Avon Hill Real Estate
Located close to Porter Square, Avon Hill is an upscale, historic neighborhood in Cambridge. The area is known for its stately brick homes, including a concentration of some of the finest Victorian and Second Empire buildings in the city located along Washington Street. Some of the Victorian homes have been divided into multi-family condos with all of the modern amenities while preserving the period charm and original facade. Select streets and homes between Blue’s Avon Hill House and Porter Square are on the National Register of Historic Places, celebrating Avon Hill as an architecturally significant community. Avon Hill is home to young families and working professionals, offering quiet, tree-lined streets and even yards. Within walking distance of both Harvard Square in Cambridge and Davis Square in Somerville, Avon Hill residents have their pick of from a wealth of eateries and dining options as well as easy access to the MBTA Red Line and Commuter Rail. Read more about Avon Hill real estate.
Avon Hill Homes & Condos For Sale
More About Avon Hill Real Estate
Avon Hill Location
The Avon Hill area is broadly defined by Massachusetts Avenue to the north; Raymond Street to the south; Linnaean Street to the east; and Upland Road to the west. Avon Hill is served by the Porter Square Red Line on the MBTA with commuter line access into Boston’s North Station; Brandeis University in Waltham or Concord, west of the city. Avon Hill is also conveniently located near I-90 (Mass Pike) for commutes out of the city to the western suburbs.
Avon Hill History
Avon Hill was originally known as Jones Hill and a thriving agrarian district in the mid-1800s. Two prominent local businessmen developed the five acres at the top of the hill, some eighty feet in elevation, building elegant Second Empire homes on Washington Street. While one burned in a fire, the other survives to this day. The area was further built out with additional architecturally significant homes on spacious lots in the 1890s, mainly for the owners of local businesses. The name Avon Hill is something of a mystery but historians believe that as the neighborhood continued to develop, Avon Street was extended up to Jones Hill and the area rechristened Avon Hill Street and later shortened to Avon Hill.