A Brief History of “Olde Cambridge”
As anyone who’s been stranded on the Kendall/MIT platform knows, Cambridge was initially known as “Newetowne”, and founded with the intent of being the capital of this wild, puritanical experiment known as Massachusetts.
But did you know Newetowne was founded in 1630, around a common currently occupied by Peet’s Coffee and Grendel’s Den? Or that the site was initially selected because it was the closest possible crossing of the Charles River, the entire 8 miles to the east being tidal swamp and marsh?
Of course, six years later, a college came to town, and Newetown became “Cambridge”. The college grew into a university, and over the next 3.5 centuries, bought everything within reach that hadn’t been securely nailed down, including parts of the Mass Pike.
Still, residential owners can be intractable, and plots abound on the periphery of Olde Cambridge. And as with land values buoyed by close proximity to Harvard, it might just be worth having the occasional Porcellian vomiting in your yard.
1172 Mass Ave #10
Cambridge, MA 02138
1 bed, 1 bath
419 sq. ft.
$289,900
54 Trowbridge Street #A
Cambridge, MA 02138
2 beds, 2 baths
1,731 sq. ft.
$769,000
23 Putnam Ave #23
Cambridge, MA 02139
4 beds, 2.5 baths
2,173 sq. ft.
$995,000
Wall Street: It’s 1929. Boston: It’s the Matt Cassell Era.
Image source: dsearls. cc-by-sa-2.0.
