Newton, known as the Garden City, is located six miles west of Boston. It lies within the so-called Boston Basin, a tiny structure of the Appalachian Mountain Range. Originally a part of Cambridge, Newton was settled in 630 and incorporated in 1688 with the first settlement in Newton Corner.

The Boston and Worcester Railroads established depots at what later became Newtonville and Auburndale in 1834. Newton is bounded on three sides by the Charles River and is a diverse community comprised of 14 villages, each with a unique character. The villages of Newton - listed alphabetically - are: Auburndale, Chestnut Hill, Four Corners, Newton Centre, Newton Corner, Newton Highlands, Newton Lower Falls, Newton Upper Falls, Newtonville, Nonantum, Oak Hill, Thomsonville and Waban. Newton is a vibrant community that is desirable as a place to live and work due to its proximity to Boston, nearness to various highway and public transportation systems, attractive neighborhoods and high property values, well-run municipal government, and a strong, nationally-recognized school system.

Newton has well maintained parks, bicycle and fitness trails, golf courses, a public pool and lake. From July through October there is an outdoor Farmer's Market. Newton has a new, state-of-the-art, award-winning Library which served 602,951 people in 1993, and is home to the Jackson Homestead Museum, one of 712 nationally-accredited museums (out of6,200 museums country-wide). Among the myriad arts and cultural organizations and activities, Newton has a Symphony Orchestra, resident theatre groups and an Arts in the Parks Program. Newton has been designated 1 of 3 cities nationwide to participate in a pilot tree bank, planting 6,800 seedlings. Newton has an extensive Institutional Network (I-Net) communications system which connects 63 municipal and institutional buildings, including all public schools. Newton was the recipient of the U.S. Conference of Mayors and Heinz Foundation awards for being the first city in the Commonwealth to administer a mandatory curbside recycling program. 90% of residents recycle, reducing incinerated tonnage by 33% and saving $468,000 in 1993.

In 1993, Newton was one of 5 cities nationwide, with a population over 50,000, to receive the U.S. Conference of Mayors' Livability Award. In 1993, there were $3.8 million worth of public works projects in process.