Brookline is a larger medium-sized town located in the state of Massachusetts. With a population of 57,061 people and 12 constituent neighborhoods, Brookline is the 17th largest community in Massachusetts. Brookline has an unusually large stock of pre-World War II architecture, making it one of the older and more historic towns in the country.

Brookline is a decidedly white-collar town, with fully 96.81% of the workforce employed in white-collar jobs, well above the national average. Overall, Brookline is a town of professionals, managers, and sales and office workers. There are especially a lot of people living in Brookline who work in management occupations (13.81%), healthcare (11.20%), and teaching (10.21%).

Also of interest is that Brookline has more people living here who work in computers and math than 95% of the places in the US.

And if you like science, one thing you'll find is that Brookline has lots of scientists living in town - whether they be life scientists, physical scientists (like astronomers), or social scientists (like geographers!). So, if you're scientific-minded, you might like it here too.

Of important note, Brookline is also a town of artists. Brookline has more artists, designers and people working in media than 90% of the communities in America. This concentration of artists helps shape Brookline's character.

Because there are quite a few people attending college in Brookline, it is thought of as a college town. To the benefit of the many students in the area, Brookline provides a number of services, amenities and opportunities geared towards their needs and activities.

Not only is Brookline a town with many college students, but it also retains many recent graduates who are looking to start new careers, shaping the character of the town into a place that is geared toward, and considered attractive to, many single, educated people. Many singles consider Brookline a good place to live without being in a really big city, with opportunities for friendships and fun with others like themselves.

In addition to being popular with young singles, Brookline is also home to many people who can be described as "urban sophisticates," which are people who are not only wealthy and employed in professional occupations, but highly educated to boot. Urban sophisticates have urbane tastes - whether they reside in a big or small city, a suburb, or a little town. Urban sophisticates support bookstores, quality clothing stores, enjoy luxury travel, and in big cities, they are truly the patrons of the arts, attending and supporting institutions such as opera, symphony, ballet, and theatre.

Like elsewhere in America, most people in Brookline use a private automobile to get to work. But notably, a substantial number of Brookline's citizens do make use of public transit in their daily commute, primarily riding the subway. This helps more people get to work with less air pollution, and require fewer highways to get them there.

Brookline Information and Demographics

If knowledge is power, Brookline is a pretty powerful place. 76.95% of the adults in Brookline have earned a 4-year college degree, masters degree, MD, law degree, or even PhD. Compare that to the national average of 14.96% for all cities and towns.

The per capita income in Brookline in 2000 was $44,327, which is wealthy relative to Massachusetts and the nation. This equates to an annual income of $177,308 for a family of four.

Brookline is a somewhat ethnically-diverse town. The people who call Brookline home come from a variety of different races and ancestries. The most prevalent race in Brookline is White, followed by Asian. Important ancestries of people in Brookline include Irish, Russian, English, Italian, German, Polish, and Eastern European.

Foreign born people are also an important part of Brookline's cultural character, accounting for 26.59% of the town's population.

The languages spoken by people in Brookline are also diverse. These are tabulated as the languages people preferentially speak when they are at home with their families. The most common language spoken in Brookline is English. Other important languages spoken here include Chinese, Russian, and Spanish.