Settled by European colonists more than 385 years ago, Arlington was originally a village within Cambridge named Menotomy, an Algonquian word considered by some to mean “”swift running water.”” Its first mill was built in 1637 by Captain George Cooke along the Mill Brook, where seven mills, including the Old Schwamb Mill, were erected.

On April 19, 1775, Paul Revere rode through the village on his way to Lexington and Concord, where minutemen from the surrounding communities ambushed the retreating British. The Jason Russell House, owned and operated by the Arlington Historical Society, is a museum that pays homage to those whose lives were lost in the battle.

Incorporated in 1807 as West Cambridge, the town’s name was changed to Arlington in 1867 to honor those buried at Arlington National Cemetery.