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Newton, Massachusetts

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Newton, Massachusetts
Official seal of Newton, Massachusetts
Seal
Nickname: 
The Garden City
Location in Massachusetts
Location in Massachusetts
CountryUnited States
StateMassachusetts
CountyMiddlesex County
Settled1639
Incorporated1688
Government
 • TypeMayor-council city
 • MayorDavid B. Cohen (Dem)
Elevation
100 ft (30 m)
Population
 (2000)
 • Total83,829
Time zoneUTC-5 (Eastern)
 • Summer (DST)UTC-4 (Eastern)
ZIP code
02458, 02459, 02460, 02461, 02462, 02464, 02465, 02467, 02468, 02495
Area code617 / 857
Websitehttp://www.ci.newton.ma.us/

Newton is a suburban city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts west of Boston. According to the 2000 census, the population of the city was 83,829.

Newton does not have a single town center, but is rather a patchwork of 13 "villages", many boasting small "downtown" areas of their own. The 13 villages are: Auburndale, Chestnut Hill, Newton Centre, Newton Corner, Newton Highlands, Newton Lower Falls, Newton Upper Falls (both on the Charles River, and both once small industrial sites), Newtonville, Nonantum (also called The Lake), Oak Hill, Thompsonville, Waban, and West Newton. Although most of the villages have a post office, they have no legal definition and no firmly defined borders. See The Thirteen Villages of Newton.

History

Newton was settled in 1630 as part of Cambridge. It was incorporated as a town known as Cambridge Village in 1688. It was renamed Newtown in 1691 and finally Newton in 1766. It became a city in 1873. Newton is known as The Garden City.

Newton is home to Boston College, located in the city's historic village of Chestnut Hill, and Boston College Law School, located on a separate campus between Newton Centre and Newton Corner. There are several other institutions of higher education in the city including Andover Newton Theological School, Lasell College, Hebrew College, and Mount Ida College.

The city also 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.

Each April, the Boston Marathon runs through the city from Wellesley onward to Boston. Heartbreak Hill rises just past Newton City Hall where residents and visitors line the race route on Commonwealth Avenue to cheer the runners.

Geography

Newton is in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, at 42°20′16″N 71°12′36″W / 42.33778°N 71.21000°W / 42.33778; -71.21000Invalid arguments have been passed to the {{#coordinates:}} function (42.337713, -71.209936).Template:GR The city is bordered by Waltham and Watertown on the north, Needham and the West Roxbury neighborhood of Boston on the south, Wellesley and Weston on the west, and Brookline and the Brighton neighborhood of Boston on the east.

From Watertown to Waltham to Needham to Dedham, Newton is bounded by the Charles River. Yankee Division Highway, designated Interstate 95 but known to the locals as Route 128, follows the Charles from Waltham to Dedham, creating a de facto land barrier. The portion of Needham which lies east of 128 and west of the Charles, known as the Needham Industrial Park has become part of a Newton commercial zone and contributes to its heavy traffic, even though the tax revenue goes to Needham.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 47.1 km² (18.2 mi²). 46.7 km² (18.0 mi²) of it is land and 0.4 km² (0.2 mi²) of it (0.82%) is water.

Demographics

As of the censusTemplate:GR of 2000, there were 83,829 people, 31,201 households, and 20,499 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,793.2/km² (4,643.6/mi²). There were 32,112 housing units at an average density of 686.9/km² (1,778.8/mi²). The racial makeup of the city was 88.07% White, 7.68% Asian, 1.97% African American, 0.07% Native American, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 0.71% from other races, and 1.46% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 2.52% of the population.

There were 31,201 households out of which 31.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 55.2% were married couples living together, 8.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 34.3% were non-families. 25.5% of all households were made up of individuals and 11.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.51 and the average family size was 3.04.

In the city the population was spread out with 21.2% under the age of 18, 10.3% from 18 to 24, 28.2% from 25 to 44, 25.2% from 45 to 64, and 15.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females there were 86.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 82.7 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $86,052, and the median income for a family was $125,289. Males had a median income of $65,565 versus $46,885 for females. The per capita income for the city was $45,708. About 2.1% of families and 4.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 4.8% of those under age 18 and 5.0% of those age 65 or over.

Based on statistics reported to the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Newton was the nation's safest city during 2003, 2004 and 2005,[1] and the fourth safest city in the nation in 2006.[2] The designation is based on crime statistics in six categories: murder, rape, robbery, aggravated assault, burglary, and auto theft.

Government

Education

Preschools

Primary and secondary education

Newton is served by the Newton Public Schools district. See also: Newton Public Schools

Newton North High School (the larger of the two) and Newton South High School are the two public high schools in Newton, the Tigers and the Lions being their mascots, respectively.

Higher education

Newton is served by several colleges and universities, including:

Media

Newspapers

Residents of Newton get The Newton Tab, the city's community newspaper, delivered to them for free.

Television

Residents of Newton have free access to a state-of-the-art television production and media access center, NewTV[3], now located in new facilities in the University Business Center in Newton Highlands.

Transportation

Newton is best known as a bedroom community for commuters to Boston, in spite of considerable commercial and manufacturing activity of its own.

It is well-served by three modes of mass transit run by the MBTA; light rail, commuter rail, and bus service. The Green Line "D" Branch, (also known as the Riverside branch) is a light rail line running through the center of the city which makes very frequent trips to downtown Boston, 30 minutes away. The Green Line "B" Branch ends close to Boston College on Commonwealth Avenue. The commuter rail, serving the northern villages of Newton that are proximate to Waltham, offers less frequent service to Boston. It runs from every half-an-hour during peak times to every couple of hours otherwise. The northern villages are also served by frequent express buses that head to downtown Boston via the Massachusetts Turnpike.

Newton Centre, which is centered around the Newton Center MBTA Station (the T, for unknown reasons, elected to change the spelling) has been lauded as an example of transit-oriented development. See Newton Centre - A Case Study.

Newton is on the Massachusetts Turnpike and Route 128, which is also Interstate 95 in Newton. Routes 30, 16 and 9 also pass through the city.

Points of interest

  • Newton is home to many exclusive golf courses such as Woodland Country Club, Charles River Country Club, and Brae Burn Country Club, which held the United States Open in 1919.

Notable residents


Sports

Trivia

  • The Fig Newton cookie is named after the city. In 1991, Newton and Nabisco hosted a celebration of the 100th anniversary of the Fig Newton. A 100-inch Fig Newton was served and Juice Newton performed.[5]
  • The only Melkite Greek Catholic eparchy in America, the Eparchy of Newton, is named for Newton although its cathedral, headquarters and exarchial residence are located in the Roslindale section of Boston.

References

  1. ^ 2005, City Crime Rankings By Population Group.[1]
  2. ^ 2006, City Crime Rankings by Population Group". [2]
  3. ^ NewTV
  4. ^ "Boston, where the famous come to hide - The Boston Globe". Retrieved 2007-06-24.
  5. ^ Barbara L. Fredricksen (2003). For Juice, it's been a sweet ride, St. Petersburg Times, 3-21-2003.[3]

External links

Template:Mapit-US-cityscale

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