Featured Apartment:
Boston-Somerville - Very Nice Studio. Very sunny, 10 minute walk to Inman Sq. Eat in Kitchen, full bathroom, hardwood floors, big living room. Laundry and storage in basement. Updated Bathroom - Off Street Parking - access to commuter rail, bus, shops & restaurants, first and last months rent. View More Listing -->
Renting an Apartment in Somerville
Somerville Information
Somerville is a city located in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, just north
of Boston. As of the 2000 census, the city had a total population of 77,478.
With only slightly over 4 square miles (10 km) of land, it is the most densely
populated city in New England and the fifth densest city in the United States.
It was established as a town in 1842, when it was separated from the urbanizing
Charlestown because it was still largely rural.
Somerville has a mix of blue collar Irish-American and Italian American families
who are spread throughout the city; immigrant families from Brazil, Haiti and El
Salvador, who live in the area known as East Somerville; South Korea and India
in the Union Square area, and college students and young professionals, many of
whom live in sections near Cambridge, or near Tufts University, which straddles
the Somerville-Medford city line, although the university's formal address is
Medford. Davis Square in Somerville and nearby Porter Square in Cambridge have
Red Line subway stations providing easy access to Harvard Square and to downtown
Boston. Other parts of the city are served by buses that connect to the Green
Line's Lechmere station in East Cambridge or to the Orange Line's Sullivan
station in Charlestown.
Somerville also has a number of squares that are bustling business and
entertainment centers, among them Davis Square, Union Square, Ball Square, Teele
Square and Magoun Square.
A popular and tree-lined rail trail called the Minuteman Bikeway runs through
the heart of Davis Square and is called the Somerville Community Path. The city
has many dedicated community groups including Friends of the Community Path
dedicated to extending the well-loved Minuteman Bikeway/Linear Park from its
current ending at Cedar Street in Somerville to the Charles River Path and on to
Boston.
Somerville was once colloquially referred to as "Slummerville" and "Scummerville",
referring to its blue-collar residents and its reputation for crime, especially
in the city's east, where James "Buddy" McLean and the "Winter Hill Gang" were
based. However, after the gentrification period the city went through in the
late 1990s this name became less prevalent. More recently, lobbying by
grassroots organizations is attempting to revive and preserve Somerville's
"small town" neighborhood environments by supporting local business, public
transit, gardens and pedestrian/biker access.
The Somerville Arts Council and Somerville Open Studios both host annual events
involving the community in homegrown arts. Somerville is home to a thriving arts
community. Regular arts-related events, such as the annual "ArtBeat" festival,
occur throughout the year. In addition, numerous galleries and music clubs
showcase the talents of residents and others.
A major art studio complex is located in former industrial buildings known as
the Brickbottom complex, between Union Square and the Cambridge line.
The Someday Cafe in Davis Square helped bring a low-key, gay west coast
coffeehouse vibe to the Boston area in the early '90s.
Union Square Main Streets is a non-profit partnership of local businesses,
residents and the City of Somerville seeking to enhance city's most central and
historic civic and business space, Union Square, through active community
collaboration.