Self-Guided Tour: Lois Lilley Howe Homes of Gray Gardens

By John Howe, volunteer, Spring 2020 Lois Lilley Howe (1864-1964), born and bred in Cambridge, Massachusetts, was one of the first women to graduate from Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s architectural program, the organizer of the only all-woman architectural firm in Boston in the early twentieth century, and the first woman elected as a Fellow of…

Read More

POSTPONED 2020 Spring Benefit

The Cambridge Historical Society is closely monitoring the recent outbreak of COVID-19. We continue to evaluate all measures in response to available information from the Cambridge Public Health Department and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Any changes to our event schedule will be communicated via our website, email, and social media. If you have further…

Read More

An Intrepid Lady of Brattle Street: Sara Chapman Bull

By Ted Hansen Beginning in 1879, until her death in 1911, Sara Chapman Bull lived in Cambridge, first at “Elmwood” (the Oliver-Gerry-Lowell House), and from 1889 until her death at 168 Brattle Street. A number of facts about her should pique our interest: At age 20, she was married in a semi-secret ceremony in Norway…

Read More

How Have Women Shaped Cambridge? A Call for Submissions

How Have Women Shaped Cambridge? A “Her-story” Drive Women’s stories are still largely overlooked in the broader historical narrative, and women continue to face obstacles to their full participation in civic life, economic equality, and even their physical health and safety. In light of these ongoing challenges, the Cambridge Historical Society has chosen to focus…

Read More

Reflecting on the 2019 History Tour

Guided Tour

Amelia Zurcher, 2019 Summer Programs Intern Approaching local history through the question “How Does Cambridge Engage?” has given me an interesting lens into the city’s years of activism and community-building. Throughout the summer of 2019, I spent many days strolling Cambridge’s streets, sifting through archives, and talking with local residents. When I first began research…

Read More

Lois Lilley Howe by Elizabeth W. Reinhardt

Lois Lilley Howe, F.A.I.A. (1864-1964) by Elizabeth W. Reinhardt Read December 7, 1975 This article appeared in the Cambridge Historical Society Proceedings for the years 1973-1975 (Volume 43) Miss LOIS LILLEY HOWE, one of the first women to graduate from Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s architectural program, the organizer of the only all-woman architectural firm in…

Read More

Nicola Williams

Nicola Williams was born in Jamaica, and spent her childhood in both Jamaica and Brooklyn, NY. She moved to Boston the day after graduating college in Upstate New York, and has lived in Cambridge for over 30 years. In 1995, she founded The Williams Agency, a marketing and event planning firm.

Read More

Lynette Laveau-Saxe

Lynette Laveau-Saxe was born in Trinidad and moved to Boston to be with her husband, who was studying anthropology at Brandeis. She is a teacher, actress, mentor, and life success coach and currently produces the Callaloo Express Relationship Show on CCTV. She’s lived in Cambridge for 50 years.

Read More

Boston Women’s Community Radio, 1972-1993

Amelia Zurcher, Summer 2019 Programs Intern While the 1971 takeover of an underutilized Harvard University building and the establishment of the Cambridge Women’s Center is well-known, fewer people know the history of how Cambridge-based women claimed space on the radio waves. Boston Women’s Community Radio (BWCR), based at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), aired…

Read More