Cambridge was established in 1630 as the town of Newetowne. Located at the first convenient Charles River crossing west of Boston, Newetowne was one of a number of towns (including Boston, Dorchester, Watertown, and Weymouth) founded by the 700 original Puritan colonists of the Massachusetts Bay Colony under governor John Winthrop. The original village site is in the heart of today's Harvard Square. The marketplace where farmers brought in crops to sell from surrounding towns survives today as the small park at the corner of J.F.K. and Winthrop Streets, then at the edge of a salt marsh, since filled. The town included a much larger area than the present city, with various outlying parts becoming independent towns over the years: Newton (originally Cambridge Village, then Newtown) in 1688, Lexington (Cambridge Farms) in 1712, and both Arlington (originally Menotomy) and Brighton (Little Cambridge) in 1807. Brighton was later annexed by Boston.

In 1636 Harvard College was founded by the colony to train ministers and Newetowne was chosen for its site by Thomas Dudley. In May 1638 the name was changed to Cambridge in honor of the university in Cambridge, England.

In 1775, George Washington came up from Virginia to take command of fledgling volunteer American soldiers camped on the Cambridge Common - today called the birthplace of the U.S. Army. (The name of today's nearby Sheraton Commander Hotel refers to that event.) Most of the Tory estates were confiscated after the Revolution. On January 24, 1776, Henry Knox arrived with artillery captured from Fort Ticonderoga, which enabled Washington to drive the British army out of Boston. Cambridge was incorporated as a city in 1846.

Cambridge has also been called the "City of Squares" by some, as most of its commercial districts are major street intersections known as squares. Each of the squares acts as something of a neighborhood center. These include:

-Kendall Square, formed by the junction of Broadway, Main Street, and Third Street. Just over the Longfellow Bridge from Boston, at the eastern end of the MIT campus. It is served by an MBTA Red Line station. Most of Cambridge's large office towers are located here, giving the area somewhat of an office park feel. A flourishing biotech industry has grown up around here.

-Central Square, formed by the junction of Massachusetts Avenue, Prospect Street, and Western Avenue. This is perhaps the closest thing Cambridge has to a downtown, and is well-known for its wide variety of restaurants. It is served by a Red Line station.

-Lafayette Square, formed by the junction of Massachusetts Avenue, Columbia Street, Sidney Street, and Main Street, is considered a part of the Central Square area. Cambridgeport is south of Central Square along Magazine Street and Brookline Street.

-Harvard Square, formed by the junction of Mass. Avenue, Brattle Street, and JFK Street. This is the site of Harvard University, the oldest university in the United States and is a major Cambridge shopping area. It is served by a Red Line station.

-Porter Square, about a mile north on Mass. Ave from Harvard Square, formed by the junction of Mass. Ave and Somerville Ave, and including part of the city of Somerville. It is served by the Porter Square station which includes a Red Line stop and a Fitchburg Line commuter rail stop in the same building.

-Inman Square, at the junction of Cambridge and Hampshire streets in Mid-Cambridge. Inman Square is home to comedy club ImprovBoston, as well as many restaurants, bars and boutiques. Ryles Jazz Club and the S&S restaurant are two legends of Inman Square. A new community park was installed and is a favorite place to enjoy some takeout food from the nearby restaurants and ice cream parlor.

-Lechmere Square, at the junction of Cambridge and First streets, adjacent to the CambridgeSide Galleria shopping mall. Served by the MBTA Green Line subway.

-East Cambridge (Area 1) is bordered on the north by the Somerville border, on the east by the Charles River, on the south by Broadway and Main Street, then on the west by railroad tracks.

-MIT Campus (Area 2) is bordered on the north by Broadway and on the south and east by the Charles River, then on the west by railroad tracks.

-Wellington-Harrington (Area 3) bordered on the north by the Somerville border and on the south and west by Hampshire Street, then on the east by railroad tracks.

-Area 4 is bordered on the north by Hampshire Street and on the south by Massachusetts Avenue, then on the west by Prospect Street and on the east by railroad tracks. Residents of Area 4 often refer to their neighborhood as simply "Port".

-Cambridgeport (Area 5) is bordered on the north by Massachusetts Avenue and on the south by the Charles River, then on the west by River Street and on the east by railroad tracks.

-Mid Cambridge (Area 6) is bordered on the north by Kirkland and Hampshire Streets and the Somerville border and on the south by Massachusetts Avenue, then on the west by Peabody Street and on the east by Prospect Street.

-Riverside (Area 7) this area, sometimes referred to as "Coast" is bordered on the north by Massachusetts Avenue and on the south by the Charles River, then on the west by JFK Street and on the east by River Street.

-Agassiz (Harvard North) (Area 8) is bordered on the north by the Somerville border and on the south and east by Kirkland Street, then on the west by Massachusetts Avenue.

-Radcliffe/Avon Hill (Area 9) is bordered on the north by railroad tracks and on the south by Concord Avenue, then on the west by railroad tracks and on the east by Massachusetts Avenue. The Avon Hill sub-neighborhood consists of the higher elevations bounded by Upland Road, Raymond Street, Linnaean Street and Mass Ave.

-Brattle area/West Cambridge (Area 10) is bordered on the north by Concord Avenue and Garden Street and on the south by the Charles River and the Watertown border, then on the west by the eastern shore of Fresh Pond and the Collins Branch Library and on the east by JFK Street. It includes the sub-neignborhoods of Brattle Street and Huron Village.

-North Cambridge (Area 11) is bordered on the north by the Arlington border and partially the Somerville border and on the south by the railroad tracks, then on the west by the Belmont border and on the east by the Somerville border.

-Cambridge Highlands (Area 12) is bordered on the north and east by railroad tracks and on the south by the north shore of the Fresh Pond, then on the west by the Belmont border.

-Strawberry Hill (Area 13) is bordered on the north by the south shore of Fresh Pond and on the south by the Watertown border, then on the west by the Belmont border and on the east by railroad tracks.

-Cambridge College

-Episcopal Divinity School

-Harvard University

-Hult International Business School

-Lesley University

-Longy School of Music

-Massachusetts Institute of Technology

-Weston Jesuit School of Theology