302 A Century of Science 



of 38. Thus in more than a century the popula 

 tion had increased barely fifty per cent. In 1793 

 there were only four houses east of Dana Street, 

 but that year witnessed an event of cardinal impor 

 tance, the opening of West Boston Bridge. The 

 distance between Boston and Old Cambridge was 

 thus reduced from eight miles to three, and a di 

 rect avenue was opened between the interior of 

 Middlesex County and the Boston markets. The 

 effect was shown in doubling the population of 

 Cambridge by the year 1809, when another bridge 

 was completed from Lechmere Point to the north 

 end of Boston. These were toll bridges, in the 

 hands of private corporations, and their success led 

 to further bridges, the one at River Street in 

 1811, the one at Western Avenue in 1825, and 

 Brookline Bridge so lately as 1850. The princi 

 pal thoroughfares south and east of Old Cambridge 

 were built as highways connecting with these 

 bridges : thus River Street and Western Avenue 

 were tributary to West Boston Bridge, and to 

 that point the Concord Turnpike was prolonged by 

 Broadway, the Middlesex Turnpike by Hampshire 

 Street, and the Medford Road by Webster Ave 

 nue ; while Cambridge Street, intersecting these 

 avenues, formed a direct thoroughfare from the 

 Concord and Watertown roads to the northern 



