Its central business district is centered on the junction of Walnut and Washington Streets, with the Massachusetts Turnpike and the MBTA commuter railroad tracks running east-west and roughly bisecting it.

When it was first listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1986, the district had two major sections.

In the 1850s William Claflin acquired a large estate (formerly belonging to William Hull, now largely the site of Newton North High School) and began to develop and promote the area, with its major period of development taking place between about 1880 and 1900.

[2][3] The Newtonville Branch Library, now the Newton Senior Center, is a significant contributing structure within the Historic District.

[4] The stained glass medallions in the windows at the north and south gable ends of the original reading room were designed by Charles Jay Connick, a nationally known artist [5] and a Newtonville resident, living at 90 Hull Street.