Cambridge, Massachusetts
Encyclopedia : C : CA : CAM : Cambridge, Massachusetts
Cambridge is a city in the Greater Boston area of Massachusetts, United States. It was named in honor of Cambridge, England. Cambridge is most famous for the two prominent universities that call it home: the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Harvard University. As of the 2000 census, the city population was 101,355, though even more people commute into Cambridge to work.
Cambridge is a county seat of Middlesex County, Massachusetts, along with Lowell. However, the county government was abolished in 1997. Although the county still exists as a geographical and political region, with Middlesex County courts and jails and such, county employees now work for the state.
About the city
The diversity of the population is striking. Residents, known as Cantabrigians, range from distinguished MIT and Harvard professors to working-class families to immigrants from around the world. The first legal same-sex civil marriage ceremonies in America were held in Cambridge's City Hall.
This diversity contributes to the liberal atmosphere, and may be compared to Berkeley, California, in some respects. This, along with the historic student protests of the past, and a long ago repealed "rent control" lead to the tongue-in-cheek moniker of the "People's Republic of Cambridge." In fact Cambridge today is a gentrifying upper-middle class city with a booming real estate market across the river from Boston. It is also known as "Boston's Left Bank".
Cambridge has also been called the "City of Squares" by some, as most of its commercial districts are major street intersections known as squares. Because most streets were laid out centuries ago, few of these squares resemble a geometric square in any way—Harvard Square is in fact formed by two converging curved streets. Each of the squares acts as something of a neighborhood center. These include:
- Kendall Square, formed by the junction of Broadway, Main Street, and Third Street. Just over the Longfellow Bridge from Boston, at the eastern end of the MIT campus. It is served by an MBTA Red Line station. Most of Cambridge's large office towers are located here, giving the area somewhat of an office park feel. A flourishing biotech industry has grown up around here. The "One Kendall Square" complex is nearby, but—confusingly—not actually in Kendall Square.
- Central Square, formed by the junction of Massachusetts Avenue, Prospect Street, and Western Avenue. This is perhaps the closest thing Cambridge has to a downtown, and is well-known for its wide variety of ethnic restaurants. Even as recently as the late 1990s it was rather run-down; it underwent a controversial gentrification in recent years, and continues to grow more expensive. It is served by a Red Line station. Lafayette Square, formed by the junction of Massachusetts Avenue, Columbia Street, Sidney Street, and Main Street, is considered a part of the Central Square area.
- Harvard Square, formed by the junction of Mass. Avenue, Brattle Street, and JFK Street. This is the site of Harvard University, the oldest university in the United States and is a major Cambridge shopping area (although not as exclusively so as in years past). It is served by a Red Line station. The neighborhood north of Harvard but east of Mass Ave is known as Agassiz in honor of the famed scientist Louis Agassiz.
- Porter Square, about a mile north on Mass. Ave from Harvard Square, formed by the junction of Mass. Ave and Somerville Ave, and including part of the city of Somerville. It is served by the Porter Square station which includes a Red Line stop and a Fitchburg Line commuter rail stop in the same building.
- Inman Square, at the junction of Cambridge and Hampshire streets in Mid-Cambridge. The most "funky" and "unique" of the squares, Inman Square is home to many diverse restaurants, bars and boutiques. Ryles Jazz Club and the S&S Deli are two legends of Inman Square. The funky street scene still holds some urban flair but was dressed up recently with victorian street lights, benches and bus-stops. A new community park was installed and is a favorite place to enjoy some takeout food from the nearby restaurants and ice cream parlor.
- Lechmere Square, at the junction of Cambridge and First streets, adjacent to the CambridgeSide Galleria shopping mall. Perhaps best known as the eastern terminus of the MBTA Green Line subway.
- Cambridgeport, west of Central Square to the Charles River
- Riverside, south of Massachusetts Avenue to the Charles River between Central and Harvard Squares
- East Cambridge
- Wellington-Harrington
- North Cambridge
- Agassiz
- Avon Hill
- Mid Cambridge, bounded by Central, Harvard, Inman Squares, and the City of Somerville.
- Brattle Street
- Strawberry Hill
Although one often sees references to the "Boston/Cambridge area" in print, Cambridge prefers to retain its own unique identity.
History
Cambridge was established as the town of "Newtowne" in 1630. Newtowne was one of a number of towns (including Boston, Dorchester, Watertown, and Weymouth) founded by the 700 original Puritan colonists of the Massachusetts Bay Colony under governor John Winthrop. The original village site was the heart of today's Harvard Square, while the town included a much larger area than the present city, with various outlying parts becoming independent towns over the years: Newton (originally Newtown) in 1690, Lexington (Cambridge Farms) in 1712, and Arlington (West Cambridge) and Brighton (Little Cambridge), which has since been annexed by Boston, in 1807
In 1636 Harvard College was founded by the colony to train ministers and Newtowne was chosen for its site. In 1638 the name was changed to "Cambridge" (after Cambridge, England) to reflect its status as the center for higher education in the colony.
Cambridge grew slowly as an agricultural village eight miles by road from Boston, the capital of the colony. By the American Revolution, most residents lived near the Common and Harvard College, with farms and estates comprising most of the town. Most of the inhabitants were descendants of the original Puritan colonists, but there was also a small elite of Anglicans "worthies" who were not involved in village life, made their livings from estates, investments, and trade, and lived in mansions along "the Road to Watertown" (today's Brattle Street), which is known as Tory Row. Most of these estates were confiscated after the revolution and sold to Loyalists.
Between 1790 and 1840, Cambridge began to grow rapidly with the construction of the West Boston Bridge in 1792 that connected Cambridge directly to Boston, making it no longer necessary to travel eight miles through the Boston Neck, Roxbury, and Brookline to cross the Charles River. A second bridge, the Canal Bridge, opened in 1809 alongside the new Middlesex Canal. The new bridges and roads made what were formerly estates and marshland prime industrial and residential districts. Soon after, turnpikes were built: the Concord Turnpike (today's Broadway and Concord Ave.), the Middlesex Turnpike (Hampshire St. and Massachusetts Ave. northwest of Porter Square), and what are today's Cambridge, Main, and Harvard Streets were roads to connect various areas of Cambridge to the bridges. In addition, railroads crisscrossed the town during the same era, leading to the development of Porter Square as well as the creation of neighboring town Somerville from the formerly rural parts of Charlestown.
Cambridge was incorporated as the second city in Massachusetts in 1846. Its commercial center also began to shift from Harvard Square to Central Square, which became the downtown of the city. Between 1850 and 1900, Cambridge took on much of its present character — streetcar suburban development along the turnpikes, with working-class and industrial neighborhoods focused on East Cambridge, comfortable middle-class housing being built on old estates in Cambridgeport and Mid-Cambridge, and upper-class enclaves near Harvard University and on the minor hills of the city. The coming of the railroad to North Cambridge and Northwest Cambridge then led to three major changes in the city: the development of massive brickyards and brickworks between Massachusetts Ave., Concord Ave. and Alewife Brook; the ice-cutting industry launched by Frederic Tudor on Fresh Pond; and the carving up of the last estates into residential subdivisions to provide housing to the thousands of immigrants that moved to work in the new industries.
By 1920, Cambridge was one of the main industrial cities of New England with nearly 120,000 residents. As industry in New England began to decline during the Great Depression and after World War II, Cambridge lost much of its industrial base. It also began the transition to being an intellectual, rather than an industrial, center. Harvard University had always been important in the city (both as a landowner and as an institution), but began to play a more dominant role in the city's life and culture. Also, the move of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology from Boston in 1912 ensured Cambridge's status as an intellectual center of the United States.
After the 1950s, the city population began to decline slowly, as families were replaced by single people and young couples, and by the end of the twentieth century, Cambridge had one of the most expensive housing markets in the Northeastern United States. While maintaining much diversity in class, race, and age, it became harder and harder for those who grew up in the city to be able to afford to stay.
Geography
Cambridge is located at [Geographic references#1GR1].According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 18.5 km² (7.1 mi²). 16.7 km² (6.4 mi²) of it is land and 1.8 km² (0.7 mi²) of it (9.82%) is water.
Cambridge is bordered by the city of Boston on its south (across the Charles River) and east, by the city of Somerville and the town of Arlington to its north, and by the city of Watertown and town of Belmont to its west.
Demographics
As of the census[Geographic references#2GR2] of 2000, there were 101,355 people, 42,615 households, and 17,599 families residing in the city. The population density was 6,086.1/km² (15,766.1/mi²), making Cambridge the 5th most densely populated city in the U.S.County and City Data Book: 2000. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Commerce, Bureau of the Census. Table C-1. There were 44,725 housing units at an average density of 2,685.6/km² (6,957.1/mi²). The racial makeup of the city was 68.10% White, 11.92% Black or African American, 0.29% Native American, 11.88% Asian, 0.08% Pacific Islander, 3.19% from other races, and 4.56% from two or more races. 7.36% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.There were 42,615 households out of which 17.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 29.1% were married couples living together, 9.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 58.7% were non-families. 41.4% of all households were made up of individuals and 9.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.03 and the average family size was 2.83.
In the city the population was spread out with 13.3% under the age of 18, 21.2% from 18 to 24, 38.6% from 25 to 44, 17.8% from 45 to 64, and 9.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 30 years. For every 100 females there were 96.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 94.7 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $47,979, and the median income for a family was $59,423. Males had a median income of $43,825 versus $38,489 for females. The per capita income for the city was $31,156. About 8.7% of families and 12.9% of the population were below the poverty line, including 15.1% of those under age 18 and 12.9% of those age 65 or over.
Economy
Although manufacturing was an important part of the late 19th and early 20th-century Cambridge economy, today long-established educational institutions are its biggest employers; Harvard employs over 10,000 people and MIT over 9,500 as of 2006. As a famous cradle of technological innovation, Cambridge has also been home to legendary technology firms, including Akamai, BBN, Lotus Development Corporation (now part of IBM), Polaroid, and Thinking Machines.Over the years, as companies have grown, prospered, and then either moved away or gone out of business (see this [list] of employers for more information), Cambridge's large-scale employment has shifted tremendously. In 1996, Polaroid, Arthur D. Little, and Lotus were all top employers with over 1,000 people in Cambridge, and all declined or disappeared a few years later. As of 2005, alongside Harvard and MIT, health care and biotechnology dominate the Cambridge economy, with Genzyme, Biogen Idec, and Novartis the biggest players. Biotech's geographical locus is Kendall Square and East Cambridge, the center of much of the city's manufacturing a century before. None of the computer-industry firms that once dominated the Cambridge economy are top-20 employers as of 2005. However, many smaller start-ups and entrepreneurial companies remain an important part of the Cambridge employment scene.
Law and government
Cambridge has a 9-member City Council, and a 6-member School Committee. The councillors and school committee members are elected every two years using the single transferable vote (STV) system. [link] Since the disbanding of the New York City Community School Boards in 2002, the Council is unusual in being the only governing body in the United States to use STV [link]. Once a laborious process that took several days to complete, vote counting is now done by computer.The mayor is elected by the city councillors, from amongst themselves, and serves as the chair of City Council meetings. The mayor also sits on the School Committee. However, the Mayor is not the Chief Executive of the City. Rather, the City Manager, who is appointed by the City Council, serves in that capacity. Robert W. Healy is currently the City Manager.
Education
Colleges and universities
- Cambridge College
- Harvard University
- Lesley University
- Longy School of Music
- Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Schools
Cambridge is host to many public and private schools serving the children of Cambridge.The 12 public elementary schools include:
- Amigos School
- Baldwin School
- Cambridgeport School
- Fletcher-Maynard Academy
- Graham & Parks School
- Haggerty School
- Kennedy/Longfellow School
- King Open School
- Martin Luther King Jr. School
- Morse School
- Peabody School
- Tobin School
There are many other private schools in the region, serving a variety of needs in both parents and students. Some examples are the Cambridge Montessori School, Cambridge Friends School,Matignon High School, The Shady Hill School, Buckingham Browne & Nichols (also known as BB&N) and German International School Boston (also known as GISBOS), The International School of Boston (also known as ISB, formerly Ecole Bilingue)
Transportation
Road
Cambridge has an irregular street network due to the fact that many of the roads date from the colonial era. Contrary to popular belief, the road system did not evolve from longstanding cow-paths. Roads connected various village settlements with each other and nearby towns, and were shaped by geographic features, most notably streams, hills, and swampy areas. Several major roads lead to Cambridge, including the Massachusetts Turnpike (Exit 18), Route 2, Route 16 and the McGrath Highway (Route 28). Massachusetts Avenue runs the length of the city. The Charles River forms the southern border of Cambridge and is crossed by 11 bridges, 8 of which are open to motorized road traffic. (Part of the new I-93 bridges might also cut across a corner of Cambridge without providing any access.)It can be hard to find a place to park in Cambridge. Main streets have metered parking. Parking on most other streets is restricted to residents with a sticker, even in areas without a parking shortage. Nonresidents cannot park in these spaces for any length of time, except on Sundays, or with a visitor permit lent by a resident. Streets are cleaned once a month (over two days, one day per side of the street), except January through March. If you park on the wrong side of street on that street's cleaning day your car will be towed. City policy discourages public off-street parking, in favor of reserved parking for residential and commercial tenants, so paid off-street parking is very expensive, and is nonexistent in many areas.
Mass transit
Cambridge has one stop on the Green Line and five stops on the Red Line. Alewife Station, with its large parking garage ($5 per day as of November 2005), is an ideal place for visitors (coming from the area to the northwest) to leave their cars if their destination is near a T station, although like many other Boston-area commuter lots, it tends to fill on workday mornings, and there can be major delays driving out of the garage during the evening rush. There are also several bus routes, with major local bus terminals at Alewife, Harvard Square, Central Square, and Lechmere Square, and four trolleybus routes that originate at Harvard Square. There is a bus tunnel beneath, and thus buses do not further clog up the roadways there. The tunnel was originally opened for streetcars in 1912. Both trackless trolleys and diesel buses use the tunnel, which was reconstructed when service along the Red Line was extended through the square to Alewife in the early 1980s.Cycling
Cambridge has several bike paths, including one along the Charles River [link], the Minuteman Bikeway and the Linear Park connecting Alewife and the Somerville Community Path. Bike parking is common and there are bike lanes on many streets, although concerns have been expressed regarding the suitability of many of the lanes. From time to time, police target their traffic enforcement efforts towards bicyclists who do not follow the Rules of the Road for vehicles, especially going through red lights, failure to stop for pedestrians at unsignalized crosswalks, riding on the wrong side of the street or the wrong way on a one-way street, and riding without a headlight at night. Cambridge has an active, official bicycle committee.Intercity
Intercity buses and Amtrak stop at South Station in Boston, which is a short ride on the Red Line from Cambridge. Logan International Airport is easy to get to by car or taxi. It can also be reached via mass transit either by taking the Red Line to South Station and transferring to the Silver Line SL1 bus (which serves the terminals directly), or by taking the Green Line to Government Center and transferring to the Blue Line and going to the Airport stop (and then taking a Massport shuttle bus to the terminals).
Points of interest
- Cambridge, Massachusetts City Hall
- Charles River
- Cooper-Frost-Austin House
- Elmwood
- Asa Gray House
- Harvard University
- Hooper-Lee-Nichols House
- Longfellow National Historic Site
- Massachusetts Institute of Technology
- Fresh Pond
- Mount Auburn Cemetery
- Cambridge Common
Famous people associated with Cambridge
- John Adams
- Bhumibol Adulyadej, King of Thailand
- Ben Affleck
- Louis Agassiz
- Sara Mae Berman
- Traci Bingham
- Julia Child
- Bill Cleary
- Noam Chomsky
- E. E. Cummings
- Matt Damon
- Doc Edgerton
- Charles Eliot
- Charles William Eliot
- Patrick Ewing
- Richard P. Feynman
- Benjamin Franklin
- John Kenneth Galbraith
- Louise Glück
- Juliana Hatfield
- Oliver Wendell Holmes
- Henry James
- William James
- Henry Kissinger
- John F. Kennedy
- Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
- Lois Lowry
- James Russell Lowell
- Yo-Yo Ma
- Charles Eliot Norton
- Tip O'Neill
- Robert Reich
- Frederick Hastings Rindge
- Rumeal Robinson
- Sam Waterston
- Norbert Wiener
- Nathaniel Jarvis Wyeth
- Morrill Wyman
- For more, see [Famous People from Cambridge] on the Mass.info page
Sister cities
Cambridge has eight sister cities, as designated by [Sister Cities International, Inc. (SCI)]:- Cambridge, England, UK
- Coimbra, Portugal
- Cienfuegos, Cuba
- Gaeta, Italy
- Galway, Ireland
- San Jose Las Flores, El Salvador
- Tsukuba Science City, Japan
- Yerevan, Armenia
Sources
Surveys of Architectural History in Cambridge:- Survey of Architectural History in Cambridge: Mid Cambridge, 1967
- Survey of Architectural History in Cambridge: Cambridgeport, 1971 ISBN 0262530139
- Survey of Architectural History in Cambridge: Old Cambridge, 1973
- Survey of Architectural History in Cambridge: Northwest Cambridge, 1977 ISBN 0262530325
- Survey of Architectural History in Cambridge: East Cambridge, 1988 (revised) ISBN 0262530783
External links
- [Official City Page]
- [A Brief History of Cambridge]
- [Cambridge Chamber of Commerce]
- [Cambridge Public Library]
- [Cambridge Public Schools Homepage]
- [Cambridge Rindge and Latin Homepage]
- [Cambridge Civic Journal by Robert Winters]
- [Cambridge Chronicle Online]
- [Harvard Film Archive]
- [The Brattle Theater]
- [Cambridge Center For Adult Education]
- [Rotary Club of Cambridge]
- [Cambridge Maps]
- [Cambridge, MA Flickr Group Photo Pool]
- #redirect
- [Maps and aerial photos]
- * Street map from [Google Maps] or [Yahoo! Maps]
- * Topographic map from [TopoZone]
- * Aerial image or topographic map from [TerraServer-USA]
- * Satellite image from [Google Maps] or [Windows Live Local]
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