Brookline

 

Brookline

Brookline is a jewel of a suburb. Cheek to jowl with Boston – it has

managed to maintain its own identity – a unique mixture of busy streets and

rolling countryside, upscale shops and village pubs, gracious apartment

buildings and large estates, and home for legions of academic and

scientific professionals, who work at the nearby medical centers in Boston.

Brookline has staunchly refused to be absorbed by Boston, which surrounds

it like a horseshoe. A community of 6.6 square miles and almost 55,000

people. Brookline has kept its town meeting form of government since 1705,

when this “Muddy River” farmland of Boston became incorporated and named

for the brooks that formed its boundaries.

Among its many unusual resources, Brookline has its own working farm (with

farm stand), the oldest country club in the nation, a town golf course, the

home in which John F. Kennedy was born, a magnificent park on a hillside

overlooking Boston with a wonderful open air skating rink and marvelous

transportation museum, and numerous neighborhood parks and playgrounds

scattered throughout the Town. Its major retail centers, like Coolidge

Corner and Brookline Village, are bustling pedestrian-oriented shopping

areas with a variety of shops – antique stores, coffee shops, bookstores,

fresh fruit and vegetable markets, delicatessens and restaurants.

Along with offering both a city atmosphere and a feeling of being in the

country, there is a wonderful mix of people in Brookline: elderly,

minorities, immigrants from many lands, young families and college

students. It is said that the student body at Brookline High School — a

nationally renowned institution — includes students from more than 50

different countries.

Although predominantly residential, Brookline is anxious to attract new

commercial development, and in just the last two years, the Town has

amended its zoning to encourage new growth along its major thoroughfares.

With its good schools (both public and private), good transportation

(several branches of the MBTA Green Line traverse the Town), and good

government, Brookline is a choice spot in which to reside or establish a

business.

Dorchester

 

Dorchester

Dorchester is a neighborhood of Boston, Massachusetts. It is named after the town of Dorchester, Dorset in the England county of Dorset, from which Puritans emigrated. Dorchester, including a large portion of today’s Boston, was separately incorporated in 1630. History of Dorchester, Massachusetts] It was still a primarily rural town and had a population of 12,000 when annexed to Boston in 1870. Railroad and streetcar lines brought rapid growth, increasing the population to 150,000 by 1920. It is now a large, diverse working class community with many European Americans, African Americans, Caribbean Americans, Latinos, and East and Southeast Asian Americans, and is still a center of Irish American immigration.

Dorchester is Boston’s largest and most populous neighborhood. Due to its size of about six square miles, it is often divided for statistical purposes. North Dorchester includes the portion north of Quincy Street, East Street and Freeport Street. South Bay Center and Newmarket industrial area are major sources of employment. The main business district in this part of Dorchester is Uphams Corner, at the intersection of Dudley Street and Columbia Road. The Harbor Point area (formerly known as Columbia Point (Boston)) is also the home of several large employers, including the Boston campus of the University of Massachusetts Boston, the Massachusetts Archives, and the John F. Kennedy Library. The southern area of Dorchester is bordered to the east by Dorchester Bay and to the south by the Neponset River.

Dorchester Avenue is the major neighborhood spine, running in a south-north line through all of Dorchester from Lower Mills to downtown Boston. The southern part of Dorchester is primarily a residential area, with established neighborhoods still defined by parishes, and occupied by families for generations. Yet it continues to change, as best observed in the growth of its distinct commercial districts: Bowdoin/Geneva, Fields Corner, Codman Square, Peabody Square, Adams Village and Lower Mills. Other Dorchester neighborhoods include Savin Hill, Jones Hill, Four Corners, Franklin Field, Franklin Hill, Ashmont, Meeting House Hill, Neponset, Popes Hill and Port Norfolk.

The eastern areas of Dorchester (especially between Adams Street and Dorchester Bay) are primarily ethnic European people and Asian people, with a large population of Irish Americans and Vietnamese Americans, while the residents of the western, central and parts of the southern sections of the neighborhood are predominantly African Americans. In Neponset, the southeast corner of the neighborhood, as well as parts of Savin Hill in the north and Cedar Grove in the south, Irish Americans maintain the most visible identity. In the northern section of Dorchester and southwestern section of South Boston is the Polish Triangle, where recent Polish people immigrants are residents. In recent years Dorchester has also seen an influx of young working professionals, gay men, and working artists (in areas like Lower Mills, Peabody Square and Savin Hill).

Savin Hill, as well as Fields Corner, have large Vietnamese American populations. Uphams Corner contains a Cape Verdean American community, the largest concentration of people of Cape Verdean origin within Boston city limits. Western, central and parts of southern Dorchester have a large Caribbean population (especially people from Haiti, Jamaica, Barbados, and Trinidad and Tobago). They are most heavily represented in the Codman Square, Franklin Field and the Ashmont area, although there are also significant numbers in Four Corners and Fields Corner. Significant numbers of African Americans live in the Harbor Point, Uphams Corner, Fields Corner, Four Corners and Franklin Field areas.

Hull

 

Hull

Originally our town was known as Nantasket before being changed to Hull. Established in 1644, Hull was a fishing and trading town with a small population of hardworking hardy souls.  As a peninsula, Hull was a very strategic town during the time of the Revolutionary War because of its proximity to Boston’s very important and busy harbor.

Fort Independence was built in 1776 to help defend the harbor from British attack. In days of old, Hull had become a favorite place to ‘summer’ for many a traveler. With its grand hotels, restaurants and frequent boats from Boston, Hull had become a world destination.

Paragon Park was a popular amusement park, with a Roller Coaster, which at one time was one of the biggest in the world.  The slow growth of the 1980′s forced Paragon to be sold and converted to condominiums, now known as Horizons.

Hull used to have a population influx from summer to winter of many thousands of people. With the modernization of many homes and more year-round people, Hull now averages a population over 10,000 people.

Milton

 

Milton

Settled in 1640, Milton was once part of Dorchester, MA and was referred to as “Unquety”, the term used by the Neponset Tribe of the Massachusetts Indians as meaning “Lower Falls” which was translated into the Lower Mills after the establishment of the Stoughton Grist Mill in 1634.  In 1662, “that part of the Town of Dorchester which is situated on the south side of the Naponsett River commonly called “Unquatiquisset” was established as an independent town and named Milton in honor of Milton Abbey, Dorset, England.

The Neponset River powered industry early in the Milton village area attracting settlers and other commercial endeavors.  A grist mill evolved into a chocolate mill, which later become the Walter Baker Chocolate Factory, the first chocolate producer in the colonies.  At that time, all chocolate was imported in the form of cocoa beans that had to be ground by hand with a mortar and pestle.   Needless to say, the chocolate business was a great success.  The Walter Baker Chocolate Factory produced chocolate until 1965, when the building was converted into apartments.  The Neponset River still thunders over the old dam on its way out to the Neponset Estuary and the sea.

Milton still retains a good many 19th century country houses and estates and early 19th century workers’ housing, including the Forbes House and the Suffolk Resolves House, and field stone walls forming property boundaries are not uncommon.

Milton has several small commercial areas including Milton Village and East Milton Square. Current Town plans include making improvements to the Milton Village area. This includes streetscape improvements to Adams Street and Central Avenue, four station rehabilitation projects along the Red Line’s Trolley Service and a new zoning overlay district to encourage revitalization.

The Milton Public School system consists of 6 schools: 4 elementary (Collicott, Cunningham, Tucker and Glover), the Pierce Middle School, and Milton High School. During the last five years, Milton has made rebuilding aging school structures a priority.  All of the schools have undergone or are currently undergoing renovation or construction.

Milton is also the home of renowned private schools such as Milton Academy, Fontbonne Academy, and Curry College.

Milton is a contemporary suburban community in eastern Massachusetts that prides itself on a rich historical heritage, tree-lined streets, and acres of protected open space.  Milton is unique in that it has the most privately and publicly conserved land within 20 miles of Boston, giving the town a bucolic atmosphere in close proximity to the cultural and business opportunities in the Greater Boston area.

Milton residents have quick access to major highways such as Routes 128, Interstate 93 and Interstate 95. Residents can also access the Red Line into Boston via the Mattapan Trolley.

Newton

 

Newton

Newton was settled in 1630 as part of “the newe towne”, which was renamed Cambridge in 1638. It was incorporated as a separate town, known as Cambridge Village, in 1688, then renamed Newtown in 1691, and finally Newton in 1766. It became a city in 1873. Newton is known as The Garden City.

In Reflections in Bullough’s Pond, Newton historian Diana Muir describes the early industries that developed in the late 18th and early 19th centuries in a series of mills built to take advantage of the water power available at Newton Upper Falls and Newton Lower Falls. Snuff, chocolate, glue, paper and other products were produced in these small mills but, according to Muir, the water power available in Newton was not sufficient to turn Newton into a manufacturing city.

Newton, according to Muir, became one of America’s earliest commuter suburbs. The Boston and Worcester, one of America’s earliest railroads, reached West Newton in 1834. Gracious homes sprang up almost instantly on erstwhile farmland on West Newton hill, as men wealthy enough to afford a country seat, but whose business demanded that they be in their downtown Boston offices during the business day, took advantage of the new commuting opportunity offered by the railroad. Muir points out that these early commuters needed sufficient wealth to employ a groom and keep horses, to drive them from their hilltop homes to the station.

Further suburbanization came in waves. One wave began with the streetcar lines that made many parts of Newton accessible for commuters in the late nineteenth century, the next wave came in the 1920s when automobiles became affordable to a growing upper middle class. Even then, however, Oak Hill continued to be farmed, mostly market gardening, until the prosperity of the 1950s made all of Newton more densely settled. Newton is not a typical “commuter suburb” since many people who live in Newton do not work in downtown Boston. Most Newtonites work in Newton and other surrounding cities and towns.

The city has two symphony orchestras, the New Philharmonia Orchestra of Massachusetts and the Newton Symphony Orchestra.

The Newton Free Library possesses more than 500,000 volumes of print materials (2004), as well as art, both original and prints, sound recordings and videos: the largest collection in the Minuteman Library Network.

The Newton Public Schools is considered one of the finest school systems in the Commonwealth.

Each April on Patriots Day, the Boston Marathon is run through the city, entering from Wellesley on Route 16 (Washington Street) where runners encounter the first of the four infamous Newton Hills. It then turns right onto Route 30 (Commonwealth Avenue) for the long haul into Boston. There are two more hills before reaching Centre Street, and then the fourth and most infamous of all, Heartbreak Hill, rises shortly after Centre Street. Residents and visitors line the race route along Washington Street and Commonwealth Avenue to cheer the runners.

South Boston

 

South Boston

South Boston traditionally has been an Irish-Catholic neighborhood but has recently seen a large influx of young professionals and families looking for quick access to Downtown Boston and public transportation, and a strong sense of community. South Boston’s waterfront also has some of the city’s best local beaches and a beautiful park called Castle Island, which residents can explore and enjoy during the summer. Castle Island is home to a Revolutionary War fort used to defend Boston Harbor.

South Boston consists of traditional, triple-decker homes, most of which have been converted into condominiums during the real estate boom of the past few years. There is also new construction, with large, luxury residential projects popping up in sections of South Boston, many of which may appeal to those who want a full-service lifestyle with amenities such as a concierge, pool, gym, and more

Rockland

Rockland
Rockland was settled by European settlers, led by James Walshie, as a northeastern region of neighboring Abington in 1673. The town separated and incorporated as Rockland on March 9, 1874. It is named for the town’s rocky nature, which was better suited for mills and industry than for farming. During King Philip’s War, the town was the site of an encampment during his raids on the town of Scituate.[2]
During the twentieth century, the town was the site of a portion of the landing strips of the South Weymouth Naval Air Station. The airstrip closed in 1996 as a part of the fourth round of closures under the Base Realignment and Closure Act.
Rockland is approximately 20 miles from Boston; 8 miles from Brockton, and is bordered by the following towns: North by Weymouth and Hingham, South by Hanson, East by Norwell and Hanover; and West by Whitman and Abington
Rockland, as its name suggests, is dominated by rocky lands. There are several ponds throughout the town, including Accord Pond at the junction with Hingham and Norwell, and Studleys Pond (known to local residents as Reeds Pond) just south of Rockland Center, can be seen along Market Street. There are several brooks throughout town, one of which is sourced at the Abington-Rockland Reservoir near the northeast corner of town. Beech Hill lies at the south of town, and Wyman Fields lies to the north of it. There are several parks throughout the town, as well as a small town forest just south of the Naval Air Station.
The Old colony line does pass through neighboring Weymouth, Abington and Whitman, as part of the Kingston-Route 3 line of the MBTA’s commuter rail. There are stops in South Weymouth (alongside the Naval Air Station) and Abington (just south of Route 123), not far from the town line.
Rockland operates its own school system for the town’s approximately 2,500 students. There are three elementary schools (Jefferson, Memorial Park and R. Stewart Esten) which serve students from kindergarten to fifth grade. The John W. Rogers Middle School is located adjacent to Memorial Park, in the former high school building, and serves sixth through eighth grades. Rockland High School is located around the corner from the park, and serves ninth through twelfth grade students.
In addition to the high school, students may attend South Shore Vocational Technical High School in Hanover free of charge. The town also has two private schools, Calvary Chapel Academy and Holy Family School. Calvary Chapel Academy is a growing Christian school currently serving from kindergarten through twelfth grade. The Holy Family School is a Catholic parochial school which extends to eighth grade, and is associated with the Holy Family Church of Rockland.

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Bridgewater

Bridgewater
The Town of Bridgewater is a city[1] in Plymouth County, Massachusetts, United States, 28 miles (43 km) south of Boston. At the 2000 Census, the population was 25,185. It is named after Bridgwater, Somerset, England.
Bridgewater was formerly governed on the local level by the open town meeting form of government, led by a board of selectmen until January 2011. Bridgewater is now led by seven precinct councilors, 1 per precinct, and 2 at large councilors, with an appointed town manager, assessor, tax collector, for a total of 9 councilors.[1] This is from the majority Yes vote on #1 at the April 24, 2010 annual town election, to change from a 5 person elected board of selectmen to a 9 person town council, and thus abolishing the annual town meeting. Town facilities are located at the center of town, with the police department headquarters being just west of the square along Route 104. There are two fire departments in town, next to the college and in the eastern part of town. There is one post office, located just north of the town center along Route 18. The town’s public library is just north of the town center, and is a part of the Southeastern Area Internet Library Services (SAILS) network
Bridgewater shares its school district with neighboring Raynham, with both towns operating their own elementary and middle schools, and sending their students to a common high school. Bridgewater has one elementary school, George H. Mitchell Elementary (south and west of the town center, formerly known as Bridgewater Elementary), which serves students from kindergarten through grade three. All the fourth, fifth, and sixth graders attend M.G. Williams Intermediate School, while seventh and eighth graders attend Bridgewater Middle School. The Bridgewater-Raynham Regional High School is located in Bridgewater, west of the town center. B-R’s athletics teams are nicknamed the Trojans, and their colors are red and white. The athletic teams of the Bridgewater Middle School use the Spartans nickname.
Bridgewater is home to the Southbrook School, a private school which serves students from kindergarten through sixth grade. There are also private schools in nearby Taunton and Brockton. Bridgewater was formerly the site of the Bridgewater Academy, a private high school located on the town common.
The town is also home to Bridgewater State University, a public liberal arts university that was originally founded as a teachers school in 1840. It is the largest of the state’s nine state universities outside of the University of Massachusetts system. As of 2005, approximately 7,000 undergraduate students and 1,800 postgraduate students are enrolled at the college.

Abington

Abington
Abington was first settled by European settlers in 1668. The lands included the current towns of Bridgewater, Rockland, Whitman and parts of Hanover. The town was officially incorporated in 1712, having been named six years earlier by Governor Adam Buckley, as a tribute to Anne Venables Bertie, Countess of Abington, England, who helped him secure the governorship of the Colony from Queen Anne.
During the nineteenth and early twentieth century, the manufacture of boots and shoes was its primary industry, with nearly half of the footwear provided for the Union Army during the Civil War being provided by Abington factories. In 1874 and 1875, the towns of Rockland and Whitman, respectively, separated and incorporated as towns. In 1893, the town was the site of a riot between town constables and workers from the New York, New Haven & Hartford Railroad, over the town’s rights to build a streetcar line that crossed the railroad’s tracks. The town eventually built the line, and as a “peace offering,” the railroad built the North Abington Depot building, which was built in the style of H. H. Richardson
Abington is 19 miles southeast of Boston. It is a quick 25 minute commuter rail ride to Boston.
Abington is governed by the open town meeting form of government, and is led by a town manager and a board of selectmen. The town operates its own police and fire department, with firehouses located in the north and south of town along Route 18. There are two post offices in town, on Route 123 east of Route 18 and on Route 58 north of Route 139. The Abington Public Library, a member of the Old Colony Library Network, is located adjacent to the town hall, both of which opened in 1997 across from the high school. The town operates a park, Island Grove Park, located in the southeast of town.
Abington has its own school department for the town’s approximately 2,300 students. The Abington Early Childhood Center, located near the center of town, serves students from pre-kindergarten through third grade. There is one elementary school (Woodsdale Elementary near the Ames Nowell State Forest), which serves students from fourth through sixth grades. The Charles M. Frolio Junior High School is located near the center of town, and serves seventh and eighth grade students. Abington High School is located just west of Route 18, down the street from the Town Hall and library. Abington’s colors are green, gold, and white, and their teams are known as the Green Wave. The school’s chief rival is Whitman-Hanson Regional High, whom they play in an annual Thanksgiving Day football game. High school students may also choose to attend South Shore Vocational-Technical High School in Hanover free of charge. Abington is also home to Saint Bridget School, a Catholic parochial school along Route 58, which serves students from kindergarten through eighth grade. There are other private schools nearby, located in the neighboring towns of Brockton and Weymouth.

Halifax

Halifax
The Town of Halifax is a pastoral community located about 31 miles southeast of Boston and was first settled in 1669. Early colonists found extensive woods of white and pitch pine, cedar and oak and the first saw mill was built about 1728 to process this lumber. Agriculture and lumbering continued to be the basis of the community’s economy and by 1794 there were five sawmills in operation. Lumber was sent south through the
Taunton River system and east to the Jones River and North River shipyards.
To the saw mills were added iron furnaces and a cotton factory by 1815 and
a large woolen mill in 1822. Halifax was the site in 1795 of an early
effort to construct a canal between Buzzards Bay and Massachusetts Bay by
connecting the Taunton and North Rivers through the ponds of Halifax and
Pembroke.

During the 19th century, as other communities became increasingly
industrialized and Halifax’s industries burned or closed, the town’s
economy shifted back to agriculture and substantial poultry and cranberry
production was recorded. The residential character of the town became very
pronounced as better roads like Routes 106 and 58 provided better access to
the town. In addition, the scattered summer cottage colonies began conversions to year-round housing.