Cultural sections

Submitted by MOTOMOMMA t3_11vmsmm in WorcesterMA

Wondering if anyone can name all of the cultural sections of Worcester?

I can’t find anything on google but I know that Worcester was definitely “divided” into sections. My maternal grandparents immigrated over from Syria and Ireland in the 1930’s. And I know that when they came in droves; everyone lived in the same neighborhoods. My Syrian grandmother immigrated to grafton hill (wall/ norfolk st) and my Irish grandfather immigrated to Vernon hill area. My grandparents got married and decided to live up on Norfolk st. I too was born and raise on Norfolk street as my mom and dad decided to settle there too.

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ins0mniac_ t1_jctt605 wrote

I think these sections have melded over the years. It’s not the same way it was in the 50s/60s/70s/80s. Worcester grew into a college town/post-industrial city. I think there are still pockets of ethnic communities but not in the same way as decades ago.

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MOTOMOMMA OP t1_jcufl51 wrote

Oh 100%. I grew up in the “Syrian/Lebanese” section (this is where my mom grew up too, she was born in the 50’s). We all grew up near the old El Morocco. And we all went to the church on Hamilton street.

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New-Vegetable-1274 t1_jcuoyt6 wrote

Shrewsbury St was the Worcester's Little Italy, Green Island, hemmed in by Millbury St, Quinsigamond Ave and Green Island Blvd, was Polish, Vernon Hill was Lithuanian, Main South was densely Irish but also somewhat Franco American, Greendale was predominantly Swedish, Water St, Columbia St, Harrison St and Providence St hemmed in the Jewish section. Worcester's west side was once inhabited by wealthy WASPS but many Jews eventually migrated there. Summer St and the area that is now Plummley Village was mostly Blacks. Hispanics came late to Worcester, (mid 1960s) and then only Cubans who were the only Caribbean representatives until the 1970s. This is based on my recollections from the 50s,60s,70s. Worcester certainly had many other ethnic groups but the numbers did not rise enough to cover broad areas and did not own ethnic businesses. Worcester hasn't had ethnically dense areas for a long time.

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GullibleFrisbee t1_jcu3c7r wrote

Used to have all the Greeks near the Greek church / elm park. Jewish next to the temple. I’d say map out the churches to find the ethnic communities.

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xtraman122 t1_jctvqwl wrote

Shrewsbury St area was (And still is) very Italian. Quinsig Village used to be a lot of Swedes. Not sure on all the others but I know what you’re referring to, like someone else said, most of it is all gone now and things are blended in or changed altogether.

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EastCoastDizzle t1_jctxhxr wrote

Spot on. My maternal grandparents were Italian and lived off Shrewsbury St. in their youth and then settled not too far away on the east side. My uncle by marriage has a lot of Swedish ancestry, grew up in the village. My paternal grandparents (Irish) I believe lived in the Belmont St. area and then settled in Burncoat.

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mistersmithutah t1_jcu1ffs wrote

Yes! There used to be a church there called St. Catherine of Sweden.

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becomingelle t1_jcu4rrf wrote

I'll add that Veron hill is Polish, Webster Square area is popular with Vietnamese people over the last few decades

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legalpretzel t1_jcud4v6 wrote

The west side historically has been home to most of the city’s Jewish population due to proximity to the synagogues. Growing up in the 80’s I went to school on the west side for several years and I was often the only kid in my class on Jewish holidays. And today I have several Jewish neighbors on my small street.

But based on my kid’s school population, the west side is now also home to a large number of Albanians.

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your_city_councilor t1_jcuj9tp wrote

The West Side became Jewish later on, though. Earlier, it was centered around Providence Street (lots of synagogues were there), and water street had tons of Jewish bakeries, delis, etc. The last one closed just a few years ago, but even through the 80s, Water Street had Widoff's, Liderman's, and some other places that were Jewish go-tos.

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vegetablefoood t1_jcvco7o wrote

Pretty sure the Worcester historical museum has a map that lays out all the different neighborhoods and what groups of people settled there. I was there a few weeks ago and I vaguely remember seeing this

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mco711 t1_jcuixi4 wrote

My maternal grandfather grew up on Bell Hill in the 20s and 30s (50/50 Irish & Swedish). My maternal 100% Irish grandmother grew up on Main st in the 30s and Paris Ave ( I think) in the 40s. My grandmother went to Our Lady of the Angels. When my grandparents married they lived on Park Ave in the 40s and early 50s.

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