The district follows the general route of the Watertown Path, an early colonial road that supposedly followed a Native American trail.

This portion of the way became known as Tory Row during the American Revolution, because many of the fine mansions lining it were owned by Loyalists.

In the 19th and early 20th centuries it continued by a fashionable location, and now features a number of architecturally significant buildings.

One included building is the Cambridge Historical Society's offices, which are in the NRHP-listed Hooper-Lee Nichols House, located at 159 Brattle Street.

[3] The district was added to the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) in 1983.