Waltham, Massachusetts

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One of the early centers of the Industrial Revolution in northern America, Waltham is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 59,226 at the 2000 census. The name Waltham means 'home in the woods'.

 

Waltham is home to The Sports Authority Training Center, which serves a dual role as practice facility/offices of the Boston Celtics.

 

Waltham is commonly referred to as Watch City because of its association with the watch industry. This is due to Waltham Watch Company, which opened its factory in Waltham in 1854. It was the first company to make watches on an assembly line. It won the gold medal in 1876 at the Philadelphia Centennial Exposition. Over 40 million watches, clocks and instruments were produced by Waltham Watch Company until it closed in 1957.

 

 

History

 

Waltham was first settled in 1634 as part of Watertown and was officially incorporated as a separate town in 1738.

 

In the early 19th century, Francis Cabot Lowell and his friends and colleagues established in Waltham the Boston Manufacturing Company - the first integrated textile mill in the United States.

 

The city is home to Gore Place, a mansion built in 1806 for former Massachusetts Governor Christopher Gore; The Robert Treat Paine Estate, a residence designed in collaboration between architect Henry Hobson Richardson and landscape architect Frederick Law Olmsted for philanthropist Robert Treat Paine, Jr. (1810-1905); and the Lyman Estate, a 400-acre (1.6 km2) estate established in 1793 by Boston merchant Theodore Lyman. Early in the twentieth century, Waltham was home to the brass era automobile manufacturer Metz.

 

Geography

 

Waltham is located at 42°22′50″N 71°14′6″W / 42.38056, -71.235 (42.380596, -71.235005),[ about 10 miles (16.09 km) north-west of downtown Boston, Massachusetts, and approximately 3 miles north-west of Boston's Brighton neighborhood.

 

The city stretches along the Charles River and contains several dams. These dams were used to power textile mills and other such endeavors, accounting for its early industrial activity. According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 13.6 square miles (35.2 kmē), of which, 12.7 square miles (32.9 kmē) of it is land and 0.9 square miles (2.4 kmē) of it (6.69%) is water.

  

Neighborhoods

 

Waltham has several neighborhoods or villages, including:

  • Angleside
  • Banks Square
  • The Bleachery
  • Cedarwood
  • The Chemistry
  • The Highlands
  • The Island (formerly Morse Meadow Island)
  • Kendal Green (mostly in Weston)
  • Lakeview
  • The Lanes
  • Northeast
  • Piety Corner
  • Prospectville (defunct in 1894, now under Cambridge Reservoir)
  • Ravenswood
  • Robert's
  • Rock Alley
  • Southside
  • Warrendale

Adjacent towns

It is bordered to the west by Weston and Lincoln, to the south by Newton, to the east by Belmont and Watertown, and to the north by Lexington.

 

Demographics

 

As of the census of 2000, there were 59,226 people, 23,207 households, and 12,462 families residing in the city. The population density was 4,663.4 people per square mile (1,800.6/kmē). There were 23,880 housing units at an average density of 1,880.3/sq mi (726.0/kmē). The racial makeup of the city was 82.98% White, 4.41% African American, 0.16% Native American, 7.29% Asian, 0.06% Pacific Islander, 3.20% from other races, and 1.89% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 8.49% of the population. In recent years, Guatemalans have surpassed Puerto Ricans as the dominant Latino population. Guatemalan businesses and establishments have increased noticeably and line Moody St. and other parts of the city.

 

There were 23,207 households, of which 20.3% included children under the age of 18, 41.3% were married couples living together, 8.9% were headed by a single mother, and 46.3% were non-families. 34.2% of all households were made up of individuals and 10.0% had someone living alone who was 65 or older.

 

The average household size was 2.29 and the average family size was 3.01.

 

The population of the city was divided as follows: 15.5% under 18, 16.8% from 18 to 24, 34.4% from 25 to 44, 20.2% from 45 to 64, and 13.1% 65 or older.

 

The median age was 34. For every 100 females there were 97.2 males. For every 100 females 18 and over, there were 95.6 males.

 

The median income for a household in the city was $54,010, and the median income for a family was $64,595. Males had a median income of $42,324 versus 33,931 for females.

 

The per capita income for the city was $26,364. 7% of the population and 3.6% of families lived below the poverty line. 4.8% of those under 18 and 8.4% of those 65 and older lived below the poverty line.

 

Government

 

Waltham is governed by a mayor and a city council. The current mayor is Jeanette A. McCarthy. There are 15 members of the city council, each elected to two-year terms in non-partisan elections. The current president of the city council is Thomas J. Curtin.

The city is in Massachusetts's 7th congressional district and is currently represented in the United States House of Representatives by Edward J. Markey.

 

Education

Public schools

 

The Waltham public school system includes six elementary schools (Northeast, Fitzgerald, MacArthur, Plympton, Whittemore, Stanley), two middle schools (McDevitt, Kennedy), and one senior high school (Waltham High School).

Waltham High School's sports teams used to be referred to as the Watchmen and the Crimson, before becoming known as the Hawks.

 Private schools

 Higher education

Waltham is home to:

Transportation

 

Waltham is near several important U.S. Interstate highways. Interstate 95 (which is also Route 128) runs through the western part of the city. Waltham exits are 26, 27, and 28. Interstate 90 (also the Massachusetts Turnpike) is just to south in Newton, Massachusetts. Due to its geographic location near the center of the Cambridge-Boston-Quincy metropolitan area, a number of state highways are within a few miles.

 

The MBTA commuter rail has two stops in Waltham as part of the Fitchburg-Boston Line: one in Central Square Waltham across from the City Hall and one near Brandeis University.

MBTA bus service also covers the city, notably routes 70, 70A, 170, 505, 553, 554, and 556.

 

Media

 

Waltham is home to a daily newspaper, the Daily News Tribune. WCAC-TV provides local-interest television programming. Waltham news sometimes appears in the Boston Globe's GlobeWest section, as well.

 

Culture

 

Waltham Supermarket on Main Street, established in 1936, was a large historic grocery store that closed in the 1990s. However, the building continues to be a supermarket, occupied by Shaw's, then Victory, and now Hannaford.

Downtown Waltham's Moody Street offers its own brand of entertainment with a colorful assortment of shops, restaurants, and bars, including the Watch City Brewing Co., The Skellig, Jake's Dixie Roadhouse, The Lincoln (L), and the Embassy Cinema. Moody Street's booming nightlife, convenience to the commuter rail and lower rents have attracted younger professionals to Waltham in growing numbers in recent years. Moody Street is also referred to as "Restaurant Row" because of the number, variety and quality of its restaurants.

 

For over 25 years, the Waltham Arts Council has sponsored "Concerts On Waltham Common", featuring a different musical act each week of the summer, free of charge to attendees. "Concerts On Waltham Common" was created and organized by Stephen Kilgore until his death in 2004.

Open space in the city is protected by the Waltham Land Trust.

 

Business Community

 

Waltham is about 3 miles outside the City Limits of Boston, and maintains a distinctly different flavor. A number of high-tech companies have taken advantage of the lower cost of real estate to set up shop in the ring of office parks that dot the highway exits in Waltham. Among the larger high-tech companies setting up East Coast offices in Waltham are Microsoft, Oracle and Hitachi. Waltham is also home to four Fortune 500 companies (Raytheon, Global Partners, PerkinElmer and ThermoFisher Scientific). Business class hotels and swank restaurants have sprung up to serve the needs of this community.

 

Points of interest

See also: List of Registered Historic Places in Waltham, Massachusetts

Notable residents

 

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