info on Hingham (Boston, Quincy, Newton: fit in, how much, neighborhoods)

[puffle]

What kind of a community is Hingham and how long does it take to get to Boston in rush hour by car? Is it overwhelmingly Irish or there are any Jews that live there?

[earnestinboston]

Well, I'll ignore the questions on culture and race.

But Hingham is beautiful--like taking a ride through a Christmas card. You can commute to Boston by ferry (1/2 hr.), go to Quincy and catch the T (red line, 45 minutes), or drive (an hour?), catch a commuter rail from Weymouth (1/2 hour?) They also have unfortunately started building another commuter rail that is going right through Hingham, and should be finished in a year or two.

[puffle]

Wasn't trying to stir up any racial or cultural issues, just the facts. My son is a skinny Jewish kid and just wanted to know if he would blend in in Hingham or stand out being in the minority. Could care less otherwise. Is it a litttle too quiet for a teenager in town? Better options?

[puffle]

Thank you, but no, not looking for a large jewish population. This is a long distance move and not familiar with most areas especially the southern shore. Just trying to be informed to narrow down the search..Thanks again.

[southshore]

Hingham is predominantly white Catholics and WASPs. There is a temple on Main St. Hinghamites, including the kids in school, don't care what religion you are. Jewish kids attend their friends' first communions. Christian kids attend their friends' bat/bar mitzphas. Kids in school who are openly a religion other than Christian, Jewish, or Mormon could be greeted with a lot of questions and some teasing, but not if they fit in in other areas, such as academics or sports.

[bostonbaby]

Hingam is a lovely place.. I think is FAR AWAYYYYY... long commute, sometimes I like to go shopping because they have cute stores, and if you get stuck in traffic is BAD, plus, I like been close to the city to do more things, if you like the suburbs it's nice, expect traffic in rush hours, and maybe find a friend for the lane that says carpool only.. good luck!

[momoffive]

hi, don't mean to stir up the post, but isn't hingham considered very very snobby???? does anyone want to tell the post about this?? i recall a certain columnist ALWAYS writing about hingham being snobby......

sorry, just want the original poster to know that side....

[LovelyBoston]

Originally Posted by momoffive

hi, don't mean to stir up the post, but isn't hingham considered very very snobby???? does anyone want to tell the post about this?? i recall a certain columnist ALWAYS writing about hingham being snobby......

sorry, just want the original poster to know that side....

I know which columnist you mean, but I think he was obnoxious about it. Hingham did not want the train line to be built through town -- so of course some people were upset about it, and that was the columnist's main sore spot about Hingham. But then on the other side plenty of people complain about suburban sprawl and overdevelopment. So a town can't win whatever it does -- if it tries to stop development, suddenly it is snobby. If it doesn't, then people yell about how much sprawl has taken over and homogenized the look and feel of every town.

Hingham was worried about the effect the train would have on development. It has tried hard to reign in the house-building so that the town stays small, quiet, and so that historic neighborhoods stay historic. If that's snobby, then I think people are too sensitive, frankly. lol

I go to Hingham a lot, and think it's a lovely town. People aren't any different there than anywhere else I've visited or lived. It is an affluent town, but money does not equal snobbiness (and believe me, I don't have money so if it did, I'd be on the receiving end of a lot of snobbiness). Neither does trying to control development and keep a small town small. Not every town has to be as busy and crowded as the Newtons and Naticks of the state.

[puffle]

I forgot about this post, but thank you all for the valuable information. I enjoy reading the posts on this site so much more than where I live that I just don't go there anymore. Too much negativety which I rarely experience here. Anyone ever look at the Los Angeles posts? If you do you will really appreciate what you have in Boston and the rest of Ma. Thanks again and can't wait to go! Oh, I got a new job at the local Mercedes dealership and yesterday Julia Roberts came in as well as Jim Cavesal, the guy the played Christ in Mel Gibson's movie. Only in California!

[scarletfire]

There are plenty of Jewish families in the Metrowest (two temples in Westboro, at least two in Sudbury). They might be a little quiet for your taste though. Sudbury is an affluent, very attractive town with excellent schools and lots of sports and activities for the kids. However, when we lived there I was struck that they seemed to "roll up the sidewalks" by 9pm. Westboro also has good schools though certainly not as highly ranked as Sudbury. There is a larger Jewish community in Framingham but the schools are not anywhere as good as the adjacent towns. Of course Newton & Brookline have large Jewish populations too but are very pricey!