Brighton was known as Little Cambridge, settled in the late 17th Century. Before the American Revolution Little Cambridge was a productive farming community. A large cattle market was established in the 17th Century by Jonathon Winship. The livestock trade changed it to a commercial center, producing goods and services based on animal products. West End Railway added tracks along Beacon Hill via Cleveland Circle and Commonwealth Ave in 1700, triggering a residential building boom. After World War II the Massachusetts Turnpike Extension divided the neighborhood. Located near expanding universities on all sides, it resulted in an influx of students, younger families, immigrants and a work force for the university. Population patterns spurred conversion of larger apartments and 19th Century single homes to smaller rentals and condominiums.

Brighton is a neighborhood like any other, no more than the sum of its parts. Modern day Brighton is generally more affordable than other areas of the city, a mixture of people, places, and things that have influenced its history, what better place to find a livable condo? Many colleges and universities are housed within its borders: the Bryman Institute, Everest Institute, St. John’s Seminary, Boston University and Boston College. Students, growing families, newcomers and natives have all melded in this area, the perfect neighborhood to find a condo to call home. Boston University recently purchased the 43 acre campus that housed the residence of the Cardinal of the Archdiocese of Boston, an area teaming with development, apartments and condos, near the corner of Lake St. and Commonwealth Ave. The area is alive with radio and television stations: CBS’s WBCN and WZLX, Entercom’s WEEI and WAAF, the local affiliate for WGBH and many more. Brighton offers a variety of sizes and types of condominiums to suit a variety of needs and lifestyles.

Recently developed condos and conversions come in all shapes and sizes. With large kitchens or renovated and re-tiled areas filled with the modern gadgets and amenities. Some condos have no bedroom and others three or five. Brighton is filled with possibilities. Most are in converted apartment buildings and larger homes but there are others as complete homes and newly built developments. Brighton has a wide variety of offerings, short term and long term for those going to school, starting growing families, relocating or whatever. Finding a condo near one of the three market centers is a must: Brighton Center, Oak Square or Cleveland Circle.

Its neighborhoods are filled with a variety of people, graduate and undergrad students, professionals middle class and working families. Brighton has come to mean a lot of things to a lot of people. It continues to exceed its for having lower quality housing and undesirable development that have plagued the community since WW II. Many of its condo conversions are housed in an “intricate” network of streets, made of multi-family houses, three decker structures, and apartment buildings. The streets are abuzz with small businesses, family institutions, national chains, banks, and restaurants that run along Washington’s main street, and anything else that you’d find on any main street any place else. Washington runs through most of Brighton to Oak Square

Brighton is accessible through the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority’s Green Line Trolley and local bus line. It runs through Waltham, Cleveland Circle, Harvard Square, Brighten Center to Copley Square, all around town. Residents represent a  wide range of the economic, racial,  and ethnic flavors, a smaller version of the American melting pot that has been simmering for quite some time. Job growth will be just as varied in technology, health care, bioengineering and education.