Cambridge Common

Walking tours of Cambridge typically include a stop at Cambridge Common, a 16-acre (6.5-hectare) park that offers open space for play or relaxation. In addition to the site’s Revolutionary War connection, the park contains other items of historical interest, such as a Civil War memorial with an image of Abraham Lincoln and the names of Massachusetts soldiers and a memorial to the mid-19th-century Irish Famine.

• Cambridge Common makes for a quick but interesting stop for history buffs.

• The playground at Cambridge Common is suited for children ages 1–10.

• The park offers benches and tables for enjoying lunch.

Cambridge Common is located near Harvard Square and next to Harvard University, between Waterhouse Street, Garden Street, and Massachusetts Avenue. To get there by subway (known as the T), take the Red Line to the Harvard stop, which is across the street from Harvard Yard and about a 5-minute walk from Cambridge Common.

The best time to visit Cambridge Common is during the warmer months, when you can sit and people watch or enjoy an outdoor picnic. June to October is the most popular time to travel to Cambridge, so expect to encounter more tourists then, but Cambridge Common is generally less crowded than Harvard Yard.

Harvard Square refers to the neighborhood surrounding Harvard University as well as its popular public square. The “square” is actually a triangular plaza at the intersection of Massachusetts Avenue, Brattle Street, and John F. Kennedy Street, just south of Cambridge Common. Revolutionary War enthusiasts should stroll down Brattle Street, which was known as Tory Row for its residents’ sympathies in the war, to see the 1700s-era colonial homes.