In the current InsideLowell poll, seven neighborhoods were listed.  The Acre, Belvidere, Centralville, Downtown, Highlands, Pawtucketville and South Lowell.

As someone who “identifies” as a Christian Hill person, I find this a huge oversight and an insult. But not just to me and my Christian Hill heritage but also to a few other neighborhoods that should make the cut. To cull the city to just these seven neighborhoods is to deny denizens of Back Central, Lower Belvidere, the Lower Highlands, Sacred Heart and Christian Hill their rightful place as a “neighborhood”

I’m sure for the poll, Teddy had to cut a few out.  He did grow up in Dracut and comes from a town that claims to have a Navy Yard by a minor brook. But this poll brings up and ongoing oversight by the most and by the city. The omission of Christian Hill as its own neighborhood. Christian Hill is a distinct neighborhood in the city.

What is a neighborhood? Simply defined, it is a district, especially one forming and community within a town or city.  I prefer the more expansive National Geographic definition

“A neighborhood is an area where people live and interact with one another. Neighborhoods tend to have their own identity, or “feel” based on the people who live there and the places nearby. Residents may have similar types of families, incomes, and education level. Neighborhoods can include restaurants, bookstores, and parks. Neighborhoods often have fuzzy geographical boundaries, so sometimes it’s difficult to tell where one starts and another ends. Major streets often act as logical boundaries, but people usually define a neighborhood by its characteristics.”

https://education.nationalgeographic.org/resource/neighborhood

If that doesn’t DEFINE Christian Hill, then I don’t know what does.

All you have to do is drive down Bridge Street. The two areas couldn’t be more distinct.  Bridge Street is that separator.  People clearly and strongly identify as being from Christian Hill  If you grew up on the Hill you have some strong distinct characteristics, one of them being insisting Christian Hill is its own neighborhood, and the other being that people that can’t live on the Hill move to Belvidere to so they can look at the Hill.  By the way, how much fun could we have describing each neighborhoods identifying traits?  Hello Belvie…

If you grew up on the Hill, you went to St Mikes.  If you were Centralville you went to St. Louis.  If you wanted air conditioned short masses in the summer, you went to the old St. Francis.

Christian Hill is very much meets the definition of a “neighborhood”.  It is not “part” of Centralville. It has a much different “feel” to it than Centralville, with fewer multi-unit houses, larger yards, well maintained homes, generally a working class/middle class family type neighborhood.

I’m only advocating for “Neighborhood Status” here.   I won’t get into why it’s truly the best neighborhood in the city.   Although if we are being honest, no neighborhood has better vistas than Christian Hill.  It has the highest point in the city atop the Old Reservoir.  It has the best views of the city from the “New” Reservoir and you can even see Boston on a clear day. And really, best folk come from the Hill…but I digress.

Look at the map of Lowell Neighborhoods from the city’s web page.  I think they are a decent source, no?

You have Belvie and Lower Belvie.  I won’t argue with that.  You have South Lowell and Sacred Heart.  Lower and Upper Highlands and Acre.  Oh and Dracut,  I mean Pawtucketville.  But you have C-ville as one big neighborhood with some kind of label there on the Hill.  It’s like they know, but they don’t want to admit it.

Check this article out

https://forgottennewengland.com/home-new/the-beginners-guide-to-the-history-of-lowells-neighborhoods/

It describes the development of Lowell’s neighborhood.  It pretty clearly makes a case that Christian Hill should be its own neighborhood.  It was annexed separately, had and has separate characteristics from Centreville and has its own history.

Centralville by the way is a pretty great neighborhood.  Its’ pretty tight around the bridge street area and kind of poor, sure.  But it’s been a great place for new arrivals to live and all that stuff I’m supposed to say.  There’s a more residential feel as you get down near Beaver Brook and closer to Dracut with some great homes with yards as well.  If you look at Centralville though, you can see that lumping Christian Hill in doesn’t do it justice.  Centralville people probably don’t think of Christian Hill as part of their neighborhood either.  Although I don’t ask them…I don’t want to bother them while they are looking up at the beauty.

The article mentioned above by the way could be the basis for Ayers City being its own neighborhood if anyone actually cares about Ayers City or knows where it is.

In conclusion, It think what this map clearly illustrates is something that Christian Hill Families have known for years.  The rest of the city refuses to acknowledge our individuality.  I think it’s time for that to end. Redraw this map and give us our rightful spot as our own Neighborhood!!

Oh and I think we can clearly show, Teddy’s poll was crap!