The Austin Street development is in the news and the future of Newtonville is on the table. What better time to delve into Newtonville of the past.
Historic Newton and the Newton Free Library will present a free talk called “Voices of Newtonville: a Village History” tomorrow night, Feb 27 at 7 PM at the Newton Free Library.
Come explore the history of Newtonville from its rural beginnings, through its suburban development as a railroad stop, to the changes brought by the construction of the Mass Pike.
Harvard graduate student and Historic Newton educator Tracy Lindboe will lead us through the development of Newtonville using historic images and narratives from past Newtonville residents.
Sounds like a great presentation! Hopefully we can get a review of it up here…
I wish the talk were taped! There are a lot of meetings going on tonight so I will miss this one.
@Emily – there was a video camera recording it. I’m not sure who was taping it – Historic Newton? NewTV?
Tracy Lindboe gave a great talk that just focused on Walnut St from Washington St to just past the high school. For just that one stretch of street there was plenty of interesting material.
One detail that caught my ear was about the Claflin School. In the 1920’s it was full to capacity. They built two free standing one story wooden buildings in the back to deal with overcrowding. It sure sounded like Newton’s first modular classrooms.
Also, because we’re in the process of putting together “The Back Alleys of Newton – Newton’s Hidden Bowling Alleys”, my ears perked up when she began reading an account of a boy working at setting pins in the Newton Club’s (long gone) bowling alleys.
Great talk. Churches were the main source of learning and community life as farms began the economic growth. Railways soon stimulated further growth. The terrain was wooded and scenic. The Newton Club was a mens facility which acted as a focal point for much social interaction with dances and other venues.
The village was tiny but life was most enjoyable for those who built homes.