industry Archives - History Cambridge

Nov. 24: Making It in East Cambridge

November 13, 2025

Making It in East Cambridge: Industry and Innovation History Cafe with Mike Kuchta Monday, November 24, 20256-7 pmEast Cambridge History Center, 625 Cambridge Street (the former Mayflower Poultry site) Beginning in the early 1800s, East Cambridge grew into a regionally- and nationally-important center of manufacturing, activity which largely disappeared by the late 1960s. Prominent local industries included…

Dec 7: We Were Here

October 29, 2025

This is a promotional poster for the play "WE WERE HERE," which centers on the Polish women working at The Foundry in 1911. The background is a faint, sepia-toned historical photograph of several women looking directly at the viewer. The text is overlaid in a dark, reddish-orange color. At the top are the logos for History Cambridge and Central Square Theater. The event details are clearly listed: Sunday, December 7, at 2 PM, at The Foundry (101 Rogers Street). The key point about the cost is emphasized: Free.

Sunday, December 72 pmFoundry Theater101 Rogers Street, CambridgeFree; no registration required We Were Here: An Enhanced Performance Arranged and written by Betsy Bard and Micaela León Perdomo, We Were Here is a play exploring the history of immigrant workers at the Blake & Knowles Foundry in East Cambridge by Youth Underground from Central Square Theater.…

The Rise of Industry in East Cambridge

September 12, 2025

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…

Furniture making in East Cambridge, birthplace of the Davenport sofa in America’s Gilded Age

September 4, 2025

The photograph depicts the interior of a large and luxurious room, likely a dining hall or a reception room, from the late 19th or early 20th century. The walls are lined with dark, rich wood paneling, complementing the ornate plasterwork on the ceiling. A large, decorative chandelier hangs from the center of the ceiling, providing a focal point for the room's lighting. The furniture, including multiple sets of chairs and tables, is upholstered in a deep green fabric, creating a sense of opulence and comfort. Prominently featured above a white fireplace mantel is a mounted moose head, a detail that, along with a large, colorful tapestry on the back wall, contributes to the room's classic, formal, and somewhat grand aesthetic.

by Michael Kuchta, 2025 For more than a century, from the 1850s until after World War II, East Cambridge was home to a number of nationally prominent makers of custom furniture. The industry grew with the help of skilled and semiskilled laborers, mostly recent immigrants; the invention of steam-powered saws, planers, lathes and other woodworking…

Sept. 28: “Smoke This” Rib Fest

September 4, 2025

Smoke This Rib Fest graphic with image of grumpy pig from Squire's Meatpacking Company historic postcard.

Sunday, September 28, 202512– 4 pm Cambridge Street in East Cambridge Between Fulkerson Street and Fifth StreetFree (tickets required for tastings) Join us for this delicious annual community event! You already know that East Cambridge has a fascinating industrial history. Now, you can learn more about it while enjoying some delicious BBQ! We’re excited to…

In the organ-making history of East Cambridge, two small-business owners dominated

July 31, 2025

a close-up of a nameplate on what appears to be a musical instrument, likely an organ or piano, given the visible keys above it. The plate is metallic and engraved with decorative script. It reads: "George Stevens, Maker PRESENTED TO THE FIRST PARISH IN SHIRLEY, BY MRS. HENRIETTA WHITNEY. (1847.)"

By Beth Folsom, 2025 As Cambridge enters the season of graduations, weddings and first Communion and other church-related celebrations, it is worth noting the city’s history of building the instrument that provides the soundtrack to many of these events: the church organ. East Cambridge in particular has been home to several organ and piano manufacturers…

East Cambridge led, not to mention innovated in, the manufacture of coffin and caskets

July 31, 2025

a brick building in an urban setting with a large mural on its side. The mural features various figures and abstract shapes in shades of green, brown, and white. The building itself has multiple windows, some adorned with green vertical banners, and a green awning over an entrance. To the left, there's a modern glass building, and to the right, another brick building. Cars are visible on the street in front, which has a crosswalk and traffic signals.

By Beth Folsom, 2025 Brothers William and David Lockhart established their coffin- and casket-making factory on Bridge Street in East Cambridge in 1854. Woodworking shops of many varieties already existed in the neighborhood, and the Lockhart brothers themselves had a brief foray into the world of cabinet-making before turning their attention to caskets. What began…

Brush-making in Cambridge used prison labor, ultimately defeating an industry and principle

July 31, 2025

The image is a black and white photograph, likely taken in 1938 based on the filename, showing a brick building with a sign that reads "HOUSE - CORRECTION JAIL OFFICE" above its entrance. The building has several windows, some with bars, and a prominent gable with two chimneys on the roof. To the left, there's a large arched entrance in a brick wall, and behind it, a tall smokestack is visible. A vintage car is parked on the street in front of the building. The overall scene suggests an institutional or industrial setting from the early 20th century.

By Beth Folsom, 2025 Beginning in the early 19th century, individual craftspeople and small-scale workshops in East Cambridge made a variety of brushes for domestic and commercial use. By midcentury, this had expanded into larger-scale industrial production; in the 1850s, Stratton, Sherriff & Co. employed more than 150 workers in its brush factory on South…

Lessons in East Cambridge history: Reflections on two centuries of newspaper coverage

July 31, 2025

The image is a black and white photograph depicting a street festival. Two men in the foreground are carrying a large statue of a female figure, possibly a religious icon, adorned with decorations. Other people are visible in the background, suggesting a crowd gathered for the event. The overall scene conveys a sense of community celebration.

By Beth Folsom, 2025 This is the third year of History Cambridge’s Neighborhood History Center model of programming, in which we choose one of Cambridge’s 13 neighborhoods on which to focus for a calendar year. For the past six months, I have delved into the history of this year’s neighborhood, East Cambridge, by reading the nearly…

East Cambridge’s American Net and Twine Co. reflects a history entangled with enslaved labor

July 31, 2025

The image shows the "AMERICAN TWINE Office Park," featuring a brick building with many windows and several trees in front of it. There's a sign indicating "SPACE FOR LEASE" with contact information for "TRANSATLANTIC MANAGEMENT" (617-492-1547) and stating it's "Managed by Transatlantic Investment Management, Inc." Several cars are parked in front of the building. The architectural style suggests an older industrial building that has been repurposed.

By Beth Folsom, 2025 Before the founding of the American Net and Twine Co. in 1844, fishing and other kinds of nets were either made locally using hemp fibers or were made of cotton but imported from England. American Net and Twine was the first manufacturer to use domestic cotton to craft its nets –…

Posts Tagged ‘industry’

Nov. 24: Making It in East Cambridge

Dec 7: We Were Here

The Rise of Industry in East Cambridge

Furniture making in East Cambridge, birthplace of the Davenport sofa in America’s Gilded Age

Sept. 28: “Smoke This” Rib Fest

In the organ-making history of East Cambridge, two small-business owners dominated

East Cambridge led, not to mention innovated in, the manufacture of coffin and caskets

Brush-making in Cambridge used prison labor, ultimately defeating an industry and principle

Lessons in East Cambridge history: Reflections on two centuries of newspaper coverage

East Cambridge’s American Net and Twine Co. reflects a history entangled with enslaved labor

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