This is a black-and-white advertisement from a 1910 directory for JOHN P. SQUIRE & CO. It is framed by a simple border and features two distinct sections. The top of the ad prominently displays the company name in large, bold letters, with the establishment date of "1842" noted just below. The text describes them as "PACKERS AND WHOLESALE DEALERS IN High Grade Pork Products." The bottom section is dominated by an illustration of two smiling, cartoon-like pigs on either side of the brand name, "Arlington." Below this are the products they sell: "HAM, BACON, SAUSAGE and COOKED HAM." The text also specifies they are "Makers of Squire's Kettle Rendered Pure Leaf Lard" and provides their business addresses on Gore Street in Cambridge and North Market Street in Boston.

The Rise of Industry in East Cambridge

From Salt Marshes to Industrial Hub: The Story of East Cambridge

The area we now know as East Cambridge was for many centuries largely salt marshes and mud flats that, at low tide, virtually cut the area off from other parts of the city, as well as from Boston. The rich oyster beds contained there served as an important resource to the Indigenous inhabitants of the neighborhood as well as the early European colonists who settled nearby, but its geographical features meant the area was not a suitable choice for permanent settlement.

This image is a detailed section of a larger 1854 map, focusing specifically on East Cambridge. It shows the area with greater clarity. The Miller's River, which was a central feature in the early industrial history, is visible. The map provides a snapshot of the neighborhood's layout and street patterns just before the full-scale industrial boom.
Detail of 1854 Map Showing East Cambridge. Courtesy Norman B. Leventhal Map & Education Center at the Boston Public Library.

In the 1630s, the English engineer Thomas Graves was the first European colonist to settle in East Cambridge, surveying it for potential use by the new arrivals. The area came to be known as Graves’ Neck and was set off from the rest of Cambridge by Gibbon’s Creek to the north, Oyster Bank Bay to the east and the Great Marsh to the south. For more than a century following Graves’ sale of his land grant, most of the land at Graves’ Neck remained in the control of several families who farmed and consolidated parcels and passed them to their descendants. In the mid-18th century, Richard Lechmere (who had married the daughter of Lt. Gov. Spencer Phips) purchased a large tract of land on Graves’ Neck and subsequently bought out most of the other property owners. Not wanting to be isolated from the elite of Cambridge, the Lechmeres made their primary residence on Brattle Street and rented out their Graves’ Neck farm, then known as Lechmere Point; when they fled to England as Loyalists, the farm was confiscated by the revolutionary government.

After the war, a speculator named Andrew Craigie, who had profited from government securities, began secretly acquiring land in Lechmere Point. By 1805, he received permission to build a bridge to Boston. This project, along with a new courthouse, spurred the development of East Cambridge, transforming it into a planned neighborhood with a regular grid of streets.

This is a historical map of Cambridge from 1830. The map shows the city's early development, including street layouts, major geographical features like the Charles River, and the locations of various businesses and institutions.
1830 Map of Cambridge. Courtesy Norman B. Leventhal Map & Education Center at the Boston Public Library.

The Rise of Industry and Railroads

1912 map of East Cambridge railroads. Image courtesy MIT Press.

The 19th century saw East Cambridge become a center for large-scale industries that were often considered undesirable in other parts of the city. Glass manufacturing was the first major industry to take root, followed by meat processing and sugar refining. This industrial boom led to the construction of housing for workers, including cottages and tenement houses, while factory managers and white-collar courthouse employees built more upscale homes.

The geography of the area also made it a natural entry point for railroads coming into Boston from the north. Between the 1830s and 1850s, seven different railroad companies laid tracks across the bay. The Boston & Lowell Railroad, completed in 1835, was the first. These rail lines were crucial for transporting goods, including bricks and ice from North Cambridge, and connected East Cambridge to deep-water shipping via the Charlestown Branch Railroad.

John P. Squire and the Pork Industry

Image courtesy Cambridge Public Library.

One of the most significant figures in East Cambridge’s industrial history was John P. Squire, who started his pork packing business in 1855. By 1892, his company had become the third-largest pork packing business in the country, employing 1,000 men and slaughtering thousands of hogs daily.

Squire’s was the largest employer of immigrants in East Cambridge, providing jobs to newly-arrived people from Ireland, Germany, Italy, Poland, and other countries who often took on the hardest and lowest-paying work. Although the company’s fortunes fluctuated, it remained a major force until it was acquired by Swift & Company in the 1930s and eventually closed. The factory later burned down in 1963.

The Poultry Industry and Its Challenges

This is a small newspaper headline with very stark and sensationalist language. It reads, "Beheading of Chickens Is Called Murder and Bad Example to Young." The headline is from the Cambridge Chronicle in 1931 and reports on opposition to a proposed Jewish chicken slaughterhouse, which likely used the method of shechita (ritual slaughter). The text highlights the public controversy and ethical debate surrounding a specific type of slaughtering practice at the time.
1931 newspaper headline. Courtesy Cambridge Public Library.

Unlike the pork industry, large-scale chicken processing didn’t arrive in East Cambridge until the mid-1930s. An earlier attempt in 1931 was met with strong opposition from the public and politicians who were concerned about nuisances like noise, odors, and the “bad example” of chickens being slaughtered. Newspaper coverage of the Jewish proprietors’ permit application repeatedly mentioned their religion, and it’s notable that no similar objections were raised when the Somerville Live Poultry Company opened just a few years later.

This is an advertisement from a historical newspaper, dating to 1935. It's for the Somerville Live Poultry Company. The ad promotes "LIVE NATIVE POULTRY" and highlights its freshness, stating that the birds are "Killed—dressed—in three minutes." It positions the poultry as "A perfect Sunday dinner" and mentions a "Special sale Saturday!" The address listed for the company is 621 Cambridge Street, which is "Near the crossing."
1935 advertisement courtesy Cambridge Public Library

The Somerville Live Poultry Company relocated to East Cambridge in 1935. The company distributed around 25,000 birds per week, all sourced from local farms. In 1965, it began operating under the name Mayflower Poultry, and its iconic sign on Cambridge Street became a local landmark until the slaughterhouse closed in 2021.

This is a black-and-white photograph of a man and a bird. The man, Joseph Moran, is standing outdoors in what appears to be a yard or field. He is wearing a work jacket and a cap. He is holding a large, white goose, or gander, named Monty. He is looking down at the bird with a gentle expression.
Joseph Moran, Cambridge slaughterhouse worker, with gander Monty he saved, 1941. Image courtesy Digital Commonwealth.

Social and Environmental Impact

The rapid industrialization of East Cambridge had significant environmental and social consequences. By the 1870s, nine slaughterhouses, with Squire’s being the largest, polluted the Miller’s River. Appeals to the city and state were mostly unsuccessful, but the pollution prompted Cambridge and Somerville to start filling in the river’s tidal flats. The case of the Miller’s River was one of the earliest to consider a company’s legal responsibility for the environmental effects of its business.

This is a very short, black-and-white headline from a newspaper. It consists of a thick horizontal line, followed by the capitalized words "MILLER'S RIVER NUISANCE," and then another thick horizontal line. The text has a grainy, aged appearance.
1872 newspaper headline. Courtesy Cambridge Public Library.

Squire’s also faced pressure from the Massachusetts Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (MSPCA) regarding humane conditions for livestock. In response, the company voluntarily introduced a new system that it claimed killed animals “instantaneously and painlessly,” positioning itself as a modern, forward-thinking business.

Workers at Squire’s also fought for better conditions. A bitter strike in 1886, led by the Knights of Labor, protested low wages and unsafe conditions. Despite these tensions, Squire’s tried to build a community culture by sponsoring baseball teams, company outings, and playgrounds. They also provided housing (at a cost) to their workers in tenement apartments that the company owned and worked with community groups to offer English and citizenship classes.

This is a black-and-white photograph of a group of striking workers from the John P. Squire & Co. meatpacking plant. The photo was taken in 1945 at the Massachusetts State House. In the background, the Massachusetts State House is visible, with its large dome and a row of columns. A flagpole with an American flag stands to the right of the main building. In the foreground, a group of about a dozen men are walking toward the camera on a paved sidewalk. They are dressed in casual mid-20th-century clothing, including work jackets, trousers, and a variety of hats. Many of the men are carrying signs with handwritten slogans. Some of the signs are legible, including: "MANPOWER SHORTAGE? NOT IF JOHN P. SQUIRE & CO. WE ARE NOT ASKING LESS THAN 48 HOURS A WEEK" "WORKERS' DEMAND IS A FULL WORK WEEK" "WE ARE NOT ON STRIKE! WE WANT WORK WE WANT THE WAR"
Striking Squire’s workers at the Massachusetts State House, 1945. Courtesy Digital Commonwealth.

Image gallery

This is a small, rectangular advertisement from an 1856 newspaper. It's for a company called "LEWIS F. MERRILL," a "WHOLESALE AND RETAIL DEALER." The text is in large, bold, capitalized letters. The ad lists various meat products and byproducts for sale, including "Lard, Tallow, Sausages, Bolognas, Beef, Pok [Pork], Scraps, Etc." It gives an address for an "Order Box" in Boston and specifies a location for the "LARD WORKS" as "Near the Bay State Glass Works, Bridge Street, East Cambridge." The ad ends with a note about paying cash for raw materials like "rough tallow and lard."
1856 Advertisement, Cambridge Chronicle. Courtesy Cambridge Public Library.
This is a historical, black-and-white map of the Miller's River Basin area in East Cambridge. The map is drawn in an old style, with rough, hand-drawn lines showing the river's winding path. It highlights key early infrastructure, including the "Middlesex Canal" and the "Boston & Lowell Railroad line," which is a dark, heavy line cutting through the landscape. The map labels are small and hard to read, but they show the early street layouts and geographical features of the area, including parts of Cambridge and Boston. The title at the bottom explains that the map shows the "terminal facilities of the Middlesex Canal and the Boston & Lowell Railroad" in 1832.
1832 Map of Miller_s River Basin showing the Boston and Lowell Railroad line. Courtesy MIT Press.
This is an old, black-and-white engraving of the face and shoulders of a man named John P. Squire. He is shown looking slightly to the side with a serious expression. He has a balding head and a full face with defined cheekbones. He is wearing a dark jacket and a bow tie. The engraving style uses fine lines and heavy shading, particularly on the left side of his face, to create a sense of depth and shadow. In the bottom right corner, there is a small signature that is difficult to read but likely belongs to the artist.
1893 Engraving of John P. Squire, from Cambridge Chronicle. Courtesy Cambridge Public Library.
This is a black-and-white, highly detailed map or plan from 1873. It shows the winding paths of the Miller's Creek and a portion of the Charles River. The map is filled with fine lines that outline property plots, streets, and railroad lines. The East Cambridge area is shown with a dense grid of streets and some marked buildings, indicating an urbanizing landscape. The title in the bottom right corner reads "COMPLIANT PLAN SHOWING MILLERS CREEK AND A PORTION OF THE CHARLES RIVER" and notes that it was surveyed in 1873. The map visually represents the complex waterways and infrastructure of the area before extensive landfill and redevelopment.
1873 Plan Showing Millers Creek and a Portion of the Charles River. Courtesy Norman B. Leventhal Map & Education Center at the Boston Public Library.
This is a section of a newspaper from 1874. The headline text is large, bold, and centered. It reads "THE GREAT Business Interests OF CAMBRIDGE." Below this, in smaller, italicized font, it says "The Slaughtering and Rendering Works of," and then in large, bold letters again, "JOHN P. SQUIRE & CO." This headline clearly identifies Squire's as a major business interest in Cambridge at that time.
1874 Advertisement, Cambridge Chronicle. Courtesy Cambridge Public Library.
Bird's eye view of Cambridge from East Cambridge.
1879 View of East Cambridge. Courtesy Norman B. Leventhal Map & Education Center at the Boston Public Library.
This image is a detailed black-and-white billhead, a type of invoice, from 1882. The top half is dominated by an elaborate illustration and text. On the left is an engraving of a large industrial complex labeled "SLAUGHTERING AND CURING ESTABLISHMENT" and "GORE ST., EAST CAMBRIDGE, MASS." It shows a sprawling multi-story factory with smoking chimneys and smaller buildings, surrounded by what looks like a rail yard with train cars and horse-drawn carriages. The right side of the billhead is a decorative banner that reads "BOUGHT OF JOHN P. SQUIRE & CO." Below this, it lists their products: "Pork, Lard, and Hams," and specifies that they are "PACKERS & WHOLESALE DEALERS." It also lists their market locations in Boston. The bottom half of the billhead is a form with handwritten entries in a flowing cursive script, showing a transaction from that time.
1882 Billhead for Squire’s. Courtesy Digital Commonwealth.
This is a close-up detail from the previous advertisement. It shows a small, intricate illustration of a butcher shop or processing room. Several men are visible inside, some handling meat, while others are at workbenches. The scene provides a glimpse into the industrial-scale processing of meat at a time before modern, automated factories.
Detail of Pork Processing from 1893 Squire_s Advertisement, The Youth_s Companion Magazine. Courtesy Digital Commonwealth.
This is a sketch or architectural drawing of a housing development project. The handwritten text at the bottom identifies it as a: RESTORATION RESETTLEMENT PROJECT GORE ST. CAMBRIDGE, MASS. The image is a bird's-eye view, showing a layout of several multi-unit buildings arranged around a central circular space or courtyard. The style of the buildings appears to be colonial or New England revival. The architect is also named in the bottom right corner: VICTOR H. WIGGLESWORTH, ARCHITECT, BELMONT, MASS. The image is identified as being related to the "Squire's Court Housing Development, c. 1930s" from the Cambridge Chronicle
Plan for Squire_s Court Housing Development, c. 1930s. Courtesy Cambridge Public Library.
picture of a page from a book titled Romance in Meat. The text on the page discusses the history of New England, specifically in relation to meat consumption and the pork industry. The full page shows: The title, "ROMANCE in MEAT" at the top. An illustration featuring a bottle of wine, a bowl of fruit, and some sort of decorated container. The first paragraph talks about the hardy nature of New England people, their sailing ventures, and their diet of barreled meat, particularly pork. The second paragraph mentions how New England pork played a significant role in "civilizing" far-off places. It specifically references William Pynchon, who moved from Roxbury to the Connecticut River in 1636 and helped establish a settlement that would later become Springfield. The third and final paragraph on the page notes that in the spring of 1655, Pynchon began the commercial slaughter of hogs. It quotes Rudolf A. Clemen's book, American Livestock and Meat, to say that this formed a "goodly part" of the livestock and meat industry. The book is a historical account of the meat industry, with a focus on New England's role, and was published by "Squire's for their 100th anniversary, c. 1952."
This is a black-and-white photo showing a dramatic fire at a large brick building. Thick plumes of smoke billow out of the building's upper windows and roof, obscuring much of the sky. In the foreground and middle ground, several firefighters in helmets and heavy coats are directing powerful streams of water from fire hoses toward the building's windows. The building is multi-story with a grid of windows. Several long, extension ladders are propped up against the building's exterior, and one firefighter is visible partway up a ladder on the far left. The scene is chaotic and filled with smoke, light from the water streams, and the active presence of emergency crews.
1963 Fire Destroys Squire’s Plant. Courtesy Digital Commonwealth.
This is a rectangular advertisement from a 1970 Cambridge City Directory. The ad is for MAYFLOWER POULTRY CO., which is identified as a "Division of Somerville Live Poultry Co." The ad lists "HEADQUARTERS for FARM FRESH CHICKEN and EGGS." Two small, tilted boxes on the ad read "Less than supermarket prices and fresher!" and "All Chickens cut up free!" The ad provides prices for "WHOLE CHICKENS" and "LEG QUARTERS" at 49 cents per pound and "JUMBO SIZE AA EGGS" for 89 cents per dozen. It also lists the hours of operation and the company's address at 621 Cambridge Street, a location previously seen in an earlier ad.
Advertisement, Cambridge City Directory, 1970. Courtesy Cambridge Public Library.

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