ZIP Code 02145

As of the 2020 United States Census, the city had a total population of 81,045 people. With an area of 4.12 square miles (10.7 km²), the city has a density of 19,671/sq mi (7,595/km²) Somerville was established as a town in 1842, when it was separated from Charlestown. It is home to Tufts University, which has its campus along the Somerville and Medford border. The "Ten Hills" neighborhood, located in the northeastern part of the city, has retained the name for over 300 years. It was once known as the "Stinted Pasture" or "Cow Commons", as early settlers had the right to pasture a certain number of cows in the area. The first European settler in Somerville of whom there is any record was John Woolrich, an Indian trader who came from theCharlestown Peninsula in 1630. In 1639 colonists officially acquired the land in what is now Somerville from the Squaw Sachem of Mistick. The city was named the best-run city in Massachusetts by The Boston Globe in 2006, and received the All-America City Award in 1972, 2009, and 2015. It has been named the most densely populated municipality in New England, making it the 16th most densely densely populated incorporated municipality in the country. In the early 1700s, Washington Street was known as "Milk Row" and led to Cambridge in 1638. During the 1700 and early 1800s, Somerville Avenue, together with Middlesex County Road, was favored as a route for dairy farmers.

History

Somerville is the primary city name, but also W Somerville, West Somerville are acceptable city names or spellings. The official name is Somerville, Massachusetts. The territory now comprising the city of Somerville was first settled by Europeans in 1629 as part of Charlestown. In 1639 colonists officially acquired the land in what is now Somerville from the Squaw Sachem of Mistick. The "Ten Hills" neighborhood, located in the northeastern part of the city, has retained the name for over 300 years. The city was home to one of the first hostile acts of the American Revolutionary War, the removal of gunpowder from a magazine in 1774. Located at the intersection of Broadway and College Avenue in present-day House Square, the largest supply of gun powder in all of Massachusetts was held at the Old Powder House. The British Parliament passed the Intolerable Acts in response to the Boston Tea Party in May 1774, which was highly unpopular with the British government. In the early 1700s, the colonial government of Massachusetts sold a windmill for use as a gun magazine for use in the war. The town is located on the narrow Mishawum Peninsula between the Charles and Mystic rivers, linked to the mainland at the present- day Sullivan Square. The area was once known as the "Stinted Pasture" or "Cow Commons", as early settlers had the right to pasture a certain number of cows in the area. It is also where he launched the first ship in Massachusetts, the "Blessing of the Bay". Built for trading purposes in the early 1630s, it is seen as a precursor to the United States Navy.

Geography

Somerville is located on the west bank of the Mystic River. It is bordered by the cities of Cambridge, Medford, Everett, Arlington and the Boston neighborhood of Charlestown. Its commercial property is not concentrated in a recognized downtown central business district but instead is spread over many different nodes or corridors of business activity. The numerous hills making up Somerville's landscape determined where road networks would allow neighborhood commercial development. Somerville has a number of squares that are centers for business and entertainment, as well as anumber of other neighborhoods. It has a total area of 4.2 square miles (11 km²) of which 4.1 square miles is land and 0.1 sq mi (0.26 km²), or 2.61% is water. It also has a population of 2.2 million (2.3 million in 2011). Somerville is a suburb of Boston, Massachusetts, and is located in the suburbs of Cambridge and Everett. It was founded in 1836 by a group of farmers who wanted to build a city on the site of the ancient city of Rome. The city is named after the seven hills of Somerville, which are believed to have been built on a series of drumlins that once covered the area. The town's name comes from the phrase "Seven Hills" which refer to seven hills in the city's history. The seven hills are: Central Hill, Clarendon Hill, Ploughed Hill, Prospect Hill, Spring Hill, Winter Hill, Cobble Hill, and Mount Pisgah.

Demographics

As of the 2010 census, there were 75,754 people, 33,720 households, and 14,673 families residing in the city. The population density was 18,404.8 inhabitants per square mile (7,106.1/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 73.92% White, 6.8% African American, 0.3% Native American, 8.7% Asian (2.7%) and 3.6% multiracial. The city regularly provides translation services and alerts into Spanish, Portuguese, Haitian Creole, and Nepali. In November 1997, the Utne Reader named Davis Square in Somerville one of the 15 hippest places to live in the U.S. It is home to a thriving arts community and boasts the second highest number of artists per capita in America. About 8.4% of families and 12.5% of the population were below the poverty line, including 14.3%) of those under age 18 and 13.6%" of those age 65 or older. The average household size was 2.38 and the average family size was 3.06%. The median age was 31 years. For every 100 females, therewere 94.9 males. For each 100 females age 18 or over, there are 93.2 males. The median income for a household in theCity was $46,315, and the median income. for a family was $51,243. Males had a median income of $36,333 versus $31,418 for females.

Economy

Companies based in Somerville include Gentle Giant Moving Company and Candlewick Press. According to Somerville's 2013 Comprehensive Annual Financial Report, the top employers in the city are: Gentle Giant moving company, Candlewick press, and Somerville Bank and Trust. The city's unemployment rate in 2013 was 3.7 percent. The unemployment rate for Somerville in 2012 was 2.9 percent. Somerville is home to more than 1,000 businesses, according to the city's Comprehensive Annual financial Report. The top employers are Gentle Giantmoving company, candlewickpress.com, SomervilleBank and Trust, and the Somerville Chamber of Commerce. The economy is estimated to be $1.2 billion, up from $1 billion in 2012. The number of jobs is expected to rise to 1,200 in 2014. The jobless rate is 3.8 percent, down from 4.1 percent in 2012, the report says. The percentage of new jobs created in 2013 is up from 3.2 percent to 3.4 percent in the previous year. The average salary is $50,000. The rate of growth is 2.6 percent, up slightly from 2.7 per year in 2012 and 2.8 per year from 2011. The U.S. economy is projected to grow by 2.5 percent in 2014 and 3 per cent in 2015. The growth rate for 2014 and 2015 is estimated at 2.4 per cent, down slightly from 2012 and 2013. The United States is the largest city in the state, followed by Massachusetts.

Arts and culture

Somerville's industrial past left behind many legacies, including the invention of Marshmallow Fluff by Archibald Query. In 1914, the city became the home of the original Economy Grocery Store, which later grew into the Stop & Shop grocery chain. Two major art studios, the Brickbottom Artists Building and the Joy Street Studios, are located in former industrial buildings. The Somerville Arts Council and Somerville Open Studios both host annual events involving the community in homegrown arts. The Boston chapter of the Dorkbot community meets in Somerville at the Willoughby & Baltic studio. Somerville has eighty-three sites listed on the National Register of Historic Places, including various houses, libraries, parkways, churches, among other places, and have been declared landmarks within the city. It is home to the Somerville Theatre, which formerly housed the Museum of Bad Art, and plays host to the Independent Film Festival of Boston each spring. The city's Dilboy Memorial Stadium is a multi-purpose public stadium in city. The stadium is named after George Dilboy, who was awarded the Medal of Honor during World War I. It was the home field of the Boston Renegades women's tackle football team from 2008 to 2014, and the Boston Breakers women's soccer club made Dilboy Stadium their home in 2012 and 2013. It has been described in food journal Gastronomica as an "orgiastic frenzy of all things fluffy--old-world village celebration meets American kitsch".

Parks and recreation

Somerville, Massachusetts, has a total of 63 parks, playing fields, and community centers. The city is home to the oldest community center in the U.S., which dates back to 18th century. It is also the site of one of the oldest public parks in the world, which was established in 1872. The town's first public library was opened in 1875, and the city's first city hall was built in 1881. The first city park was built on the corner of Main and Main Streets, and was named after the town's oldest resident. The current city park is named after its oldest resident, who was born in 1854, and is located in the center of the city. The community center is located on the east side of the town, near the intersection of Main Street and Main Street. It was built to connect with the East Coast Greenway, which runs through the city to the north and south, and to the east and west. It also connects with the Farragut Trail, which links the city with the town of Cambridge, where it is located. The City of Somerville is the largest city in the state, with a population of 1.2 million people. It has been the home of the City of Cambridge since 1881, when the city was founded. The Town of Cambridge was the first city in Massachusetts to have a city park, and it is the only one in the city that has a public park system, as well as a public library.

Government

Somerville has a mayor-city council form of municipal government. The City Council (formerly a Board of Aldermen) consists of four at-large (citywide) positions and seven ward representatives. The current mayor of Somerville is Katjana Ballantyne. Somerville boasts a large subsidized housing program with 1400 units and 4,328 people (5% of the population) living in them. In July 2020, the Somerville City Council voted to recognize polyamorous domestic partnerships in the city, becoming the first city in the United States to do so. The first Democratic mayor of the city was John J. Murphy in 1929. Every mayor prior, since 1872, had been unaffiliated with a party or Republican. The city is part of Massachusetts's 7th congressional district for purposes of elections to the U.S. House of Representatives. It is represented by Representative Ayanna Pressley. For representation to the Massachusetts Senate, it is entirely within the Second Middlesex district. The 26th, 27th and 34th Middlesex districts include East Somerville, Brickbottom, and a portion of the Union Square area, as well as portions of Cambridge and Medford. The 34th district includes Winter Hill and Teele Square, and portions of Medford and Brickbottom. The remainder, just over half, comprises the 27th district, which does not extend outside Somerville. It also comprises the 26th and 27th districts of the Massachusetts House of Reps.

Education

The School Committee has seven independently elected officials as well as the Mayor and the Board of Aldermen. Somerville Public Schools operates ten schools from pre-kindergarten to secondary schools. The majority of the schools in Somerville (with exception of Somerville High School, Capuano Early Childhood Center, and Next Wave/Full Circle) are schools that go from kindergarten through 8th grade. The former Powder House Community School is being considered for redevelopment, either as a consolidated location for city offices if funding is obtained under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 or as some other type of development. Though formally listed as being located in Medford, Tufts University is also located in the city. The SomervilleMedford line runs through the Tufts campus, splitting the university's Tisch Library. The school employs many local residents and has many community service projects that benefit the city, especially those run through the Leonard Carmichael Society and the Jonathan M. Tisch College of Citizenship and Public Service. The city is home to the Boston Red Sox, the Boston Bruins, the New England Patriots, and the Boston Celtics. It is also the home of the Boston Marathon bombings, which took place on September 11, 2001, and September 14, 2002, which occurred on the same day as the Boston bombings. The Boston Marathon is one of the largest U.S. events of the year, taking place in Boston, Boston, Cambridge, Boston and New York City.

Air Quality, Water Quality, Superfund Sites & UV Index

The Air Quality index is in Somerville, Middlesex County, Massachusetts = 43.5. These Air Quality index is based on annual reports from the EPA. Higher values are better (100=best). The number of ozone alert days is used as an indicator of air quality, as are the amounts of seven pollutants including particulates, carbon monoxide, sulfur dioxide, lead, and volatile organic chemicals. The Water Quality Index is 43. A measure of the quality of an area’s water supply as rated by the EPA. Higher values are better (100=best). The EPA has a complex method of measuring the watershed quality, using 15 indicators such as pollutants, turbidity, sediments, and toxic discharges. The Superfund Sites Index is 10. Higher is better (100=best). Based upon the number and impact of EPA Superfund pollution sites in the county, including spending on the cleanup efforts. The UV Index in Somerville = 3.5 and is a measure of an area's exposure to the sun's ultraviolet rays. This is most often a combination of sunny weather, altitude, and latitude. The UV Index has been defined by the WHO (www.who.int/news-room/questions-and-answers/item/radiation-the-ultraviolet-(uv)-index) and is uniform worldwide.

Employed

The most recent city population of 14,172 individuals with a median age of 35.2 age the population dropped by -4.82% in Somerville, Middlesex County, Massachusetts population since 2000 and are distributed over a density of 19,652.04 residents per square mile of area (7,588.17/km²). There are average 2.36 people per household in the 30,132 households with an average household income of $59,910 a year. The unemployment rate in Alabama is 6.50% of the available work force and has dropped -4.07% over the most recent 12-month period and the projected change in job supply over the next decade based on migration patterns, economic growth, and other factors will increase by 25.36%. The number of physicians in Somerville per 100,000 population = 389.3.

Weather

The annual rainfall in Somerville = 48.5 inches and the annual snowfall = 50.8 inches. The annual number of days with measurable precipitation (over .01 inch) = 118. The average number of days per year that are predominantly sunny = 197. 82 degrees Fahrenheit is the average daily high temperature for the month of July and 22.1 degrees Fahrenheit is the average daily low temperature for the month of January. The Comfort Index (higher=better) is 49, where higher values mean a more pleasant climate. The Comfort Index measure recognizes that humidity by itself isn't the problem. (Have you noticed nobody ever complains about the weather being 'cold and humid?) It's in the summertime that we notice the humidity the most, when it's hot and muggy. Our Comfort Index uses a combination of afternoon summer temperature and humidity to closely predict the effect that the humidity will have on people.

Median Home Cost

The percentage of housing units in Somerville, Middlesex County, Massachusetts which are owned by the occupant = 29.31%. A housing unit is a house, apartment, mobile home, or room occupied as separate living quarters. The average age of homes = 45.0 years with median home cost = $418,770 and home appreciation of -1.92%. This is the value of the years most recent home sales data. Its important to note that this is not the average (or arithmetic mean). The median home price is the middle value when you arrange all the sales prices of homes from lowest to highest. This is a better indicator than the average, because the median is not changed as much by a few unusually high or low values. The property tax rate of $11.70 shown here is the rate per $1,000 of home value. If for simplification for example the tax rate is $14.00 and the home value is $250,000, the property tax would be $14.00 x ($250,000/1000), or $3500. This is the 'effective' tax rate.

Study

The local school district spends $10,249 per student. There are 12.6 students for each teacher in the school, 712 students for each Librarian and 712 students for each Counselor. 3.91% of the area’s population over the age of 25 with an Associate Degree or other 2-year college degree, 22.71% with a master’s degree, Ph.D. or other advanced college degree and 17.78% with high school diplomas or high school equivalency degrees (GEDs).