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Arlington, Massachusetts

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Arlington, Massachusetts
Town
Ice Harvesting on Spy Pond, from an 1854 Print.
Ice Harvesting on Spy Pond, from an 1854 Print.
Flag of Arlington, Massachusetts
Flag
Official seal of Arlington, Massachusetts
Seal
Location in Massachusetts
Location in Massachusetts
CountryUnited States
StateMassachusetts
CountyMiddlesex County
Settled1635
Incorporated1807
Government
 • TypeRepresentative town meeting
 • Town ManagerBrian Sullivan
 • Board of
   Selectmen		Kevin F. Greeley
Annie LaCourt
Diane Mahon
Clarissa Rowe
John W. Hurd
Elevation
46 ft (14 m)
Population
 (2000)
 • Total42,389
Time zoneUTC-5 (Eastern)
 • Summer (DST)UTC-4 (Eastern)
ZIP code
02474, 02476
Area code339 / 781
Websitehttp://www.arlingtonma.gov/

Arlington is a town in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, six miles (10 km) northwest of Boston. The population was 42,389 at the 2000 census.

History

Patriots' Grave in the Old Burying Ground, Arlington, Massachusetts.

The Town of Arlington was originally settled by European colonists in 1635 as a village within the boundary of Cambridge, Massachusetts under the name Menotomy, an Algonquian word meaning "swift running water". A larger area, including land that was later to become the town of Belmont, and outwards to the shore of the Mystic River, which had previously been part of Charlestown, was incorporated in 1807 as West Cambridge. In 1867 the name "Arlington" was chosen in honor of those buried in Arlington National Cemetery.

The Massachusett tribe, part of the Algonquian group of Native Americans, lived around the Mystic Lakes, the Mystic River and Alewife Brook. By the time Europeans arrived, the local Indians had been devastated by disease; also, the tribal chief, Nanepashemet, had been killed by a rival tribe in about 1618 . Nanepashemet's widow, known to history only as "Squaw Sachem", sold the land of her tribe to the colonists for ten pounds, with provisions that she could remain on her homestead land around the Mystic Lakes and continue hunting and farming. She also was to be given a new winter coat of wool each year for the rest of her life. She is thought to have lived until about 1650 .

The Jason Russell House.

Through the town also flows the stream called Mill Brook, which historically figured largely into Arlington's economy. In 1637 Captain George Cooke built the first mill in this area. Subsequently, seven mills were built along the stream, including the Old Schwamb Mill, which survives to this day. The Schwamb Mill has been a working mill since 1650, making it the longest working mill in the country.

Paul Revere's famous midnight ride to alert colonists took him through Menotomy, what is now known as Arlington. Later on that first day of the American Revolution, more blood was shed in Menotomy than in the battles of Lexington and Concord combined. Minutemen from surrounding towns converged on Menotomy to ambush the British on their retreat from Concord and Lexington. All in all, 25 colonials were killed in Arlington (half of all Americans killed in the day's battle), as well as 40 British troops (more than half their fatalities).

The Jason Russell House is today a museum which remembers those twelve Americans, including Russell himself, who were killed in and around this pictured dwelling on April 19th, 1775. Bullet holes are visible in the interior walls to this day.

An 1875 map of Arlington

Geography

Arlington covers 3,517.5 acres (14 km²), or 5.5 square miles, of which 286.2 acres (1.2 km²) are covered by water. There are 210.52 acres (0.9 km²) of parkland. Its elevation ranges from 4 feet (1.2 m) above sea level (along Alewife Brook) to 377 feet (114.9 m) near Park Avenue and Eastern Avenue.

Arlington borders on the Mystic Lakes and Alewife Brook, and contains Spy Pond, the Arlington Reservoir, Mill Brook, and Hills Pond.

Adjacent towns

Arlington is located in Eastern Massachusetts, bordered by six towns:

Demographics

Arlington currently has approximately 42,000 residents. Based on the U.S. censuses, Arlington's population has been declining by an average of 7% per decade since 1970. (1970: 52,720; 2000: 42,389).

As of the censusTemplate:GR of 2000, there were 42,389 people, 19,011 households, and 10,779 families residing in the town. The population density was 3,159.6/km² (8,179.6/mi²). There were 19,411 housing units at an average density of 1,446.8/km² (3,745.6/mi²). The racial makeup of the town was 90.97% White, 1.70% African American, 0.13% Native American, 4.97% Asian, 0.01% Pacific Islander, 0.66% from other races, and 1.56% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.86% of the population.

File:Schwamb1873.jpg
Old Schwamb Mill, 1873. Arlington, MA, USA

There were 19,011 households out of which 23.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 45.4% were married couples living together, 8.8% had a female householder with no husband present, 2.2% were unmarried partners, and 43.3% were non-families. 34.2% of all households were made up of individuals and 12.5% 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 2.91.

In the town the population was spread out with 18.4% under the age of 18, 5.1% from 18 to 24, 36.0% from 25 to 44, 23.7% from 45 to 64, and 16.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40 years. For every 100 females there were 86.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 83.1 males.

The median income for a household in the town was $64,344, and the median income for a family was $78,741. Males had a median income of $52,352 versus $40,445 for females. The per capita income for the town was $34,399. About 2.4% of families and 4.1% of the population were below the poverty line, including 2.0% of those under age 18 and 5.5% of those age 65 or over.

Government

Arlington's executive branch is comprised of an elected five-member Board of Selectmen. The day-to-day operations are handled by a Town Manager hired by the Board of Selectmen. The legislative branch is made up of 252 Town Meeting Members, elected from the 21 precincts. The Town of Arlington technically has enough citizens to become the City of Arlington, but has not done so, in part because it would lose its ability to hold Town Meetings. These meetings can often last for at least a month, being held two nights a week until the issues are settled.

Arlington is part of the Massachusetts's 7th congressional district, the 4th Middlesex State Senatorial District, and the 23rd and 26th Middlesex State Representative Districts.

Education

Public schools

Arlington has a public school system. There are nine public schools. The seven elementary schools are: Brackett Elementary School, Bishop Elementary School, Thompson Elementary School, Hardy Elementary School, Peirce Elementary School, Stratton Elemenary School, and Dallin Elementary School. Arlington's one middle school is Ottoson middle school. And Arlington's one high school is Arlington High School.

Private schools

There are two Catholic schools, Arlington Catholic High School, and one elementary/middle school, called St. Agnes.

Notable residents

Menotomy Indian Hunter in Arlington center by resident Cyrus E. Dallin (1911).

Trivia

File:Hill's Pond, Monotomy Rocks Park, Arlington, Massachusetts.JPG
Menotomy Rocks Park in Arlington.

Sister cities

References

  1. ^ Dukakis, Olympia (2003). Ask Me Again Tomorrow: A Life in Progress. New York, NY: HarperCollins. ISBN 0060934093. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  2. ^ "Director, Mark Sullivan". United States Secret Service. Retrieved 2007-05-20.
Topography of Arlington and environs

Town-wide

Maps and state info

Template:Mapit-US-cityscale

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