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Westborough, Massachusetts | |
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Coordinates: 42°16′10″N71°37′00″W / 42.26944°N 71.61667°W | |
Country | United States |
State | Massachusetts |
County | Worcester |
Settled | 1675 |
Incorporated | 1717 |
Government | |
• Type | Open town meeting |
• Board of Selectmen | Allen Edinberg Leigh Emery Syed Hashmi Ian Johnson Shelby Marshall |
Area | |
• Total | 21.6 sq mi (56.0 km2) |
• Land | 20.5 sq mi (53.1 km2) |
• Water | 1.1 sq mi (2.8 km2) |
Elevation | 300 ft (91 m) |
Population (2020) | |
• Total | 21,567 |
• Density | 1,052.0/sq mi (406.2/km2) |
Demonym | Westboronian |
Time zone | UTC−5 (Eastern (EST)) |
• Summer (DST) | UTC−4 (EDT) |
ZIP Code | 01581 |
Area code | 508/774 |
FIPS code | 25-75015 |
GNIS feature ID | 0618390 |
Website | town |
Westborough is a town [1] in Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 21,567 at the 2020 census, in over 7,000 households. [2] Incorporated in 1717, the town is governed under the New England open town meeting system, headed by a five-member elected Board of Selectmen whose duties include licensing, appointing various administrative positions, and calling a town meeting of citizens annually or whenever the need arises.
Before recorded time, the area now known as Westborough was a well-travelled crossroads. As early as 7,000 BCE, prehistoric people in dugout canoes followed the Sudbury and Assabet Rivers to their headwaters in search of quartzite for tools and weapons.
From 1200 to 1600 CE, seasonal migrations brought Nipmuc Indians to hunt and fish near Cedar Swamp and Lake Hoccomocco. Using Fay Mountain as a landmark, Indians crisscrossed Westborough on well-worn paths: the old Connecticut Path leading west from Massachusetts Bay; the Narragansett Trail leading south, and the trail (along the present Milk Street) leading to Canada. [3]
The early English explorer John Oldham followed these trails through Westborough in 1633, and settlers in search of fertile farmlands followed not long after. By late 1675, a few families had settled near Lake Chauncy, in the "west borough" of Marlborough.
On November 18, 1717, Westborough was incorporated as the hundredth town in Massachusetts, populated by twenty-seven families, including Thomas Rice who had represented Marlborough in the Great and General Court. Soon large farms were carved out, mills built along the Assabet River and Jackstraw Brook, and taverns flourished. Westborough's first minister, Reverend Ebenezer Parkman, shepherded the growing town of colonists through the years toward independence from Great Britain. Forty-six minutemen from Westborough fought under Captain Edmund Brigham in the Revolutionary War.
In 1775, Northborough split off as the "north borough" of Westborough, much as Westborough split off from Marlborough some 58 years before. However, the two towns shared a meetinghouse for some time more.
Westborough's most famous native son, Eli Whitney, contributed to the industrial progress of the country. Born in 1765, he invented the cotton gin in 1795 after graduating from Yale. In 1798, he introduced mass production to the United States at his Whitney Arms Company in New Haven, Connecticut.
In 1810, the route from Boston to Worcester was straightened and improved into an official turnpike (the present Route 9), and along its Westborough route, the Wesson Tavern Common, Forbush Tavern and Nathan Fisher's store prospered. The center of commerce shifted downtown in 1824 with the arrival of the steam train through Westborough's center. The railroad brought a new era to the town industry: over the next century, local factories shipped boots and shoes, straw hats, sleighs, textiles, bicycles, and eventually abrasive products, across the nation. Westborough dairies supplied cities with milk and local greenhouses shipped out carnations, while the eight orchards found ready markets for their produce.
In 1848, the State Reform School for Boys, the first publicly funded reform school in the United States, was opened on Lake Chauncy. It operated as a State reform school until 1884 at which time the newly established Westborough State Hospital took over the property. In the same year, the reform school was relocated nearby on Chauncy Street and renamed The Lyman School for Boys.
From 1947 through 1985, Westboro Speedway operated as an auto racing venue. [4]
Westborough is home to several listings on the National Register of Historic Places:
According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 21.6 square miles (56.0 km2), of which 20.5 square miles (53.1 km2) is land, and 1.1 square miles (2.8 km2) is water, or 5.09 percent.
Westborough contains the headwaters of the Sudbury and Assabet rivers. The town contains numerous bodies of water, including Lake Chauncy, George H. Nichols Reservoir (Mill Pond), Westboro Reservoir (Sandra Pond), Hocomonco Pond, and Cedar Swamp Pond. Lake Chauncy is open to swimming, boating, and fishing, and has a public beach open to residents of Westborough and Northborough during the summer months. The average elevation of the town is approximately 300 feet (91 m).
Westborough is located in east/central Massachusetts, located approximately 28 miles (45.47 km) west of Boston and 12 miles (19 km) east of Worcester.
Year | Pop. | ±% |
---|---|---|
1850 | 2,371 | — |
1860 | 2,913 | +22.9% |
1870 | 3,601 | +23.6% |
1880 | 5,214 | +44.8% |
1890 | 5,195 | −0.4% |
1900 | 5,400 | +3.9% |
1910 | 5,446 | +0.9% |
1920 | 5,789 | +6.3% |
1930 | 6,409 | +10.7% |
1940 | 6,463 | +0.8% |
1950 | 7,378 | +14.2% |
1960 | 9,599 | +30.1% |
1970 | 12,594 | +31.2% |
1980 | 13,619 | +8.1% |
1990 | 14,133 | +3.8% |
2000 | 17,997 | +27.3% |
2010 | 18,272 | +1.5% |
2020 | 21,567 | +18.0% |
2023 | 22,012 | +2.1% |
Source: United States census records and Population Estimates Program data. [5] [6] [7] [8] [9] [10] [11] [12] [13] [14] [15] |
Data from the U.S. Census [16] of 2020 shows there were 21,567 people, 7,930 households, and 5,618 families residing in the town (official). The population density was 998 people per square mile (unofficial). The latest 2013–2017 American Community Survey (ACS) estimated the town's total population at 18,836, residing in 7,095 households. According to the latest ACS estimate, the racial makeup of the town was 70.1% White, 2.4% Black or African American, 0.5% Native American, 23.6% Asian, 0% Pacific Islander, 1.1% from other races, 2.3% from two or more races, Hispanic or Latino of any race were 4.8% of the population. Westborough has a significant Indian-American Community making up 15.4% of the population, as well as boasting a strong immigrant community with nearly 5,000 residents of non-U.S. origins (25.9%). [17]
According to ACS estimates, there are 4,912 family households, out of which 42.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them. Of all households 31.8% were made up of individuals 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.74 and the average family size was 3.26.
In addition, the town the population was spread out, with 12.5% under the age of 10, 15.6% from 10 to 19, 17.9% from 20 to 34, 29% from 35 to 54, 12.7% from 55 to 64, and 12.3% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females, there were 95.9 males.
The median income for a household in the town (based on U.S. Census ACS five-year estimate) was $107,604, and the median income for a family was $132,543. The per capita income for the town was $47,993. Of the population 4.7% was below the poverty line, including 4.4% of those under age 18 and 5.7% of those age 65 or over. The labor force numbered 10,218 with an unemployment rate in the town of 3.6%. Of the population over age 25, 96.4% graduated high school (or equivalent) and 65.7% hold a bachelor's degree or higher.
Westborough Public Schools consist of three elementary schools, two middle schools and one high school:
The Mill Pond School is the newest school addition to Westborough. The three elementary schools consist of kindergarten to third grade, Mill Pond School consists of grades 4 to 6, then Gibbons Middle School which consists of grades 7 and 8, and then Westborough High School. There are three options depending upon residents' geographic location in the town for preschool through third grade.
The Town of Westborough is located on the west side of the Massachusetts Turnpike (Interstate 90) and Interstate 495 intersection. Route 30 (Main Street) and Route 135 (South Street/Milk Street) intersect in a rotary at the town's center, while Route 9 runs nearby, serving much of the town's commerce.
In terms of public transportation, Westborough is currently served by an MBTA commuter rail station on the Framingham/Worcester Line as well as public bus service through the Worcester Regional Transit Authority. Limited commercial airline service is available at the Worcester Regional Airport. The nearest international airport is Boston Logan Airport.
A major CSX rail freight yard serving the Boston metro area is located near the intersection of the Turnpike and I-495.
State government | |
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State Representative(s): | Danielle Gregoire (D) Hannah Kane (R) |
State Senator(s): | Jamie Eldridge (D) |
Governor's Councilor(s): | Marilyn M. Petitto Devaney (D) |
Federal government | |
U.S. Representative(s): | James P. McGovern (D-2nd District) |
U.S. Senators: | Elizabeth Warren (D), Ed Markey (D) |
The Robert F. Kennedy Children's Action Corps, Inc. operates two juvenile correctional facilities in Westborough on behalf of the Massachusetts Department of Youth Services:
Cablecast (Public, educational, and government access (PEG) cable TV channels):
The Westborough Public Library was founded in 1857. [22] [23] In fiscal year 2008, the town of Westborough spent 1.24% ($846,826) of its budget on its public library—some $45 per person, per year ($59.30 adjusted for inflation to 2022). [24]
Worcester County is a county in the U.S. state of Massachusetts. At the 2020 census, the population was 862,111, making it the second-most populous county in Massachusetts. It is also the largest county in Massachusetts by geographic area. The largest city and traditional shire town is Worcester. Worcester County is part of the Worcester, MA–CT metropolitan statistical area and the Boston-Worcester-Providence combined statistical area.
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Southborough is a town in Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. It incorporates the villages of Cordaville, Fayville, and Southville. Its name is often informally shortened to Southboro, a usage seen on many area signs and maps. At the 2020 census, its population was 10,450 in 3,542 households.
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Sturbridge is a town in Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. It is home to Old Sturbridge Village living history museum and other sites of historical interest such as Tantiusques.
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Westborough State Hospital, originally "Westborough Insane Hospital", was a historic hospital in Westborough, Massachusetts, which sat on more than 600 acres (240 ha). The core campus area was located between Lyman Street and Chauncy Lake, north of Massachusetts Route 9. The hospital was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1994.
Hudson is a town in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States, with a total population of 20,092 as of the 2020 census. Before its incorporation as a town in 1866, Hudson was a neighborhood and unincorporated village of Marlborough, Massachusetts, and was known as Feltonville. From approximately 1850 until the last shoe factory burned down in 1968, Hudson was a mill town specializing in the production of shoes and related products. At one point, the town had 17 shoe factories, many of them powered by the Assabet River, which runs through town. The many factories in Hudson attracted immigrants from Canada and Europe. Today most residents are of either Portuguese or Irish descent, with a smaller percentage being of French, Italian, English, or Scotch-Irish descent. While some manufacturing remains in Hudson, the town is now primarily residential. Hudson is served by the Hudson Public Schools district.
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