Quincy, Massachusetts
Encyclopedia : Q : QU : QUI : Quincy, Massachusetts
Quincy is a city in Norfolk County, Massachusetts and bears the nickname "The City of Presidents". As of the 2000 census, the city had a total population of 88,025. Quincy was formed in 1792 and named for Colonel John Quincy, and was originally part of Braintree. Contrary to appearances, the city's name is pronounced as "Kwin-zee".
Quincy was the birthplace of the noted minimalist artist, Carl Andre, presidents John Adams and John Quincy Adams, United States Declaration of Independence signer and first Massachusetts governor John Hancock, actors Ruth Gordon, Lee Remick and Billy DeWolfe, former ESPN and Monday Night Football reporter Lesley Visser, writer John Cheever, and surf guitarist Dick Dale. Howard Johnson's and Dunkin Donuts also started here.
History
Quincy was first settled by English immigrants in 1625, as Mount Wollaston (with a most unusual history), subsequently became part of Braintree, Massachusetts, was officially incorporated as a separate town in 1792, and made a city in 1888.Among its several firsts was the Granite Railway, the first commercial railroad in the United States. It was constructed to carry granite from a quarry in Quincy to the Neponset River in Milton so that the stone could be taken to build the Bunker Hill Monument in Charlestown, Massachusetts. Quincy granite became famous throughout the nation, and stonecutting became the city's principal economic activity.
Second was shipbuilding. Sailing ships were built in Quincy for many years, and the final known clipper ship built was in Germantown in the 1870s. The Fore River area became a shipbuilding center in the 1880s -- originally owned by Thomas Watson of telephone fame -- and many famous warships were built at the Fore River Shipyard, including the aircraft carrier USS Lexington (CV-2), the battleships USS Massachusetts (BB-59) and USS Nevada (BB-36), and the USS Salem (CA-139), the world's last all-gun heavy warship, which is still preserved at Fore River as the main exhibit of the United States Naval Ship Building Museum. John J. Kilroy, the author of the famous Kilroy Was Here graffiti, was a welding inspector at Fore River.
Quincy was also an aviation pioneer; Dennison Field in the Squantum section of town was partially developed by Amelia Earhart. In 1910 it was the site of the Harvard Aero Meet, only the second air show in America. It was later leased to the Navy for an airfield, and served as a reserve Squantum Naval Air base into the 1950s.
Demographics
As of the census² of 2000, there were 88,025 people, 38,883 households, and 20,530 families residing in the city. The population density was 2,025.4/km² (5,244.3/mi²). There were 40,093 housing units at an average density of 922.5/km² (2,388.7/mi²). The racial makeup of the city was 79.60% White, 2.21% African American, 0.16% Native American, 15.39% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 0.85% from other races, and 1.76% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 2.08% of the population.There were 38,883 households out of which 20.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 38.7% were married couples living together, 10.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 47.2% were non-families. 37.6% of all households were made up of individuals and 13.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.22 and the average family size was 3.03.
In the city the population was spread out with 17.5% under the age of 18, 8.1% from 18 to 24, 36.1% from 25 to 44, 22.1% from 45 to 64, and 16.3% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females there were 91.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 88.5 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $47,121, and the median income for a family was $59,735. Males had a median income of $40,720 versus $34,238 for females. The per capita income for the city was $26,001. About 5.2% of families and 7.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 10.1% of those under age 18 and 7.0% of those age 65 or over.
See also
- The Abigail Adams Cairn
- John Adams birthplace
- John Quincy Adams birthplace
- The Josiah Quincy House
- The Old House
- The Quincy Plan
- Thomas Crane Public Library
- United First Parish Church
External links
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