Milton Neighborhoods

Milton has a number of varying areas or neighborhoods, often distinguished by when and why they were settled.

 The most important element in early Milton settlement was the Neponset River, which provided not only sustenance but easy transport to the harbor as well as valuable water power.  The area now known as Milton Village grew up in the 18th century at the 'falls,' providing power for mills including grist,  gun powder, paper, and chocolate.  The landing provided ample space for wharves, warehouse,s and shop,s all accessible by the river as well as land, and also allowed for the construction of ships.

Along the side of the river now runs Eliot Street.  In the 19th century, the railroad also ran encouraging settlement at the base of Milton Hill and along the river/rail corridor towards what is now Mattapan.  Worker-force housing was built throughout this area, not only because of proximity to employment opportunities in Milton, but also because of the availability of the railroad to provide access to Boston.  The Milton Village is one of Milton's 10 National Register Historic Districts.

East Milton, settled primarily in the mid-19th century, grew up around another railroad---the Granite Railway---which transported granite from the Quincy quarries along the route now followed by the Southeast Expressway to a wharf, again on the Neponset River, from which granite was shipped afar as well as to Charlestown to construct the Bunker Hill Monument.  The Railway Village is another of Milton's historic districts.  Again the presence of the railroad in the late 19th century encouraged workers to settle here because of easy transport to Boston.

The area now becoming known as 'West Milton'  was developed and settled in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, along what is now Blue Hills Parkway and Blue Hill Avenue,  again because of its proximity and walking distance to the railroad just across the river in Boston.

During the 18th and 19th centuries, much of Milton remained agricultural and relatively sparsely populated.  Wealthy Bostonians began to seek refuge from the hot Boston summers and purchased 'gentleman farms' and built large homes along Milton Hill and Brush Hill, both being high enough to gather the summer breezes.  Milton Hill and Brush Hill comprise 2 more of Milton's  National Register Historic Districts.   Even today,  these areas contain a relatively small number of large estate homes on large lots.

Milton's most rapid growth occurred between the wars and particularly after World War II, seeing the demise of small farms and the development of housing for returning servicemen and the increasing ability of workers to purchase their own homes.  The area between Thatcher Street and Blue Hills Parkway, Blue Hill Avenue, and lower Brush Hill Road grew immensely between the wars.  Other areas near   Pleasant Street, Edge Hil,l and Reedsdale Roads, for example, and the Columbine-Cliffs area developed steadily after the Second War.

The agricultural atmosphere can still be found in the upper Canton Avenue adjoining the Blue Hills and the upper Brush Hill area, still the location of large farm-size parcels and large estate homes.