Boston

For the town in England, seeBoston, Lincolnshire.

Boston
City
City of Boston
From top, left to right:Downtown(from the Boston Harbor); Acorn Street inBeacon Hill;Old State House;Massachusetts State House;Fenway Parkballgame;Back Bay(from theCharles River)
Flag Seal
Nickname: SeeNicknames of Boston
Motto(s): Sicut patribus sit Deus nobis(Latin) 'As God was with our fathers, so may He be with us'
Interactive maps of Boston
Coordinates:42°21′29″N71°03′49″W
Country	United States
Region	New England
State	Massachusetts
County	Suffolk
Historic countries	Kingdom of England Commonwealth of England Kingdom of Great Britain
Historic colonies	Massachusetts Bay Colony,Dominion of New England,Province of Massachusetts Bay
Settled (town)	September 7, 1630(1630-09-07) (date of naming,Old Style)
Incorporated (city)	March 19, 1822(1822-03-19)
Named for	Boston,Lincolnshire
Government
• Type	Strong mayor / Council
•Mayor	Michelle Wu(D)
•Council	Boston City Council
Area
•City	89.62 sq mi (232.11 km2)
• Land	48.34 sq mi (125.20 km2)
• Water	41.28 sq mi (106.91 km2)
• Urban	1,770 sq mi (4,600 km2)
• Metro	4,500 sq mi (11,700 km2)
•CSA	10,600 sq mi (27,600 km2)
Elevation	141 ft (43 m)
Population (2020)
•City	675,647
• Rank	24thin the United States 1stin Massachusetts
• Density	13,977/sq mi (5,397/km2)
•Metro	4,941,632 (10th)
Demonym	Bostonian
Time zone	UTC−5(EST)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−4(EDT)
ZIP Codes	53 ZIP Codes 02108–02137, 02163, 02196, 02199, 02201, 02203–02206, 02210–02212, 02215, 02217, 02222, 02126, 02228, 02241, 02266, 02283–02284, 02293, 02295, 02297–02298, 02467 (also includes parts of Newton and Brookline)
Area codes	617 and 857
FIPS code	25-07000
GNISfeature ID	617565
Primary Airport	Logan International Airport
Interstates
Commuter Rail	MBTA Commuter Rail
Rapid Transit	MBTA subway
Website	Boston.gov

Bostonis thelargestcity ofMassachusettsin theUnited States.It wasfoundedin1630.Boston is one of theoldest,richestand mostculturallyimportant cities in the United States.

History

Boston was founded on September 7, 1630, byPuritancolonistsfromEngland.Boston's earlyEuropeansettlerscalled the areaTrimountaine(Three Mountains). They renamed the town forBoston,England,inLincolnshirebecause many important "Pilgrim"colonists came from there.

Most of Boston's earlycitizenswere Puritans. Shortly after Boston's settlement, Puritans created America's firstpublic schooland America's firstuniversity,Harvard University(1636). Harvard is in the city ofCambridge,which is across theCharles Riverfrom Boston. Until the1760s,Boston was America's largest city.

During the early1770s,theBritishtried to control thethirteen colonieswithtaxes.This made people from Boston start theAmerican Revolution.TheBoston Massacre,theBoston Tea Party,and several earlybattleshappened in or near the city. It held its first town meeting inFaneuil Hallin1743.

Boston continued to grow and attractimmigrantsfrom around the world. Many immigrants came fromIreland,and gave Boston a very Irishculturethat remains today. PresidentJohn F. Kennedywas a member of an Irish-American family that lived in Boston. Many immigrants also came fromItaly,and lived in Boston'sNorth End,where Italian culture remains, with various Italian stores, restaurants, bakeries, and homes.

On 15 April 2013,two bombs explodedat theBoston Marathon.

Geography

Boston is located on the ShawmutPeninsula.The city covers 41.3 square miles (107 km²).Boston Harborand theAtlantic Oceanis located east of the city. A much largermetropolitan areasurrounds Boston.

The highest point in Boston is Bellevue Hill, at 330 feet (100 m) above sea level. The lowest point is atsea level.Boston is the only state capital in thecontiguous United Stateswith an ocean coastline.

Climate

Boston has acontinental climatewith some ocean effects. Summers are normally warm to hot, rainy, andhumid,while winters alternate between periods of coldrainandsnow,with coldtemperatures.Spring and fall are usually mild. Existing wind patterns that blow offshore lower the effect of theAtlantic Ocean.

The hottest month is July, with an average temperature of 73.4 °F (23.0 °C). The coldest month is January, with an average of 29.0 °F (−1.7 °C). Extremes have ranged from −18 °F (−28 °C) on February 9, 1934, up to 104 °F (40 °C) on July 4, 1911.

Boston's location on the NorthAtlanticmoderates its temperature, but makes the city very likely to suffer fromNor'easterstorm systems that can produce much snow and rain. The cityaverages43.7 inches (1,110 mm) ofprecipitationa year, with 45.1 inches (1,150 mm) of snowfall per year.

Towers

The tallest towers in Boston are thePrudential Towerand theJohn Hancock Tower.

Culture

Symphony Hall,home of theBoston Symphony Orchestraand theBoston Pops Orchestra

Boston has a culture that is quite similar toNew England,such as a New Englandaccentand foods that are mostly seafood, salt, anddairyproducts.Irish-Americans are very important in Boston'spoliticsandreligiousactivities. Boston people also have a style of talking which is called Bostonslang.

It is often thought that Bostonians have a strong sense of culture. Perhaps this is because Boston is famous for being a veryintellectualplace, with much of its culture coming from itsuniversities.The city has many complex theatres, including the Cutler Majestic Theatre, Boston Opera House, Citi Performing Arts Center, the Colonial Theater, and the Orpheum Theatre. The headquarters ofUnitarian Universalism(UU) is located in Boston. TheChristian Sciencemovement has also made its home in the Boston area.

Boston has many historic places and Bostonians take pride in their city's history. TheAmerican Revolutionbegan in Boston, and many of its leaders, such asSamuel Adams,John Adams,John Hancock,andPaul Reverewere from the city. Many of the sites from the Revolution are preserved in the city, includingFaneuil Hall,the Old State House, Park Street Church, and others. These form the "Freedom Trail",a walk that takes visitors past many historic places in the city.

Boston today

Boston is one of theUnited States' most important cities in education and health care. Boston and the towns around it contain many of the country's leadinguniversities.Harvard,MIT,andBoston Universityare some of the most famous.

Professionalsportsare an important part of life in Boston. TheRed SoxplaybaseballatFenway Park,the oldest stadium inMajor League Baseball(1912). TheCeltics,abasketballteam, and theBruins,ahockeyteam, both play at the TD Garden. Boston's football team, theNew England Patriots,play in Foxborough, a town 22 miles south of the city.

Demographics

People

In 2020, thepopulationof Boston was 675,647. The population had grown 9.4% since 2010. Boston has 13,977 people per square mile. The population is 47.3% male and 52.7% female. The racial breakdown is shown in the Racial Groups table.

The people from outside the United States are 178,805. 27.7% of the population come from outside of the United States.

Racial groups

Race	2020
White(includesWhite Hispanics)	47.1%
Black	20.6%
Amerindian	0.4%
Asian	11.3%
Two or more races	10.5%
Hispanic or Latino(of any race)	18.7%
Non-Hispanic Whites	44.6%

Homeless population

Theunemploymentrate in Boston is 5.9% since June 2014. The 35th annualhomelesscensusfrom 2015 said there were 7,663 homeless men, women, and children in Boston. The homeless population increased 5.6% since 2013.The number of homeless people sleeping on the streets decreased by 22.8% since 2013. However, the number of adults inemergency sheltershas grown by 10.9%. In 2015, the homeless family population increased by 25%. The total number of homeless men, woman, families and children increased by 20.9% from 3,541 to 4,281.

MayorMarty Walshannounced his goal to help those in need for a permanent housing solution. Agencies such as Pine Street Inn, Boston Healthcare, Project Hope, and Boston Public Health Commission are helping the homeless. The homeless are helped by reducing familyevictions.Property management companies andnonprofits,such as Project Hope and the Department of Neighborhood Development, will increaseaffordable housingoptions. Boston Public Health Commission and the Department of Neighborhood Development will work together to provide support for treatment options and shelters. The Wyman Re-Entry Center has a 90-day residentialsubstance-abuseand recovery program. The Safe Harbor serves adults withHIV.The project SOAR stands for Stability, Opportunity, Achievement, and Recovery, and helps clients maintain a healthy lifestyle and provide support in moving to permanent housing.

Education

About 89.1% of the population ages 25 years and over in Boston have a high schooldiplomaor higher in 2022. Those with aBachelor's degreeor higher make up 54.2% of the population.

Some of the Colleges and Universities in Boston are:

• Baystate College
• Benjamin Franklin Institute of Technology
• Berklee College of Music
• Boston University
• Boston College
• Bunker Hill Community College
• Emerson College
• Emmanuel College
• Fisher College
• Massachusetts College of Art and Design
• MGH Institute of Health Professions
• New England College of Business and Finance
• Northeastern University
• School of theMuseum of Fine Arts, Boston
• Simmons College
• Suffolk University
• Wentworth Institute of Technology
• Wheelock College
• University of Massachusetts Boston

There are many more not listed here.

Transportation

The MBTA runs the city'ssubway(known as "the T" ), commuter rail, buses, andferries.The main airport for the city isLogan International Airport.

The mainhighwaysfor the area are:

Number		Highway
93		Interstate 93
90		Interstate 90
95		Interstate 95
495		Interstate 495

Tunnels

Tunnel	Carries	Opened	Notes
Boston Harbortunnels
Sumner Tunnel	Route 1A South	1934	Toll of $3.50 for non-commercial vehicles and $5.25 for commercial vehicles.
Callahan Tunnel	Route 1ANorth	1961	Repair work to this tunnel caused complete closure of the tunnel, which began at 11 pm on December 27, 2013 and ended on March 12, 2014.
Ted Williams Tunnel	Interstate 90both East and West	1995	built for theBig Dig
Mainland tunnels
Thomas P. O'Neill Jr. Tunnel	Interstate 93North and South	2003-2006	built for theBig Dig
Dewey Square Tunnel	Interstate 93 south (Congress st to Kneeland st)	1959
City Square Tunnel	US Route 1		built for theBig Dig

Bridges

Bridge Name	Opened	Notes
Charlestown Bridge	1900	connects Charlestown with Downtown area
Leverett Circle Connector Bridge	1999-10-07	connectsStorrow Drivewith Interstate 93, built for the big dig
Tobin Bridge	1950-02-27	Is more than two miles (3 km) from Charlestown to Chelsea over the Mystic River in Massachusetts. The bridge is the largest in New England.
Leonard P. Zakim Bunker Hill Memorial Bridge (Zakim Bridge)	2003	built for theBig Dig,carriesInterstate 93North and South

References

Notes

Related pages

• Boston Symphony Orchestra

Further reading

• Boston: A to Z(2000), Thomas H. O'Connor,ISBN0674003101
• Built in Boston: City and Suburb, 1800–2000(2000), Douglass Shand-Tucci,ISBN1558492011
• Lost Boston(1999), Mariner Books,ISBN0395966108
• Boston: A Topographical History,Third Enlarged Edition (2000), Belknap Press,ISBN0674002687
• When in Boston: A Time Line & Almanac(2004), Northeastern,ISBN1555536204
• Gaining Ground: A History of Landmaking in Boston(2003), Nancy S. Seasholes,ISBN0262194945
• Boston's Secret Spaces: 50 Hidden Corners In and Around the Hub,(2009), Globe Pequot; First editionISBN0762750626
• AIA Guide to Boston, 3rd Edition: Contemporary Landmarks, Urban Design, Parks, Historic Buildings and Neighborhoods,(2008), Michael Southworth and Susan Southworth, GPP Travel,ISBN0762743379
• Boston: A Pictorial Celebration(2006), Jonathan M. Beagle, Elan Penn (photographer),ISBN1402719779
• City in Time: Boston(2008), Jeffrey Hantover, Gilbert King (photographer),ISBN1402733003
• Mapping Boston(2001), Alex Krieger (editor), David Cobb (editor), Amy Turner (editor), Norman B. Leventhal (Foreword by) MIT Press,ISBN0262611732
• Boston Beheld: Antique Town and Country Views(2008), D. Brenton Simons, University Press of New England,ISBN1584657405
• Boston(2010) by Jordan Worek; photographs by Bill Horsman, Firefly Books,ISBN1554075912

Other websites

• Bostonat theOpen Directory Project
• City of Boston official website
• Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce
• Greater Boston Convention and Visitors Bureau
• WikiSatellite view of Boston at WikiMapia
• Mayor Marty Walsh
• Boston Public Health CommissionArchived2015-12-12 at theWayback Machine