Magoun Square

Magoun Square in July 2012

Magoun Square is a neighborhood centered on the intersection of Broadway and Medford Streets on the border of Medford and Somerville, Massachusetts. It is a mixed-use urban business district, with commercial sites in the square and residential areas surrounding it.

Notable residents include playwright John Shea.^[1]

History

Magoun Square was named after the family of John Calvin Magoun (1797 - 1882)^[2] of the Adams-Magoun House. Magoun was the local Assessor for twenty-eight years and was Captain in the militia at the time of the visit by the Marquis de Lafayette in 1826.^[3]

Transportation

A #80 bus in Magoun Square

Magoun Square is located the intersection of Broadway and Medford Streets, two major thoroughfares. The square is a six-way intersection, with signals for Dexter Street and a municipal lot as well as the two major through streets. Lowell Street meets Medford Street just south of the square at a separate light. In 2009, the city requested and received $3 million in stimulus funding to improve the safety and accessibility of the crash prone intersection.^[4] The project which totaled $3.1 million in work, included resignalization, raised pedestrian islands and accessible curb cuts, bicycle racks, improved sidewalks, and street furniture.^[5] The project was initially completed in 2011, though some work had to be redone in 2012.^[6][7]

Two MBTA Bus routes run through the square:

• 80 Arlington Center - Lechmere Station via Medford Hillside
• 89 Clarendon Hill or Davis Square - Sullivan Square Station via Broadway

An additional route follows Main Street, 400 feet (120 m) to the northeast:

• 101 Malden Center Station - Sullivan Square Station via Salem Street, Main Street & Broadway

The Medford Branch of the under-construction Green Line Extension will follow the nearby Lowell Line, with new rapid transit stations at Lowell Street 0.3 miles (0.48 km) to the south and Ball Square 0.4 miles (0.64 km) to the west opening in 2020.

References

1. Holder, Doug (25 November 2007). "New play has an atmosphere of Somerville minimalism". Somerville News. Retrieved 2 March 2015.
2. Sammarco, Anthony Mitchell. "Somerville", p. 17
3. Biographical sketches of representative citizens of the commonwealth of Massachusetts ... (Google eBook), (Graves & Steinbarger, 1901) pg. 986
4. "Somerville Stimulus Requests 2009" (PDF). City of Somerville. 8 January 2009. Retrieved 8 July 2015.
5. Benson, Brian (24 September 2009). "Magoun Square improvements awarded federal stimulus funds". Boston Globe. Retrieved 8 July 2015.
6. Dick, Marcia (22 June 2011). "Business continues to lag in Somerville's Magoun Square". Boston Globe. Retrieved 8 July 2015.
7. Shelton, William C. (5 October 2012). "Magoun Square at a crossroads". Somerville Times. Retrieved 8 July 2015.

External links

• Neighborhood profile by City of Somerville

Coordinates: 42°23′50″N 71°06′16″W / 42.397361°N 71.104395°W