BlockBefore
Decorative drawing: a small American settlement seen from a low hill. Not a photograph of this place.

Arlington, Massachusetts

46 topographic sheets cover this place, the earliest surveyed in 1893 and the latest in 1989. It stands in Arlington town. It lies in ZIP code area 02476. It stands on Mill Brook. The Survey maps it on the Lexington quadrangle.

Arlington within Middlesex County

Then and now

1893 to 1989

The same ground, surveyed 96 years apart. Drag the handle to wipe between them. Both sheets are United States Geological Survey originals; neither has been altered.

Topographic sheet of Arlington, surveyed 1989
Topographic sheet of Arlington, surveyed 1893

Topographic sheets covering this place

46 sheets

Matched by testing this settlement's coordinate against the published boundary of every sheet in the United States Geological Survey's historical collection. Each opens the scanned sheet at the Survey.

What happened here

An account from the chapter on Arlington town, The inset identifies its exact source book and publication year.

From History of the Town of Arlington, Massachusetts, published 1880 - Arlington Town

The Second Tkecinct In Cambridge

The command of the party of exempts is variously attributed to Pavid Lams on, a private soldier from Cambridge during the French War (see Paige, 405, note),* and to Phillips Payson, A.M., pastor of a church in Chelsea [H. U. 1754, D.D. &c.], both of whom were probably present. Bancroft says two wagons sent out to the troops with supplies were waylaid and captured by Payson, the minister of Chelsea.' Gordon, Hist.

Read the rest of this passage

In the county-history sources

118,301 words on this township

History of the Town of Arlington, Massachusetts, published 1880 names this settlement in its chapter on Arlington Town. These are the passages that mention it, exactly as the scans read.

It was the aim of the late Dr. Benjamin Cutter to preserve the decaying memorials of his native precinct, and much historical and genealogical matter was accordingly collected by him, and left unpublished at his death. It has been the design of his son to present this to the public in a convenient shape and durable form, with such additions as he has been able to collect. It is trusted that the work will prove valuable as a book of reference, notwithstanding that inaccuracies may occasionally be found.

Passage source: History of the Town of Arlington, Massachusetts, published 1880.

It is remarkable that the great-grandfather of Dr. Cutter was the first Precinct Clerk, or recording officer - an office which he held for thirty-two consecutive years. ' The paternal grandfather of Dr. Cutter (Ammi. Cutter), and his maternal grandfather (Samuel Locke), were also Precinct Clerks at different periods, the former holding the office five years, and the latter sixteen years.

Passage source: History of the Town of Arlington, Massachusetts, published 1880.

The authorities which have been consulted in obtaining dates and facts are specified in various portions of the work. The precinct and town records have, of course, been much relied upon, and information from them, as well as from gravestones, is given, as far as practicable, in the phraseology originally 'used. The church records have been found invaluable. Rev. Mr. Cooke, first minister of the Precinct (1739-1783), was an admirable recorder, whose specialty was the church records, and the Precinct births, baptisms, marriages and deaths. The records by Rev. Dr. Fiske cover forty years (1788-1828). Care has been taken to make proper reference in the text to two valuable recent publications - those of Rev. Dr. Paige and

Passage source: History of the Town of Arlington, Massachusetts, published 1880.

Machine-read from a century-old scan, so expect the errors a machine makes: misspelled names, dropped words, stray characters.

Read the whole chapter on Arlington Town - it names this place 23 more 23 times.

Fires near this place

68 since 2015

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 68 fires within 5 miles of Arlington between 2015 and 2020, burning about 97 acres in total. None started naturally. 28 were recorded as arson. Distance is straight-line from the map coordinates, so a fire counted here may appear on a neighbouring settlement's page as well.

Reported cause Fires
Arson/incendiarism28
Missing data/not specified/undetermined14
Debris and open burning12
Recreation and ceremony10
Smoking2
Misuse of fire by a minor2

The most recent of them, most recent first, with the day each was reported and the service that recorded it.

DateCause SizeReported by Name on the report
8 September 2020Missing data/not specified/undeterminedunder an acreMassachusetts Bureau of Forest Fire Controlnot named
4 September 2018Missing data/not specified/undeterminedunder an acreMassachusetts Bureau of Forest Fire Controlnot named
3 September 2018Debris and open burningunder an acreMassachusetts Bureau of Forest Fire Controlnot named
3 September 2018Missing data/not specified/undeterminedunder an acreMassachusetts Bureau of Forest Fire Controlnot named
23 September 2019Missing data/not specified/undeterminedunder an acreMassachusetts Bureau of Forest Fire Controlnot named
23 September 2019Missing data/not specified/undeterminedunder an acreMassachusetts Bureau of Forest Fire Controlnot named
22 September 2020Recreation and ceremonyunder an acreMassachusetts Bureau of Forest Fire Controlnot named
22 September 2019Missing data/not specified/undeterminedunder an acreMassachusetts Bureau of Forest Fire Controlnot named

Settlements close enough to share some of these fires:

Every fire recorded in Middlesex County

Specimens collected near this place

12 of 1,906 shown

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. Museums hold 1,906 specimens collected within 10 miles of Arlington between 1898 and 1975: 846 Animalia, 573 Plantae, 419 Fungi, 30 Protozoa, 17 Bacteria, 12 Chromista, 9 Unrecorded. 12 distinct Species records are shown. Collected by ?, A B Seymour, A B. Proper and others. Each is a physical object with a catalogue number, and each entry opens the museum's record. This is what was collected and kept, not a survey of what lives here - nothing can be concluded from a species being absent.

Image SpeciesYear Collected by Where, as recorded
Specimen of Trientalis borealis Raf.Trientalis borealis Raf.1900A. P. Chute
Aglaospora profusa (Fr.) De Not.1898Collector unspecified
A photograph of the species Bulbostylis capillaris, not of this specimenBulbostylis capillaris var. crebra Fernald1898C. H. KnowltonBoston.
A photograph of the species Cantharellus cinnabarinus, not of this specimenCantharellus cinnabarinus (Schwein.) Schwein.1898not recordedNewton.
A photograph of the species Cantharellus infundibuliformis, not of this specimenCantharellus infundibuliformis (Scop.) Fr.1898not recordedMelrose.
A photograph of the species Cladonia coccifera, not of this specimenCladonia coccifera (L.) Willd.1898Francis P DanielsCambridge
A photograph of the species Cladonia rangiferina, not of this specimenCladonia rangiferina (L.) Weber1898Francis P DanielsArlington Heights
A photograph of the species Cordyceps capitata, not of this specimenCordyceps capitata (Holmsk.) Link1898Conant, [?] F.Middlesex Fells
A photograph of the species Crataegus coccinea, not of this specimenCrataegus coccinea L.1898NoneHarvard University Arboretum
A photograph of the species Ctenidium malacodes, not of this specimenCtenidium malacodes Mitt.1898not recorded
A photograph of the species Acanthis flammea, not of this specimenAcanthis flammea flammea (Linnaeus, 1758)1900ZAPPEY, W RROSLINDALE
A photograph of the species Acer carpinifolium, not of this specimenAcer carpinifolium Siebold & Zucc.1900A. K. HarrisonHarvard Botanic Garden, Cambridge.

All 1,906 specimens within 10 miles, at the Global Biodiversity Information Facility.

Mines and quarries near this place

10 of 15 shown

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal mineral resources record lists 15 workings within 5 miles of Arlington: 7 plants, 6 past producers, 2 producers. 9 still produce. What was taken out: Sand and Gravel, Construction, Iron, Lead, Tantalum. Distance is straight-line from the map coordinates, so a quarry counted here may appear on a neighbouring settlement's page as well.

Where SiteCommodity StatusRecorded
Mahoney:S Rocky LedgePeatPast ProducerPeat
Nrc Inc--Newton, Ma.Tantalum, Niobium (Columbium)Plant
Rocky Ledge PitClayPast Producer
Syncor Prdts Co--Malden, Ma.SilicaPlant
(Facility) Cambridge Smelter CoLeadPlant
Somerville Smelting Co.LeadPlant
Austin Hastings--Woburn, Ma.IronPlant
Industrial Serv. Centers--CambridgeIronPlant
Wheelock-Lovejoy--Cambridge, Ma.IronPlant
Burlington S & G Co., Inc. PitSand and Gravel, ConstructionProducer

Every working recorded in Middlesex County

Storms near this place

11 since 1998

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Arlington in 11 storm reports between 1998 and 2022: 7 thunderstorm wind, 2 hail, 1 flash flood, 1 flood. No death or injury is recorded in these reports. Each account below is quoted exactly as the forecast office filed it, from the NOAA Storm Events Database, and each date opens the federal record of that event.

WhenEvent Place namedHarm What the report says
June 1998Flash FloodArlington$570,000Alewife Brook
July 2012Thunderstorm WindArlington$350,000A microburst occurred in Arlington, downing numerous trees. Most of these trees were downed in an approximately 1 square mile section of eastern Arlington, between the intersection of Massachusetts Avenue and Broadway and Route 16 around the Cambridge/Arlington line. Numerous houses and vehicles were damaged by downed trees. Traffic signals and street lights were also damaged or downed by falling trees/wind.
July 2006Thunderstorm WindArlington$35,000no account filed
July 2016Thunderstorm WindArlington$20,000Several trees and branches were downed at the corner of Washington and Arnold by thunderstorm winds. A tree was downed onto a car on Howard Street. A large branch on Dudley Street was downed onto wires.
September 2019Thunderstorm WindArlington$15,000In Arlington, a tree fell into a house on Hamlet Street. A tree was down on Quincy Street. |A tree was down on Allen Street near Broadway. A tree and wires were down on Sunnyside Avenue. A tree limb fell into the side of a house on Davis Avenue.
June 2010Thunderstorm WindArlington$10,000Trees on Oxford Road were downed onto wires by thunderstorm winds.
September 2014Thunderstorm WindArlington$5,000A tree on Wheaten Road was downed by thunderstorm winds.
June 2012Thunderstorm WindArlington$5,000A tree on Mystic Lake Drive was downed by thunderstorm winds.
August 2022FloodArlington-In Arlington, cars were stuck in street flooding on Brattle Street.
July 2016HailArlington-no account filed
July 2008HailArlington-no account filed

Every storm recorded in Middlesex County

Nearest settlements

The eight closest, with where each one stands in the county. Distances are straight-line, computed from the Geographic Names Information System coordinates.

Map PlaceDistance Sheets
Brattle0.7 miles46
East Arlington0.9 miles46
Arlington Heights1.3 miles46
West Medford1.3 miles46
Medford Hillside1.7 miles46
Belmont1.8 miles46
North Cambridge1.9 miles46
Wedgemere2.2 miles46

Provenance

This settlement is recorded in the Geographic Names Information System as feature 612141. The sheet list is computed by point-in-boundary test against the United States Geological Survey's historical topographic inventory. Both are works of the United States government and carry no copyright under 17 U.S.C. 105.

Wildfire. Short, Karen C. 2022. Spatial wildfire occurrence data for the United States, 1992-2020 [FPA_FOD_20221014]. 6th Edition. Fort Collins, CO: Forest Service Research Data Archive. https://doi.org/10.2737/RDS-2013-0009.6 Collected with United States Government funding and usable without additional permissions or fees.

Specimens. Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF), https://www.gbif.org/. Only records licensed CC0 or CC BY are used. Records licensed CC BY-NC are excluded because this site carries advertising. Images are checked individually and any whose licence is non-commercial, no-derivatives or unreadable is refused.

Mines and quarries. USGS Mineral Resources Data System (MRDS) https://mrdata.usgs.gov/mrds/ A work of the United States government, no copyright under 17 U.S.C. 105.

Storms. NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/stormevents/ A work of the United States government, no copyright under 17 U.S.C. 105. Narratives are quoted verbatim from the National Weather Service report and are not edited or summarised.