents of the United States who are connected to the country of Portugal by birth, ancestry, or citizenship. Americans and ...
families, who are spread throughout the city. In November 1997, the ''
Utne Reader ''Utne Reader'' (also known as ''Utne'') ( ) is a digital digest that collects and reprints articles on politics, culture, and the environment, generally from alternative media sources including journals, newsletters, weeklies, zines, music, and ...
'' named
Davis Square Davis Square is a major intersection in the northwestern section of Somerville, Massachusetts where several streets meet: Holland Street, Dover Street, Day Street, Elm Street, Highland Avenue, and College Avenue. The name is often used to refer ...
in Somerville one of the 15 hippest places to live in the U.S. Somerville is home to a thriving arts community and boasts the second highest number of artists per capita in America.


Statistics

As of the 2010 census, there were 75,754 people, 33,720 households, and 14,673 families residing in the city. The
population density Population density (in agriculture: standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geographical term.Matt RosenberPopul ...
was . There were 32,105 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 73.92%
White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully reflect and scatter all the visible wavelengths of light. White on ...
, 6.8%
African American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...
, 0.3% Native American, 8.7%
Asian Asian may refer to: * Items from or related to the continent of Asia: ** Asian people, people in or descending from Asia ** Asian culture, the culture of the people from Asia ** Asian cuisine, food based on the style of food of the people from Asi ...
(2.7%
Chinese Chinese can refer to: * Something related to China * Chinese people, people of Chinese nationality, citizenship, and/or ethnicity **''Zhonghua minzu'', the supra-ethnic concept of the Chinese nation ** List of ethnic groups in China, people of va ...
, 2.3%
Indian Indian or Indians may refer to: Peoples South Asia * Indian people, people of Indian nationality, or people who have an Indian ancestor ** Non-resident Indian, a citizen of India who has temporarily emigrated to another country * South Asia ...
, 1.0% Nepalese, 0.6%
Korean Korean may refer to: People and culture * Koreans, ethnic group originating in the Korean Peninsula * Korean cuisine * Korean culture * Korean language **Korean alphabet, known as Hangul or Chosŏn'gŭl **Korean dialects and the Jeju language ** ...
), 0.06%
Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the list of islands in the Pacific Ocean, Pacific Islands. As an ethnic group, ethnic/race (human categorization), racial term, it is used to describe the original p ...
, 6.67% from
other races Other often refers to: * Other (philosophy), a concept in psychology and philosophy Other or The Other may also refer to: Film and television * ''The Other'' (1913 film), a German silent film directed by Max Mack * ''The Other'' (1930 film), a ...
, and 3.6% were
multiracial Mixed race people are people of more than one race or ethnicity. A variety of terms have been used both historically and presently for mixed race people in a variety of contexts, including ''multiethnic'', ''polyethnic'', occasionally ''bi-ethn ...
.
Hispanic The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or Hispanidad. The term commonly applies to countries with a cultural and historical link to Spain and to Vic ...
or
Latino Latino or Latinos most often refers to: * Latino (demonym), a term used in the United States for people with cultural ties to Latin America * Hispanic and Latino Americans in the United States * The people or cultures of Latin America; ** Latin A ...
of any race were 10.6% of the population (4.2%
Salvadoran Salvadorans (Spanish: ''Salvadoreños''), also known as Salvadorians (alternate spelling: Salvadoreans), are citizens of El Salvador, a country in Central America. Most Salvadorans live in El Salvador, although there is also a significant Salvado ...
, 1.2% Puerto Rican, 1.0%
Mexican Mexican may refer to: Mexico and its culture *Being related to, from, or connected to the country of Mexico, in North America ** People *** Mexicans, inhabitants of the country Mexico and their descendants *** Mexica, ancient indigenous people ...
, 0.5% Guatemalan). The city regularly provides translation services and alerts into
Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries **Spanish cuisine Other places * Spanish, Ontario, Cana ...
,
Portuguese Portuguese may refer to: * anything of, from, or related to the country and nation of Portugal ** Portuguese cuisine, traditional foods ** Portuguese language, a Romance language *** Portuguese dialects, variants of the Portuguese language ** Portu ...
,
Haitian Creole Haitian Creole (; ht, kreyòl ayisyen, links=no, ; french: créole haïtien, links=no, ), commonly referred to as simply ''Creole'', or ''Kreyòl'' in the Creole language, is a French-based creole language spoken by 10–12million people wor ...
, and Nepali. There were 31,555 households, out of which 18.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 32.2% were
married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognized union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children, and between t ...
living together, 10.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 53.5% were non-families. 31% of all households were made up of individuals, and 8.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.38 and the average family size was 3.06. The population was spread out, with 14.8% under the age of 18, 15.9% from 18 to 24, 42.6% from 25 to 44, 16.2% from 45 to 64, and 10.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 31 years. For every 100 females, there were 94.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 93.2 males. The median income for a household in the city was $46,315, and the median income for a family was $51,243. Males had a median income of $36,333 versus $31,418 for females. The
per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or total income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. It is calculated by dividing the area's total income by its total population. Per capita i ...
for the city was $23,628. About 8.4% of families and 12.5% of the population were below the
poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for t ...
, including 14.3% of those under age 18 and 13.6% of those age 65 or over.


Economy

Companies based in Somerville include Gentle Giant Moving Company and
Candlewick Press Candlewick Press, established in 1992 and located in Somerville, Massachusetts, is part of the Walker Books group. The logo depicting a bear carrying a candle is based on Walker Books's original logo. Sebastian Walker launched Walker Books from ...
.


Top employers

According to Somerville's 2013 Comprehensive Annual Financial Report, the top employers in the city are:


Arts and culture

Somerville's industrial past left behind many legacies, including the invention of
Marshmallow Fluff Marshmallow creme (also called marshmallow fluff, marshmallow stuff, marshmallow spread, or marshmallow paste) is a marshmallow confectionery spread similar in flavor, but not texture, to regular solid marshmallow. One brand of marshmallow crem ...
by
Archibald Query Archibald Query (1873–1964) was a Canadian-born American confectioner, who invented Marshmallow Fluff, a special formula of marshmallow cream, in 1917. Biography Query developed the recipe in his kitchen, initially selling his marshmallow flu ...
. In 1914, the city became the home of the original Economy Grocery Store, which later grew into the
Stop & Shop The Stop & Shop Supermarket Company, known as Stop & Shop, is a regional chain of supermarkets located in the northeastern United States. From its beginnings in 1892 as a small grocery store, it has grown to include 406 stores chain-wide. Sto ...
grocery chain. Two related food service chains,
Steve's Ice Cream Steve's Ice Cream was an ice cream brand which began as an ice-cream parlor chain owned by Steve Herrell. He opened his first establishment at 191 Elm Street in Somerville, Massachusetts in 1973. Known as the Original Steve's Ice Cream, the busin ...
and
Bertucci's Bertucci's is an American chain of restaurants offering pizza and Italian food. It also offers delivery (from some stores), take-out and private dining. Bertucci's was founded by Joey Crugnale in Davis Square, Somerville, Massachusetts, in 1981 ...
, sprung from adjacent lots in
Davis Square Davis Square is a major intersection in the northwestern section of Somerville, Massachusetts where several streets meet: Holland Street, Dover Street, Day Street, Elm Street, Highland Avenue, and College Avenue. The name is often used to refer ...
.
Davis Square Davis Square is a major intersection in the northwestern section of Somerville, Massachusetts where several streets meet: Holland Street, Dover Street, Day Street, Elm Street, Highland Avenue, and College Avenue. The name is often used to refer ...
is home to the
Somerville Theatre The Somerville Theatre is an independent movie theater and concert venue in the Davis Square neighborhood of Somerville, Massachusetts, United States. Over one hundred years old, the Somerville Theatre started off as a vaudeville house and movie ...
, which formerly housed the
Museum of Bad Art The Museum of Bad Art (MOBA) is a privately owned museum whose stated aim is "to celebrate the labor of artists whose work would be displayed and appreciated in no other forum". It was originally in Dedham, Massachusetts and is currently in Bo ...
and plays host to the
Independent Film Festival of Boston The Independent Film Festival Boston is a not for profit film festival in Boston, Massachusetts. History The Independent Film Festival Boston (also known as IFFBoston or IFFB) was created in 2003 by the non-profit organization the Independent ...
each spring.
Union Tavern Union Tavern is a historic tavern and workshop on Broad Street in Milton, North Carolina. It is a rare example of a well-preserved early 19th-century Federal period tavern, and is further notable as the workshop of Thomas Day (c. 1801–1861), a ...
and the Crystal Ballroom are live music venues in the city. Two major art studios, the Brickbottom Artists Building and the Joy Street Studios, are located in former industrial buildings in the Brickbottom district. The Brickbottom Artists Association has been hosting annual open studio events in the fall since 1987. Starlab Studios, a multimedia artist studio space and the host of Somerville's annual Starlabfest, opened in
Union Square Union commonly refers to: * Trade union, an organization of workers * Union (set theory), in mathematics, a fundamental operation on sets Union may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Music * Union (band), an American rock group ** ''Un ...
in 2009. Additionally,
Artisan's Asylum Artisans Asylum is a non-profit community workshop in Allston, Massachusetts. Artisans Asylum was founded in 2010 by an engineer, an artist, and friends who needed an affordable place to build and make things. Artisans was the first makerspace to ...
on Tyler Street between
Union Union commonly refers to: * Trade union, an organization of workers * Union (set theory), in mathematics, a fundamental operation on sets Union may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Music * Union (band), an American rock group ** ''Un ...
and Porter squares is a
hackerspace A hackerspace (also referred to as a hacklab, hackspace, or makerspace) is a community-operated, often "not for profit" (501(c)(3) in the United States), workspace where people with common interests, such as computers, machining, technology, sc ...
, where 150 members and 200 students have been participating in the
maker culture The maker culture is a contemporary subculture representing a technology-based extension of DIY culture that intersects with hardware-oriented parts of hacker culture and revels in the creation of new devices as well as tinkering with existing on ...
since 2011. The Somerville Public Library has three branches. The Somerville Arts Council and
Somerville Open Studios Somerville Open Studios (informally: ''SOS'') is an annual event where the artists of Somerville, Massachusetts open their workspaces to the public. It is also the name of the 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization which oversees the event. Somerville ...
both host annual events involving the community in homegrown arts. The Boston chapter of the
Dorkbot Dorkbot is a group of affiliated organizations worldwide that sponsor grassroots meetings of artists, engineers, designers, scientists, inventors, and anyone else working under the very broad umbrella of electronic art. The dorkbot motto is "peop ...
community meets in Somerville at the Willoughby & Baltic studio, in the Brickbottom district. Starting in 2006, an annual Fluff Festival has been held to celebrate the invention of Fluff in Somerville. "What the Fluff?" is produced by
Union Square Main Streets Union Square Main Streets is a community development organization in Somerville, Massachusetts that aims to enhance the Union Square area's commercial viability through collaborative efforts in design, promotion, economic restructuring, transportati ...
and includes vendors, activities, entertainment and the crowning of the Pharaoh of Fluff. It has been described in food journal ''
Gastronomica ''Gastronomica: The Journal of Food and Culture'' is a peer-reviewed interdisciplinary academic journal with a focus on food. It is published by the University of California Press. It was founded by Darra Goldstein in 2001. Awards The journal has ...
'' as an "orgiastic frenzy of all things fluffy--old-world village celebration meets American kitsch." Somerville mayor
Joseph Curtatone Joseph Anthony Curtatone (born June 28, 1966) is an American politician from Somerville, Massachusetts who formerly served as the city's mayor from 2004 until 2022. Early life and education Curtatone, born and raised in Somerville, Massachusetts ...
attended in 2006 and declared, "My house always has been, and always will be, stocked with fluff."


Points of interest


Dilboy Stadium

George Dilboy Memorial Stadium is a multi-purpose public stadium in city. It is known as the home of the Boston Renegades women's tackle football team. It was also the home field of the
Boston Militia The Boston Militia were a women's full-contact football team in the Women's Football Alliance of which they were two-time champions (2011, 2014). Previously, the Militia played in the Independent Women's Football League from 2008 until 2010, winnin ...
women's tackle football team from 2008 to 2014. The
Boston Breakers The Boston Breakers were an American professional soccer club based in the Boston neighborhood of Allston. The team competed in the National Women's Soccer League (NWSL). They replaced the original Breakers, who competed in the defunct Women's ...
women's soccer club made Dilboy Stadium their home in 2012 and 2013. The stadium is named after
George Dilboy George Dilboy (Americanized transliteration of Greek name, Georgios Dilvois: Γεώργιος Διλβόης), (February 5, 1896 – July 18, 1918), Private First Class, U.S. Army, Company H, 103rd Infantry Regiment (United States), 26th Division ...
, who was awarded the Medal of Honor during World War I.


Historic places

Somerville has eighty-three sites listed on the
National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...
. These places include various houses, libraries, parkways, churches, among other places, and have been declared landmarks within the city.


Somerville Museum

The Somerville Museum preserves memorabilia chronicling the city's roots, with historical and artistic exhibits. It is located at 1 Westwood Road, on the corner of Central Street.


Parks and recreation

The
Somerville Community Path The Somerville Community Path is a paved rail trail in Somerville, Massachusetts, running from Massachusetts Avenue to Lowell Street via Davis Square. Opened in segments between 1985 and 2015, it follows part of the former Fitchburg Cutoff rail ...
is a tree-lined
rail trail A rail trail is a shared-use path on railway right of way. Rail trails are typically constructed after a railway has been abandoned and the track has been removed, but may also share the right of way with active railways, light rail, or streetcar ...
that runs from Lowell Street to the Cambridge border near
Davis Square Davis Square is a major intersection in the northwestern section of Somerville, Massachusetts where several streets meet: Holland Street, Dover Street, Day Street, Elm Street, Highland Avenue, and College Avenue. The name is often used to refer ...
. It connects with the
Alewife Linear Park Alewife may refer to: * Alewife (fish), a North American herring * Alewife (trade), a female brewer * Alewife station, in Cambridge, Massachusetts * "Alewife", a song from the Clairo album ''Immunity'' * Alewife Brook Reservation, a state park in ...
, which in turn connects with the
Minuteman Bikeway The Minuteman Bikeway is a 10-mile (16-kilometre) paved multi-use rail trail located in the Greater Boston area of Massachusetts. It runs from Bedford to Alewife station, at the northern end of the Red Line in Cambridge, passing through the town ...
and the
Fitchburg Cutoff Path The Fitchburg Cutoff (also called the Freight Cutoff) was a rail line running from Brighton Street (Hills Crossing station) in Belmont, Massachusetts, to Somerville Junction in Somerville, Massachusetts. It was constructed in two segments in 1 ...
. Community activists hope to extend the path eastward to
Lechmere Square Lechmere Square ( ) is located at the intersection of Cambridge Street and First Street in East Cambridge, Massachusetts. It was originally named for the Colonial-era landowner Richard Lechmere, a Loyalist who returned to England at the beginnin ...
, which would connect with the
Charles River Bike Path The Charles River Bike Path is a mixed-use path in the Boston, Massachusetts area. It is named after the cardiologist Paul Dudley White, a prominent advocate of preventive medicine. His research led him to proclaim frequently "''I'd like to put ...
s and the proposed
East Coast Greenway The East Coast Greenway is a pedestrian and bicycle route between Maine and Florida along the East Coast of the United States. In 2020, the Greenway received over 50 million visits. The nonprofit East Coast Greenway Alliance was created in 1991. ...
. In May 2013, construction began on an extension of the path between Cedar and Lowell streets, which was completed in 2015. , the city has a total of 63 parks, playgrounds, playing fields, and community gardens. With the establishment of the Playground Association of America in 1906, many cities, including Somerville, began to sponsor supervised playgrounds for the children of the city during the summer months. Though the Recreation Department was not formally established in Somerville until 1917, supervised play, sponsored in part by the city and the Playground Association of America, began in 1909. The Recreation Department provides many recreational and play activities for residents of all ages, including Summertime Playgrounds, outdoor games and sports leagues, theater groups, and an active Senior Citizens Club.


Government


City government

Somerville has a mayor-city council form of
municipal A municipality is usually a single administrative division having corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality'' may also mean the go ...
government. The City Council (formerly a Board of Aldermen) consists of four at-large (citywide) positions and seven ward representatives, where each ward is a specific section of the city. The change from Aldermen to Council came in 2018 when gender equity was honored. As of January 3, 2022, the City Council compromised the following councilors: The first Democratic mayor of the city was
John J. Murphy John J. Murphy (1890–1973) was an American politician who served as mayor of Somerville, Massachusetts and United States Marshal for the District of Massachusetts. Early life Murphy was born in 1890 in Somerville. He entered the workforce at th ...
in 1929. Every mayor prior, since 1872, had been unaffiliated with a party or
Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...
. Murphy succeeded on his seventh try by uniting the
Irish Irish may refer to: Common meanings * Someone or something of, from, or related to: ** Ireland, an island situated off the north-western coast of continental Europe ***Éire, Irish language name for the isle ** Northern Ireland, a constituent unit ...
,
Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance language *** Regional Ita ...
,
Greek Greek may refer to: Greece Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group. *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family. **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor ...
, and
Portuguese Portuguese may refer to: * anything of, from, or related to the country and nation of Portugal ** Portuguese cuisine, traditional foods ** Portuguese language, a Romance language *** Portuguese dialects, variants of the Portuguese language ** Portu ...
communities. There were candlelit
procession A procession is an organized body of people walking in a formal or ceremonial manner. History Processions have in all peoples and at all times been a natural form of public celebration, as forming an orderly and impressive ceremony. Religious ...
s with thousands marching in rallies in the middle of Union Square and other squares in the city. The current mayor of Somerville is Katjana Ballantyne. In July 2020, the Somerville City Council voted to recognize polyamorous domestic partnerships in the city, becoming the first city in the
United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
to do so. This measure was passed in order to allow those in a polyamorous relationship easier access to their partners' health insurance. Alongside these, Somerville boasts a large
subsidized housing Subsidized housing is government sponsored economic assistance aimed towards alleviating housing costs and expenses for impoverished people with low to moderate incomes. In the United States, subsidized housing is often called "affordable housin ...
program with 1400 units and 4,328 people (5% of the population) living in them. There are 13 developments, the largest being the
Mystic River The Mystic River is a riverU.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map accessed April 1, 2011 in Massachusetts, in the United States. In Massachusett, means "large estuary," alluding to t ...
Projects and Clarendon Hill Apartments. * Mystic River Development (Winter Hill – 240 units) * Clarendon Hill Apartments (Teele Square – 216 units) * Mystic View Development (Winter Hill – 215 units) * Bryant Towers (East Somerville – 134 units) * Properzi Manor (Union Square – 110 units) * Brady Towers (Inner Belt District – 84 units) * Weston Manor (Teele Square – 80 units) * Ciampa Manor (Davis Square – 53 units) * Highland Gardens (Winter Hill – 42 units) * Corbett Apartments (Winter Hill – 31 units) * Hagan Manor (Union Square – 24 units) * Waterworks Apartments (Alewife – 21 units)


Federal and state representation

Somerville is part of
Massachusetts's 7th congressional district Massachusetts's 7th congressional district is a congressional district located in eastern Massachusetts, including roughly three-fourths of the city of Boston and a few of its northern and southern suburbs. The seat is currently held by Democrat ...
for purposes of elections to the
United States House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the Lower house, lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the United States Senate, Senate being ...
. It is represented by Representative
Ayanna Pressley Ayanna Soyini Pressley (born February 3, 1974) is an American politician who has served as the U.S. representative for Massachusetts's 7th congressional district since 2019. This district includes the northern three quarters of Boston, most of Ca ...
. For representation to the
Massachusetts Senate The Massachusetts Senate is the upper house of the Massachusetts General Court, the bicameral state legislature of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. The Senate comprises 40 elected members from 40 single-member senatorial districts in the ...
, Somerville is entirely within the Second Middlesex district. For representation to the
Massachusetts House of Representatives The Massachusetts House of Representatives is the lower house of the Massachusetts General Court, the state legislature of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. It is composed of 160 members elected from 14 counties each divided into single-member ...
, Somerville is part of the 26th, 27th and 34th Middlesex districts. The 26th Middlesex district includes East Somerville, Brickbottom, and a portion of the Union Square area, as well as portions of
Cambridge Cambridge ( ) is a university city and the county town in Cambridgeshire, England. It is located on the River Cam approximately north of London. As of the 2021 United Kingdom census, the population of Cambridge was 145,700. Cambridge bec ...
, The 34th Middlesex district includes Winter Hill and Teele Square, as well as portions of Medford. The remainder of the city, just over half, comprises the 27th Middlesex district, which does not extend outside Somerville.


Education

The School Committee has seven independently elected officials as well as the Mayor and the President of the Board of Aldermen. The budget is approved by both the School Committee and the Board of Aldermen. The Chair is Adam Sweeting from Ward 3 and the Vice-Chair is Carrie Normand from Ward 7. Also included in the school district is the Somerville Center for Adult Learning Experiences. The former Powder House Community School (which closed due to low enrollment in 2004) is being considered for redevelopment, either as a consolidated location for city offices if funding is obtained under the
American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA) (), nicknamed the Recovery Act, was a stimulus package enacted by the 111th U.S. Congress and signed into law by President Barack Obama in February 2009. Developed in response to the Gr ...
or as some other type of development. Though formally listed as being located in Medford,
Tufts University Tufts University is a private research university on the border of Medford and Somerville, Massachusetts. It was founded in 1852 as Tufts College by Christian universalists who sought to provide a nonsectarian institution of higher learning. ...
is also located in Somerville. The Somerville–Medford line runs through the Tufts campus, splitting the university's Tisch Library. The school employs many local residents and has many community service projects that benefit the city, especially those run through the Leonard Carmichael Society and the
Jonathan M. Tisch College of Citizenship and Public Service The Jonathan M. Tisch College of Civic Life (originally the University College of Citizenship and Public Service, or UCCPS) is a college of Tufts University in Medford, Massachusetts. The college was founded with the aid of a $10 million donation b ...
.


Somerville Public Schools

Somerville Public Schools (SPS) operates ten schools from
pre-kindergarten Pre-kindergarten (also called Pre-K or PK) is a voluntary classroom-based preschool program for children below the age of five in the United States, Canada, Turkey and Greece (when kindergarten starts). It may be delivered through a preschool ...
to
secondary school A secondary school describes an institution that provides secondary education and also usually includes the building where this takes place. Some secondary schools provide both '' secondary education, lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) ...
s. The majority of the schools in Somerville (with exception of Somerville High School, Benjamin G. Brown School, Capuano Early Childhood Center, and Next Wave/Full Circle) are schools that go from kindergarten through 8th grade. There are 4,691 students enrolled in Somerville Public Schools. * Somerville High School * East Somerville Community School * Arthur D. Healey School * John F. Kennedy School * Benjamin G. Brown School (K–5) * West Somerville Community School * Albert F. Argenziano School * Winter Hill Community School * Michael E. Capuano Early Childhood Center (pre-kindergarten) * Next Wave/Full Circle (6–12 grades) East Somerville Community School, which was temporarily closed after a fire in 2007, was demolished and reconstructed, reopening in fall 2013. During its closure students were transferred to the nearby Edgerly and Capuano schools. Somerville High School underwent renovations after having been the oldest un-renovated high school in the nation. Its renovations lasted from early 2012 to January 2021.


Somerville High School

Somerville High School (SHS) is located right next to the Somerville City Hall at 81 Highland Avenue. It is in Winter Hill near the border of East Somerville and Union Square. Somerville High School offers a vocational program (CTE) as well as musical programs and athletics programs. It hosts roughly 1,215 students throughout 4 grades. Its student proficiency in math and science is at 73% and its proficiency for English and history is at 83%. Its student to teacher ratio is 10:1. It is in the top 20% of the state's schools composite averages. It has a graduation rate of 89.9%. The school demographics as of 2021 are 45% Hispanic or Latino, 32% White, 14% African American, 8% Asian and 1% other. 54.6% of students in the school do not have English as their first language. 48.1% of students are economically disadvantaged. 16.9% of students have a disability.
Dilboy Stadium George Dilboy Memorial Stadium is a multi-purpose public sports stadium in the city of Somerville, Massachusetts. It is the home of the Somerville Rampage semi-pro men's football team, the Boston Renegades semi-pro women's football team, as well a ...
is where the SHS soccer, football, lacrosse, tennis and track teams compete. It is located on 110
Alewife Brook Parkway Alewife Brook Parkway is a short parkway in Cambridge and Somerville, Massachusetts. It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. It begins at Fresh Pond in Cambridge (linking to Fresh Pond Parkway via Concord Avenue), and heads nor ...
, roughly from the school itself. It is close to the Dilboy Pool (which is open solely in the summer), as well as the Clarendon Hill Towers and Clarendon Hill Projects (an installment of the Somerville Housing Authority). The SHS hockey team plays at Veterans Memorial Rink at 570 Somerville Avenue next to Conway Park and Playground.


Media

The city is served by a number of news sources, including: *Somerville Neighborhood News (website) *Somerville Community Access Television *Boston Free Radio (an all-volunteer free-speech community radio station in Somerville) *''
The Boston Globe ''The Boston Globe'' is an American daily newspaper founded and based in Boston, Massachusetts. The newspaper has won a total of 27 Pulitzer Prizes, and has a total circulation of close to 300,000 print and digital subscribers. ''The Boston Glob ...
'' (specifically its local edition ''Your Town Somerville'', inactive since 2011) *
Somerville Journal The ''Somerville Journal'' was a weekly newspaper published in Somerville, Massachusetts from 1870 until 2022. Early history The first issue of the ''Somerville Journal'' was published December 8, 1870, by W. A. Greenough & Company, known for publ ...
(website) *The Somerville News Weekly (daily blog, despite name) *''The Somerville Times'' (newspaper) *Somerville Beat (website, went mostly inactive in 2015) *Somerville Patch (website) *''Scout Somerville'' (bimonthly magazine) *Somerville Voices (blog, inactive) The public radio show ''
Living on Earth ''Living on Earth'' is a weekly, hour-long and award-winning environmental news program distributed by Public Radio Exchange (on Public Radio International from October 6, 2006, show to December 6, 2019, show, and before that, NPR from 1991 until ...
'' is recorded in Davis Square. In addition,
Candlewick Press Candlewick Press, established in 1992 and located in Somerville, Massachusetts, is part of the Walker Books group. The logo depicting a bear carrying a candle is based on Walker Books's original logo. Sebastian Walker launched Walker Books from ...
, a major children's book printing company, is operated in Somerville.
Bay State Newspaper Company Bay State Newspaper Company, based in Somerville, Massachusetts, United States, was a publisher of weekly newspapers in suburbs north of Boston. It was formed in 1991 by Fidelity Investments after it bought Dole Publishing from its longtime owner, ...
,
Highwater Books Highwater Books was a small but influential independent comic book publisher based in Somerville, Massachusetts, noted for its arty editorial direction and production values under publisher Tom Devlin. Highwater began in 1997 and folded in Novembe ...
, and
Radical America ''Radical America'' was a left-wing political magazine in the United States established in 1967. The magazine was founded by Paul Buhle and Mari Jo Buhle, activists in Students for a Democratic Society and served during its first few years of exi ...
were all originally published in the city.


Infrastructure


Transportation

Somerville, originally built as a
streetcar suburb A streetcar suburb is a residential community whose growth and development was strongly shaped by the use of streetcar lines as a primary means of transportation. Such suburbs developed in the United States in the years before the automobile, when ...
of Boston, has a framework and layout ideal for public transit. Its traditionally designed neighborhoods, set among grid-like street networks, connect in a walkable, transit-friendly system. Transit systems shrunk and all but disappeared as automobiles became the primary mode of transportation, however, and streetcars left the city several decades ago. The City of Somerville is serviced by the Massachusetts Bay Transit Authority (MBTA) transit service.


Rail

Somerville is served by seven
MBTA subway The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) operates rapid transit (heavy rail), light rail, and bus rapid transit services in the Boston metropolitan area, collectively referred to as the rapid transit, subway, or the T system. The c ...
stations:
Davis station The Davis Station, commonly called Davis, is one of three permanent bases and research outposts in Antarctica managed by the Australian Antarctic Division (AAD). Davis is situated on the coast of Cooperation Sea in Princess Elizabeth Land, In ...
on the Red Line,
Assembly station Assembly station (originally Assembly Square in some planning documents) is a rapid transit station in Somerville, Massachusetts. It serves the MBTA's Orange Line. It is an infill station, located on a section of the Orange Line that has been ...
on the Orange Line, and , , , , and on the
Green Line Green Line may refer to: Places Military and political * Green Line (France), the German occupation line in France during World War II * Green Line (Israel), the 1949 armistice line established between Israel and its neighbours ** City Line ( ...
. Davis opened in 1984, and Assembly in 2014. The Green Line stations opened in 2022 as part of the
Green Line Extension The Green Line Extension (GLX) was a construction project to extend the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) Green Line (MBTA), Green Line light rail system northwest into Somerville, Massachusetts, Somerville and Medford, Massachu ...
, which the state was legally obligated to build since 1990.
Sullivan Square station Sullivan Square station is a rapid transit station on the MBTA subway Orange Line, located adjacent to Sullivan Square in the Charlestown neighborhood of Boston, Massachusetts. It is a major transfer point for MBTA bus service, with 13 routes ...
on the Orange Line and
Porter station Porter is a Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) transit station in Cambridge, Massachusetts. It serves the Red Line rapid transit line, the MBTA Commuter Rail Fitchburg Line, and several MBTA bus lines. Located at Porter Square a ...
on the Red Line and
Fitchburg Line The Fitchburg Line is a branch of the MBTA Commuter Rail system which runs from Boston's North Station to Wachusett station in Fitchburg, Massachusetts. The line is along the tracks of the former Fitchburg Railroad, which was built across norther ...
are located just outside Somerville.


Road

Although only 43.6% of Somerville commuters drove alone to work in 2013, several major arteries pass through the city.
McGrath Highway Route 28 is a nominally south–north state highway in the U.S. state of Massachusetts, running from the town of Eastham via Boston to the New Hampshire state line in Methuen. Following the route from its nominally southern end, Route 28 ...
is a major north–south route that represents the portion of
Massachusetts Route 28 Route 28 is a nominally south–north state highway in the U.S. state of Massachusetts, running from the town of Eastham via Boston to the New Hampshire state line in Methuen. Following the route from its nominally southern end, Route 28 ...
through the city of Somerville. McGrath is the continuation of Monsignor O'Brien Highway in
Cambridge Cambridge ( ) is a university city and the county town in Cambridgeshire, England. It is located on the River Cam approximately north of London. As of the 2021 United Kingdom census, the population of Cambridge was 145,700. Cambridge bec ...
to the southeast and is known as the Fellsway north of the junction with Mystic Avenue and Interstate 93 in Medford. The highway has a long and complex history that hints to the changing nature of transportation throughout Somerville and the greater Boston metropolitan region. Originally constructed in 1928 to create a speedier connection for Route 28 between the Charles and Mystic Rivers, McGrath was elevated in the 1950s to further facilitate increased travel speed. The result was to cut off
East Somerville East Somerville is a neighborhood in the eastern part of the city of Somerville, Massachusetts, Somerville, Massachusetts. The community stretches east along Broadway from McGrath Highway, Massachusetts Route 28 to Sullivan Square (Boston), Sull ...
and the
Inner Belt District The Inner Belt District is a industrial district located in the southeastern portion of Somerville, Massachusetts. Along with nearby Brickbottom, the Inner Belt is a historically industrial zone of Somerville, with factories, warehouses, distri ...
from Winter Hill and the rest of the city. When Route 28 was built, its primary purpose was to serve regional commuters traveling into Boston. However, it soon became clear that McGrath would need to be replaced by a larger and safer highway. The construction of the elevated
Northern Expressway (Massachusetts) Interstate 93 (I-93) is an Interstate Highway in the New England states of Massachusetts, New Hampshire, and Vermont in the United States. Spanning approximately along a north–south axis, it is one of three primary Interstate Highways ...
, part of
Interstate 93 Interstate 93 (I-93) is an Interstate Highway in the New England states of Massachusetts, New Hampshire, and Vermont in the United States. Spanning approximately along a north–south axis, it is one of three primary Interstate Highways ...
, was completed in the early 1970s and essentially rendered McGrath redundant. Today, the infrastructure of the two raised portions (the McCarthy Overpass, running from Somerville Avenue to Medford Street, and the Squires Bridge, running above the MBTA Fitchburg line near Twin City Plaza) are decaying and decrepit. In 2013, the Massachusetts Department of Transportation recommended that the McCarthy Overpass that crosses over several streets in Somerville be torn down, and proposed a boulevard-syle reconstruction with bike lanes and sidewalks for pedestrians. No date has been set for construction to begin.
Northern Expressway (Massachusetts) Interstate 93 (I-93) is an Interstate Highway in the New England states of Massachusetts, New Hampshire, and Vermont in the United States. Spanning approximately along a north–south axis, it is one of three primary Interstate Highways ...
runs northwest and southeast through Somerville, separating
Ten Hills Ten Hills is a neighborhood in the northeastern part of the city of Somerville, Massachusetts. The area is roughly wedge-shaped, about in size, and is bounded by the Mystic River to the north, McGrath Highway to the east, and is largely separat ...
and
Assembly Square Assembly Square is a neighborhood in Somerville, Massachusetts. It is located along the west bank of the Mystic River, bordered by Ten Hills and Massachusetts Route 28 to the north and the Charlestown neighborhood of Boston to the south. The dis ...
from the rest of the city. The massive elevated "Northern Expressway" was completed in the early 1970s and passes directly through Somerville running alongside and/or above Mystic Avenue (
Massachusetts Route 38 Route 38 is a state highway in the U.S. state of Massachusetts, traveling from Route 28 in Somerville north via Lowell to the New Hampshire state line in Dracut, where it continues as New Hampshire Route 38 in Pelham, New Hampshire. A ...
). Commonly referred to as the "upper and lower decks of 93", the Somerville-Charlestown section of the Northern Expressway carries three lanes of northbound traffic on the upper deck, and three lanes of southbound traffic on the lower deck. The highway also serves to cut off
East Somerville East Somerville is a neighborhood in the eastern part of the city of Somerville, Massachusetts, Somerville, Massachusetts. The community stretches east along Broadway from McGrath Highway, Massachusetts Route 28 to Sullivan Square (Boston), Sull ...
from Charlestown.


Walking and cycling

Somerville is considered to be a highly walkable and bikeable city. In 2013, 7.8% of all commutes were made by bicycle, ranking Somerville 5th among U.S. cities for its share of bicycling. In 2013, 49.8% of Somerville commuters either walked, biked or used public transit. Somerville launched its first
Bluebikes Bluebikes, originally Hubway, is a bicycle sharing system in the Boston metropolitan area. As of July 2021, the system had deployed 393 stations with a fleet of over 3,800 bikes in the 10 municipalities it served. Bluebikes is operated by Motiva ...
(originally Hubway) stations during the summer of 2012 and now hosts 21 stations. The
Somerville Community Path The Somerville Community Path is a paved rail trail in Somerville, Massachusetts, running from Massachusetts Avenue to Lowell Street via Davis Square. Opened in segments between 1985 and 2015, it follows part of the former Fitchburg Cutoff rail ...
is a
mixed-use path A shared-use path, mixed-use path or multi-use pathway is a path which is 'designed to accommodate the movement of pedestrians and cyclists'. Examples of shared-use paths include sidewalks designated as shared-use, bridleways and rail trails. A ...
that runs along the old
Boston and Lowell Railroad The Boston and Lowell Railroad was a railroad that operated in Massachusetts in the United States. It was one of the first railroads in North America and the first major one in the state. The line later operated as part of the Boston and Maine R ...
right-of-way from
Davis Square Davis Square is a major intersection in the northwestern section of Somerville, Massachusetts where several streets meet: Holland Street, Dover Street, Day Street, Elm Street, Highland Avenue, and College Avenue. The name is often used to refer ...
across Somerville to the Cambridge border near
Lechmere Square Lechmere Square ( ) is located at the intersection of Cambridge Street and First Street in East Cambridge, Massachusetts. It was originally named for the Colonial-era landowner Richard Lechmere, a Loyalist who returned to England at the beginnin ...
. Roughly of the path is finished and in use. The two finished segments feature pavement interspersed with brick and surrounded by grass, trees, pedestrian connections to nearby streets, and a community garden. The path is lit at night and snowplowed in the winter. In 2013, the city broke ground on the first extension in almost twenty years that extended the path another east from its then-terminus at Cedar Street to Lowell Street.


Bus

Somerville has among the highest bus ridership in the Boston metro area. Nearly 40,000 passengers board the buses that pass through Somerville each day, and 15
MBTA bus The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) operates List of MBTA bus routes, 170 bus routes in the Greater Boston area. The MBTA has a policy objective to provide transit service within walking distance (defined as ) for all residents ...
routes operate in Somerville.


Emergency services

Somerville is protected by the 152 paid, professional firefighters of the city of Somerville Fire Department (SFD). The Somerville Fire Department currently operates out of five firehouses, located throughout the city, and operates five engine companies, three ladder companies, and one rescue company, commanded by an on-duty district chief and deputy chief each shift.


Waste

The city provides contracted trash,
single-stream recycling Single-stream (also known as “fully commingled” or "single-sort") recycling refers to a system in which all paper fibers, plastics, metals, and other containers are mixed in a collection truck, instead of being sorted by the depositor into sepa ...
, yard waste, and
hazardous waste Hazardous waste is waste that has substantial or potential threats to public health or the environment. Hazardous waste is a type of dangerous goods. They usually have one or more of the following hazardous traits: ignitability, reactivity, co ...
pickup for residents in buildings with six or fewer units, and
textile recycling Textile recycling is the process of recovering fiber, yarn, or fabric and reprocessing the material into new, useful products. Textile waste is split into pre-consumer and post-consumer waste and is sorted into five different categories derived fr ...
pickup for all residents. Single-stream recycling materials are sent to the
Casella Waste Systems Casella Waste Systems () is a waste management company based in Rutland, Vermont, United States. Founded in 1975 with a single truck, Casella is a regional, vertically integrated solid waste services company. Casella provides resource management e ...
processing facility in neighboring Charlestown.


Notable people

*
James E. Barlow James E. Barlow (October 14, 1881-October 4, 1958) was an American civil engineer and city manager. Education and civil engineering Barlow was born in 1881 in Somerville, Massachusetts. He graduated from Phillips Andover Academy the Massachusetts I ...
, civil engineer and
city manager A city manager is an official appointed as the administrative manager of a city, in a "Mayor–council government" council–manager form of city government. Local officials serving in this position are sometimes referred to as the chief execu ...
*
Robert A. Bruce Robert Arthur Bruce (November 20, 1916 – February 12, 2004) was an American Cardiology, cardiologist and a professor at the University of Washington. He was known as the "father of exercise cardiology" for his research and development of the Bru ...
, noted
cardiologist Cardiology () is a branch of medicine that deals with disorders of the heart and the cardiovascular system. The field includes medical diagnosis and treatment of congenital heart defects, coronary artery disease, heart failure, valvular hear ...
and professor *
Mike Capuano Michael Everett Capuano ( ; born January 9, 1952) is an American politician and attorney who served as a U.S. Representative from Massachusetts from 1999 to 2019. A Democrat, his district included the northern three-fourths of Boston, as well a ...
, member of the
House of Representatives House of Representatives is the name of legislative bodies in many countries and sub-national entitles. In many countries, the House of Representatives is the lower house of a bicameral legislature, with the corresponding upper house often c ...
and mayor of Somerville *
Richard Carle Richard Carle (born Charles Nicholas Carleton, July 7, 1871 – June 28, 1941) was an American stage and film actor as well as a playwright and stage director. He appeared in more than 130 films between 1915 and 1941. Carle was born in Som ...
,
actor An actor or actress is a person who portrays a character in a performance. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. The analogous Greek term is (), li ...
*
Gosder Cherilus Gosder Cherilus (; born June 28, 1984) is a former American football offensive tackle in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Boston College, and was drafted by the Detroit Lions 17th overall in the 2008 NFL Dra ...
,
National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the ...
player *
Neil Cicierega Neil Stephen Cicierega ( ; born August 23, 1986) is an American comedian, actor, filmmaker, singer, YouTuber, musician, songwriter, puppeteer, artist, and animator. He is known as the creator of a genre of Flash animation he termed "Animutation ...
,
musician A musician is a person who composes, conducts, or performs music. According to the United States Employment Service, "musician" is a general term used to designate one who follows music as a profession. Musicians include songwriters who wri ...
,
filmmaker Filmmaking (film production) is the process by which a motion picture is produced. Filmmaking involves a number of complex and discrete stages, starting with an initial story, idea, or commission. It then continues through screenwriting, castin ...
, and
animator An animator is an artist who creates multiple images, known as frames, which give an illusion of movement called animation when displayed in rapid sequence. Animators can work in a variety of fields including film, television, and video gam ...
*
Hal Clement Harry Clement Stubbs (May 30, 1922 – October 29, 2003), better known by the pen name Hal Clement, was an American science fiction writer and a leader of the hard science fiction subgenre. He also painted astronomically oriented artworks under ...
,
author An author is the writer of a book, article, play, mostly written work. A broader definition of the word "author" states: "''An author is "the person who originated or gave existence to anything" and whose authorship determines responsibility f ...
*
Mildred Codding Mildred B. Codding (19021991) was an American medical illustrator. Her illustrations are featured in numerous textbooks and academic journal articles. Biography Codding was born in Somerville, Massachusetts. She graduated from Wellesley College ...
, medical illustrator * Mike Colman, Ice hockey player for the 1991–1992
San Jose Sharks The San Jose Sharks are a professional ice hockey team based in San Jose, California. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Pacific Division in the Western Conference, and are owned by San Jose Sports & Entertainm ...
*
Hal Connolly Harold Vincent "Hal" Connolly (August 1, 1931 – August 18, 2010) was an American athlete and hammer thrower from Somerville, Massachusetts. He won a gold medal in the hammer throw at the 1956 Summer Olympics in Melbourne. Connolly became t ...
, athlete, Olympic gold medalist in
National Track and Field Hall of Fame The National Track and Field Hall of Fame is a museum operated by The Armory Foundation in conjunction with USA Track & Field. It is located within the Armory Foundation (the former Fort Washington Avenue Armory) at 216 Fort Washington Avenue, b ...
*
George Dilboy George Dilboy (Americanized transliteration of Greek name, Georgios Dilvois: Γεώργιος Διλβόης), (February 5, 1896 – July 18, 1918), Private First Class, U.S. Army, Company H, 103rd Infantry Regiment (United States), 26th Division ...
,
Medal of Honor The Medal of Honor (MOH) is the United States Armed Forces' highest military decoration and is awarded to recognize American soldiers, sailors, marines, airmen, guardians and coast guardsmen who have distinguished themselves by acts of valor. ...
recipient *
Henry F. Gilbert Henry Franklin Belknap Gilbert (September 26, 1868 – May 19, 1928) was an American composer and collector of folk songs. He is best remembered today for his interest in the music of African-Americans around the turn of the 20th century. Gil ...
(1868–1928), music composer *
Nick Gomez Nick Gomez (born April 13, 1963) is an American film director and writer. He has directed for a number of television and film. His first feature-length film was the 1992 movie ''Laws of Gravity'', which won awards at both the Berlin Internatio ...
, film director and writer *
Henry Kimball Hadley Henry Kimball Hadley (20 December 1871 – 6 September 1937) was an American composer and Conducting, conductor.''Baker's Biographical Dictionary of Musicians'', 8th edition, p. 692 Early life Hadley was born in Somerville, Massachusetts, t ...
,
composer A composer is a person who writes music. The term is especially used to indicate composers of Western classical music, or those who are composers by occupation. Many composers are, or were, also skilled performers of music. Etymology and Defi ...
and conductor *
Henry Oliver Hansen Henry Oliver Hansen (December 14, 1919 – March 1, 1945) was a United States Marine Corps sergeant who was killed in action during the Battle of Iwo Jima in World War II. He was a member of the patrol that captured Mount Suribachi, where he h ...
, raised the first flag in the
Battle of Iwo Jima The Battle of Iwo Jima (19 February – 26 March 1945) was a major battle in which the United States Marine Corps (USMC) and United States Navy (USN) landed on and eventually captured the island of Iwo Jima from the Imperial Japanese Army (IJ ...
*
Hazel Heald Hazel Heald (April 6, 1896February 4, 1961) was a pulp fiction writer, who lived in Somerville, Massachusetts. She is perhaps best known for collaborating with American horror fiction writer H. P. Lovecraft. Biography Heald was born the daughter ...
, pulp fiction writer who collaborated on several stories with H.P. Lovecraft *
Arthur Daniel Healey Arthur Daniel Healey (December 29, 1889 – September 16, 1948) was a Democratic United States Representative from Massachusetts from 1933 to 1942 and a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the District of Massachu ...
, Member of the U.S. House of Representatives *
Alan Hovhaness Alan Hovhaness (; March 8, 1911 – June 21, 2000) was an American-Armenian composer. He was one of the most prolific 20th-century composers, with his official catalog comprising 67 numbered symphonies (surviving manuscripts indicate over 70) and ...
, composer *
James "Hutch" Hutchinson James Hutchinson (born January 24, 1953) is an American session bassist best known for his work with Bonnie Raitt. Though his work takes him nearly everywhere he primarily resides in Studio City, Los Angeles, CA and Haiku-Pauwela, Hawaii. Car ...
, studio musician and longtime
Bonnie Raitt Bonnie Lynn Raitt (; born November 8, 1949) is an American blues singer and guitarist. In 1971, Raitt released her self-titled debut album. Following this, she released a series of critically acclaimed roots-influenced albums that incorporated ...
bassist *
Jake Kilrain John Joseph Killion (February 9, 1859 – December 22, 1937), more commonly known as Jake Kilrain, was a famous American bare-knuckle fighter and glove boxer of the 1880s. Early life Kilrain found employment as a teenager in Somerville, Mas ...
, noted
boxer Boxer most commonly refers to: * Boxer (boxing), a competitor in the sport of boxing *Boxer (dog), a breed of dog Boxer or boxers may also refer to: Animal kingdom * Boxer crab * Boxer shrimp, a small group of decapod crustaceans * Boxer snipe ee ...
*
Howie Long Howard Matthew Moses Long (born January 6, 1960) is an American sports analyst and former professional football player. He played in the National Football League (NFL) for 13 seasons as a defensive end, spending his entire career with the Raide ...
, NFL Hall of Famer, actor and sports analyst *
Martha Perry Lowe Martha Perry Lowe (, Perry; November 21, 1829 - May 6, 1902) was an American writer of poetry and prose, as well as a social activist and organizer. She supported women's rights, temperance, education, and Unitarian organizations. Born in New Ha ...
(1829–1902), poet, education activist *
Theodore Roosevelt McElroy Theodore may refer to: Places * Theodore, Alabama, United States * Theodore, Australian Capital Territory * Theodore, Queensland, a town in the Shire of Banana, Australia * Theodore, Saskatchewan, Canada * Theodore Reservoir, a lake in Saskatche ...
, telegraph operator and radio telegrapher *
Jessica Meir Jessica Ulrika Meir (IPA: ; ; born ) is an American-Swedish NASA astronaut, marine biologist, and physiologist. She was previously an assistant professor of anesthesia at Harvard Medical School, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, following ...
, astronaut * Patricia Head Minaldi, United States District Court judge *
Connie Morella Constance Morella (; née Albanese; born February 12, 1931) is an American politician and diplomat. She represented in the United States House of Representatives from 1987 to 2003. She served as Permanent Representative from the U.S. to the Organ ...
, member of the House of Representatives *
Randall Munroe Randall Patrick Munroe (born October 17, 1984) is an American cartoonist, author, and engineer best known as the creator of the webcomic ''xkcd''. Munroe has worked full-time on the comic since late 2006. In addition to publishing a book of th ...
, cartoonist and writer * Jack Parker, head coach of the
Boston University Terriers The Boston University Terriers are the ten men's and fourteen women's varsity athletic teams representing Boston University in NCAA Division I competition. Boston University's team nickname is the Terriers, and the official mascot is Rhett the ...
hockey team, 1973–2013 *
Bobby Pickett Robert George Pickett (February 11, 1938 – April 25, 2007), known also by the name Bobby "Boris" Pickett, was an American singer, songwriter, actor, and comedian known for co-writing and performing the 1962 hit novelty song "Monster Mash". B ...
, composer of "
Monster Mash "Monster Mash" is a 1962 novelty song by Bobby "Boris" Pickett. The song was released as a single on Gary S. Paxton's Garpax Records label in August 1962 along with a full-length LP called ''The Original Monster Mash'', which contained several ...
" *
Harry Nelson Pillsbury Harry Nelson Pillsbury (December 5, 1872 – June 17, 1906) was an American chess player. At the age of 22, he won one of the strongest tournaments of the time (winning the Hastings 1895 chess tournament), but his illness and early death prevent ...
,
chess Chess is a board game for two players, called White and Black, each controlling an army of chess pieces in their color, with the objective to checkmate the opponent's king. It is sometimes called international chess or Western chess to disti ...
champion *
Alfred M. Pride Alfred Melville Pride (September 10, 1897 – December 24, 1988) was a United States Navy admiral and pioneer naval aviator, who distinguished himself during World War II as an aircraft carrier commander. He served during the late 1940s as Chief ...
,
United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...
admiral Admiral is one of the highest ranks in some navies. In the Commonwealth nations and the United States, a "full" admiral is equivalent to a "full" general in the army or the air force, and is above vice admiral and below admiral of the fleet, ...
and pioneer
naval aviator Naval aviation is the application of military air power by navies, whether from warships that embark aircraft, or land bases. Naval aviation is typically projected to a position nearer the target by way of an aircraft carrier. Carrier-based a ...
*
Archibald Query Archibald Query (1873–1964) was a Canadian-born American confectioner, who invented Marshmallow Fluff, a special formula of marshmallow cream, in 1917. Biography Query developed the recipe in his kitchen, initially selling his marshmallow flu ...
,
inventor An invention is a unique or novel device, method, composition, idea or process. An invention may be an improvement upon a machine, product, or process for increasing efficiency or lowering cost. It may also be an entirely new concept. If an ...
of Fluff *
Charles Revson Charles Haskell Revson (October 11, 1906 – August 24, 1975) was an American businessman and philanthropist. He was best known as a pioneering cosmetics industry executive who created the first pigment-based nail polish and founded and managed R ...
, founder of
Revlon Revlon, Inc. is an American multinational company dealing in cosmetics, skin care, fragrance, and personal care. The headquarters of Revlon was established in New York City on March 1, 1932, where it still remains. Revlon was founded by brothe ...
*
Alex Rocco Alex Rocco (born Alessandro Federico Petricone Jr.; February 29, 1936 – July 18, 2015) was an American actor. Known for his distinctive, gravelly voice, he was often cast as villains, including Moe Greene in ''The Godfather'' (1972) and his Pr ...
, actor *
Paul Ryan Paul Davis Ryan (born January 29, 1970) is an American former politician who served as the List of Speakers of the United States House of Representatives, 54th speaker of the United States House of Representatives from 2015 to 2019. A member o ...
, born in Somerville;
comic artist A cartoonist is a visual artist who specializes in both drawing and writing cartoons (individual images) or comics (sequential images). Cartoonists differ from comics writers or comic book illustrators in that they produce both the literary and ...
on ''
Fantastic Four The Fantastic Four is a superhero team appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The team debuted in ''The Fantastic Four'' #1 ( cover dated Nov. 1961), helping usher in a new level of realism in the medium. It was the first ...
'' and ''
The Phantom ''The Phantom'' is an American adventure comic strip, first published by Lee Falk in February 1936. The main character, the Phantom, is a fictional costumed crime-fighter who operates from the fictional African country of Bangalla. The charact ...
'' *
Daniel Alfred Sanborn Daniel Alfred Sanborn (April 5, 1827 in Somerville, MassachusettsApril 11, 1883 in Brooklyn, New York) was a surveyor who founded the Sanborn Map Company, a well-known provider of fire insurance maps. Before starting his company he produced insura ...
, a surveyor who founded the Sanborn Map Company was born in Somerville *
John Shea (playwright) John Shea (born February 10, 1964 in Somerville, Massachusetts) is an American playwright. Most of his plays are set in his hometown of Somerville, an old industrial suburb of Boston which has gentrified rapidly in the early 21st century. His one- ...
*
Paul Sorrento Paul Anthony Sorrento (born November 17, 1965) is the Los Angeles Angels assistant hitting coach. He is a former first baseman in Major League Baseball. From 1989 through 1999, Sorrento played for the Minnesota Twins (1989–1991), Cleveland Indi ...
, former
Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...
player * Daniel Chapman Stillson, inventor of the modern adjustable
pipe wrench A pipe wrench is any of several types of wrench that are designed to turn threaded pipe and pipe fittings for assembly (tightening) or disassembly (loosening). The Stillson wrench, or Stillson-pattern wrench, is the usual form of pipe wrench, e ...
*
David Foster Wallace David Foster Wallace (February 21, 1962 – September 12, 2008) was an American novelist, short story writer, essayist, and university professor of English and creative writing. Wallace is widely known for his 1996 novel '' Infinite Jest'', whi ...
, author * Barbara Weeks, actress *
Winter Hill Gang The Winter Hill Gang is a loose confederation of organized crime figures in the Boston, Massachusetts, area. The gang members and leadership are predominantly Irish-American and Italian-American descent. The organization itself derives its n ...
, noted crime group * Reverend Leonard Grimes, abolitionist *
Eliza Trask Hill Eliza Trask Hill (, Trask; May 10, 1840 – March 29, 1908) was an American activist, journalist, and philanthropist of the long nineteenth century. During the American Civil War, Civil War, Hill obtained, by subscription, and presented a flag to ...
, women's suffrage leader and prison reformer *
Aline van Barentzen Aline van Barentzen (born Aline Hoyle; 17 July 1897 – 30 October 1981) was a Franco-American classical pianist. Biography Van Berentzen was born in Somerville, Massachusetts and gave her first concert at the age of four. At a young age, her ...
, classical pianist


Sister cities

Somerville's
sister cities A sister city or a twin town relationship is a form of legal or social agreement between two geographically and politically distinct localities for the purpose of promoting cultural and commercial ties. While there are early examples of inter ...
are: *
Gaeta Gaeta (; lat, Cāiēta; Southern Laziale: ''Gaieta'') is a city in the province of Latina, in Lazio, Southern Italy. Set on a promontory stretching towards the Gulf of Gaeta, it is from Rome and from Naples. The town has played a consp ...
, Italy *
Nordeste The Northeast Region of Brazil ( pt, Região Nordeste do Brasil; ) is one of the five official and political regions of the country according to the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics. Of Brazil's twenty-six states, it comprises ni ...
, Portugal *
Tiznit Tiznit or Tiznet ( ar, تزنيت, Tiznīt; ber, ⵜⵉⵣⵏⵉⵜ, Tiznit) is a town in the west coast of the Moroccan region of Souss-Massa, founded in 1881 by the Sultan Hassan I. It is the capital of Tiznit Province and recorded a populati ...
, Morocco *
Yucuaiquín (''A paradise in the Land of Fire'') , pushpin_map = El Salvador , pushpin_label_position = bottom , pushpin_mapsize = 300 , pushpin_map_caption = Location in El Salvador , subdivision_ ...
, El Salvador


References


Bibliography

* Drake, Samuel Adams
''History of Middlesex County, Massachusetts'', Volume 1 (A-H) Volume 2 (L-W)
published 1879 and 1880. 572 and 505 pages
Somerville article
by E.C.Booth in volume 2 pages 309–338
Somerville Fire Local 76
. * Dutton, E.P
Chart of Boston Harbor and Massachusetts Bay with Map of Adjacent Country.
Published 1867. * * Ostrander, Susan A. ''Citizenship and Governance in a Changing City: Somerville, MA'' (Temple University Press; 2013) 190 pages; study of tensions between immigrants and a new middle class in politics and community activism * * Samuels, Edward Augustus; Kimball, Henry Hastings
"Somerville, past and present: an illustrated historical souvenir"
Boston : Samuels & Kimball, 1897 * Somerville, Arlington and Belmont Directory
186918731876
* * Wall & Gray
''1871 Atlas of Massachusetts''.Map of Massachusetts.Map of Middlesex County.


External links

*
Somerville Chamber of Commerce
{{authority control Cities in Massachusetts Irish-American neighborhoods Populated places established in 1630 Cities in Middlesex County, Massachusetts 1630 establishments in Massachusetts