Newtonville is one of the thirteen

villages A village is a human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet but smaller than a town with a population typically ranging from a few hundred to a few thousand. Although villages are often located in rural areas, the term urban village ...

within the city of Newton in Middlesex County,

Massachusetts Massachusetts ( ; ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Maine to its east, Connecticut and Rhode ...

, United States.

Geography

Newtonville is a predominantly residential neighborhood. It is divided into two parts by the

Massachusetts Turnpike The Massachusetts Turnpike (colloquially the "Mass Pike" or "the Pike") is a controlled-access toll road that runs concurrently with Interstate 90 (I-90) in the U.S. state of Massachusetts. It the longest Interstate Highway in Massachu ...

and the

MBTA Commuter Rail The MBTA Commuter Rail system serves as the commuter rail arm of the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority's (MBTA's) transportation coverage of Greater Boston in the United States. Trains run over of track on 12 lines to 142 stations. It ...

running through an open trench below grade, and requiring reconnection via several bridges over the trench. At the core of the village is the Newtonville Historic District. The Washington Park Historic District and many individual residential structures also have notable architectural features and history and appear on the

National Register of Historic Places listings in Newton, Massachusetts __NOTOC__ The following properties in Newton, Massachusetts are listed on the National Register of Historic Places. They are a subset of all properties in National Register of Historic Places listings in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, Middle ...

. The Star Market on Austin Street (briefly renamed "Shaw's") was one of the first projects in the country to acquire

air rights In real estate, air rights are the property interest in the "space" above the Earth's surface. Generally speaking, owning or renting land or a building includes the right to use and build in the space above the land without interference by oth ...

for construction; the supermarket is built over the Massachusetts Turnpike. Newtonville was once served by the now defunct Newton Nexus bus, a free service provided by the city of Newton. Walnut Street is the main street of the village. The urban section of the road is home to restaurants, bakeries, and cafes, several banks, multiple fitness centers, and dry cleaners. Branching off of Walnut is the Austin Street commercial area, which sports a

Starbucks Starbucks Corporation is an American multinational List of coffeehouse chains, chain of coffeehouses and Starbucks Reserve, roastery reserves headquartered in Seattle, Washington. It was founded in 1971 by Jerry Baldwin, Zev Siegl, and Gor ...

, restaurants, a toy store, and the air rights supermarket entrance. On the north side of the turnpike, on Washington Street (which runs parallel to the Massachusetts Turnpike) there are many more restaurants, hair salons, barber shops, nail salons, liquor stores, Newton's largest Post Office, and a Whole Foods supermarket. Located in Newtonville is Newton North High School, one of the city's two high schools, and Cabot Elementary School, one of the largest elementary schools in the city. The southern part of the village is home to Bullough's Pond and the Johnny Kelley Statue, marking the beginning of Heartbreak Hill for runners in the

Boston Marathon The Boston Marathon is an annual marathon race hosted by eight cities and towns in greater Boston in eastern Massachusetts, United States. It is traditionally held on Patriots' Day, the third Monday of April. Begun in 1897, the event was ins ...

. A

mixed-use development Mixed use is a type of urban development, urban design, urban planning and/or a zoning classification that blends multiple uses, such as residential, commercial, cultural, institutional, or entertainment, into one space, where those functions ...

known as Washington Place is nearing completion on the corner of Walnut and Washington Street in Newtonville's center. It brings 140 new residential units, 35 of which are affordable housing, of office space, and extra parking for nearby businesses and residents. The project is being developed by Mark Development. Newtonville is bordered by four other villages. Nonantum to the north, Newton Corner to the east, Newton Centre to the south, and West Newton to the west. Although Newton City Hall is located in Newton Centre, its property is contiguous with the border of Newtonville.

Transportation

Newtonville is bisected by the

, connecting it to neighboring villages in Newton and downtown

Boston Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...

. The village is served by the

's Framingham/Worcester Line at Newtonville station, and by

MBTA bus The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) operates List of MBTA bus routes, 152 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 59, 553, 554, and 556. Route 59 runs down Walnut Street through the center of the village and allows for transport to Watertown Square station, MBTA Newton Highlands Station on the Green Line D branch, and the

Needham Line The Needham Line is a branch of the MBTA Commuter Rail system, running west from downtown Boston, Massachusetts through Roxbury, Jamaica Plain, Roslindale, West Roxbury, and the town of Needham. The second-shortest line of the system at just ...

on the Commuter Rail.

Gallery

Notable people

* Alice Standish Allen (1907–2002), first female engineering geologist in North America * Sheldon Brown (1944–2008), bicycle mechanic, technical expert and author *

William Claflin William Claflin (March 6, 1818 – January 5, 1905) was an American politician, industrialist, and philanthropist from Massachusetts. He served as the 27th governor of Massachusetts from 1869 to 1872 and as a member of the United States Congre ...

(1818–1905), 27th Governor of Massachusetts * Charles Jay Connick (1875-1945), painter and designer of stained glass *

Julian Eltinge Julian Eltinge (May 14, 1881 – March 7, 1941), born William Julian Dalton, was an American Stage (theatre), stage and film actor and female impersonator. After appearing in the Boston Cadets Revue at the age of ten in feminine garb, Elting ...

(born William Julian Dalton; 1881–1941), actor *

Elisha Gray Elisha Gray (August 2, 1835 – January 21, 1901) was an American electrical engineering, electrical engineer who co-founded the Western Electric, Western Electric Manufacturing Company. Gray is best known for his Invention of the telephone, dev ...

(1835-1901), inventor * Josephine Hull (1877–1957), actress, Academy Award winner * Warren Huston (1913–1999), professional baseball player *

Kurt Lewin Kurt Lewin ( ; ; 9 September 1890 – 12 February 1947) was a German-American psychologist, known as one of the modern pioneers of social psychology, social, industrial and organizational psychology, organizational, and applied psychology in the ...

(1890–1947), philosopher, "founder of social psychology" * Lillie Eginton Warren (1859–1926), educator, author, school founder, inventor of Expression Reading

References

{{Middlesex County, Massachusetts Villages in Newton, Massachusetts Villages in Massachusetts

Geography

Transportation

Gallery

Notable people

See also

References