Worcester is located in central Massachusetts approximately 45 miles west of Boston. Worcester was established as a town on June 14, 1722 and as a city on February 29, 1848. It has a population of 172,648 and is the third largest city in New England, behind Boston and Providence. Worcester, MA is the home of nine colleges and universities, the University of Massachusetts Medical Center, and the Massachusetts Bio-Technology Research Park, and the American Antiquarian Society. Despite their large number, Worcester's colleges and universities have not left much of an imprint on the overall feel of the city-- for better and for worse, it is not the least bit a college town. Worcester has a very low rate of violent crime compared to the comparably sized city Providence, RI. It also has lots of parks, green space, small bodies of water, and tree-lined streets. On the whole it is a surprisingly livable place, even though it often frustrates college students and other visitors who aren't in-the-know. Many people from Worcester share an odd defensiveness that leads them to rattle off (at the slightest prompting) a long list of everything notable that was ever invented in, or remarkable about, Worcester. You may learn that Worcester area residents or companies invented or popularized:
 • The smiley face
 • The diner
 • Barbed wire
 • The birth control pill
 • The rickshaw (as absurd as it sounds, this is 100% confirmed)
 • The modern Valentine's Day card
 • The liquid fuel rocket (and therefore modern rocketry from the V2 to the ICBM to the Space Shuttle)
 • The term "postmodern"

See Worcester History in wikipedia for a more complete list of Worcester firsts.

Activities

Worcester Tornadoes, the newest thing in Worcester. They're an independent baseball team (Canadian American League, don't worry if you haven't heard of it, there are only eight teams in the league). They began playing in Worcester in 2005 and won the Canadian American Championship against Quebec in just three games. People seem to love the Tornadoes, and with tickets at about $6.00 and winning most games they've played, it's hard not to.

The Tornadoes are located at Holy Cross' Fitton Field and play from May to September. You can get there by an unreliable bus from the train station or just spend $5 on a cab, or listen at home, they're on Worcester's only radio station that can be heard outside of Worcester (AM-830).

Education

Worcester boasts a fair number of colleges and universities in it's region.
 • Assumption College - 500 Salisbury St, Worcester, MA 01609
 • Becker College - 61 Sever St., Worcester, MA 01609
 • Clark University - 950 Main St., Worcester, MA 01610
 • College of the Holy Cross - 1 College Street Worcester, MA 01610-2395
 • Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI) - 100 Institute Road - Worcester, MA 01609-2280
 • Worcester State College - 486 Chandler Street, Worcester, MA 01602
 • Quinsigamond Community College - 670 West Boylston Street, Worcester, MA 01606

Drink

Worcester has a very large number of bars. If you're looking for raucous 20-something bars, go to Shrewsbury St or Park Ave, south of Elm Park. If you're looking for very cheap, strange, dive bars, go to Canterbury St and its cross streets.

The following are interesting and comfortable places to drink:
 • Vincent, 49 Suffolk Street.
 • Sahara, 143 Highland Street.
 • Ding Ho, 38 Southbridge Street.
 • El Coqui. Considered to be the best liquor store.

The preferred beer in Worcester is a 40 ounce bottle of Golden Anniversary. It has been referred to by drinkers as "Our Golden Adversary". The preferred cheap hard alcohol is a vodka called "Mr Boston".

Links

 • Worcester Public Library 
 • City of Worcester 
 • Worcester Telegram & Gazette 
 • Worcester Art Museum