Medford, Massachusetts

Medford is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, on the Mystic River, five miles northwest of downtown Boston. Medford was settled in 1630 as part of Charlestown, when Thomas Dudley referred to it as “Mistick” (a name that persisted for decades), which his party renamed “Meadford.”

People from Medford often identify themselves with a particular neighborhood: West Medford, North Medford, Wellington/Glenwood, South Medford, Medford Hillside, Tufts University (which includes Hillside and South Medford) or Lawrence Estates.

Though the Tufts campus is mainly located in Medford, the Somerville-Medford border actually runs through it. The school employs many local residents and has many community service projects that serve the city, especially those run through the Leonard Carmichael Society and the Jonathan M. Tisch College of Citizenship and Public Service. Other points of interest include: The Unitarian Universalist Church of Medford, the Amelia Earhart residence, the John Wade House, (added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1975), the former site of Fannie Farmer’s house (at the corner of Paris and Salem Streets), Grandfather’s House, Grace Church, the Gravity Research Foundation monument at Tufts University, the Henry Bradlee Jr. House, the Jingle Bells historical marker, the Salem Street Burying Ground and the Medford Main historic U.S. Post Office.