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Boylston is a town in Worcester County,
Massachusetts Massachusetts (Massachusett language, Massachusett: ''Muhsachuweesut assachusett writing systems, məhswatʃəwiːsət'' English: , ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is the most populous U.S. state, state in the New England ...
,
United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
. The population was 4,849 at the 2020 census.


History

Boylston was first settled by Europeans around 1706 in the northern part of the present-day town, most notably by the Sawyer family. In 1697, the residents petitioned to form a local town and government, but the British colonial Governor of Massachusetts denied their request since he wanted to keep the number of towns to a minimum and to restrict popular representation.Rice, Franklin P., (compiler)
''Vital records of the town of Boylston, Massachusetts, to the end of the year 1850''
Worcester : Franklin P. Rice, 1900.
A meeting house was built in 1743, and the Reverend Ebenezer Morse, ordained in October 1743, was the first minister in charge of the church. The town was made up of a large part of land from
Shrewsbury Shrewsbury ( , also ) is a market town, civil parish, and the county town of Shropshire, England, on the River Severn, north-west of London; at the 2021 census, it had a population of 76,782. The town's name can be pronounced as either 'Sh ...
and the remainder from Lancaster and was known as the North Parish of Shrewsbury from 1742 until 1786, when it was incorporated as Boylston."Centennial celebration of the incorporation of the town of Boylston, Massachusetts : August 18, 1886"
Worcester, Mass. : Press of Stanford & Davis, 1887.
It was named after
Ward Nicholas Boylston Ward Nicholas Boylston (1747–1828; born Ward Hallowell), a descendant of the physician Zabdiel Boylston, was an American merchant, a philanthropist, and benefactor of Harvard University. He was a brother of Admiral Sir Benjamin Hallowell Carew, ...
(1747–1828),Bentinck-Smith, William
"Nicholas Boylston and His Harvard Chair"
''Proceedings of the Massachusetts Historical Society'', Third Series, Vol. 93, (1981), pp. 17-39
a benefactor of the town. The fund he set up in 1797 finally accumulated $1,450, which was used to build the town hall and school building. The locals used to live off agriculture, and erected mills on the
Nashua River The Nashua River, long,U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map accessed October 3, 2011 is a tributary of the Merrimack River in Massachusetts and New Hampshire in the United States. It i ...
, until the construction of
Wachusett Reservoir The Wachusett Reservoir is the second largest body of water in the state of Massachusetts. It is located in central Massachusetts, northeast of Worcester. It is part of the water supply system for metropolitan Boston maintained by the Massachuset ...
terminated their operation.


Geography

According to the
United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau (USCB), officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the U.S. Federal Statistical System, responsible for producing data about the American people and economy. The Census Bureau is part of the ...
, the town has a total area of , of which is land and , or 18.50%, is water. With a population of nearly 4400 residents, the town is predominantly a residential community. The
Wachusett Reservoir The Wachusett Reservoir is the second largest body of water in the state of Massachusetts. It is located in central Massachusetts, northeast of Worcester. It is part of the water supply system for metropolitan Boston maintained by the Massachuset ...
, part of the water supply system managed by the
Massachusetts Water Resources Authority The Massachusetts Water Resources Authority (MWRA) is a public authority in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts that provides wholesale drinking water and sewage services to certain municipalities and industrial users in the state, primarily in th ...
for Greater Boston area, lies in the northwestern part of the town and covers about of land. The town maintains approximately of roadway, has of sidewalks, and has its own Municipal Light Department, Water District, and volunteer fire and ambulance service. The town of Boylston is bordered by the towns of
Shrewsbury Shrewsbury ( , also ) is a market town, civil parish, and the county town of Shropshire, England, on the River Severn, north-west of London; at the 2021 census, it had a population of 76,782. The town's name can be pronounced as either 'Sh ...
, West Boylston, Sterling, Clinton,
Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constitue ...
, and Northborough.


Demographics

As of the 2000 census, there were 4,008 people, 1,573 households, and 1,140 families residing in the town. The
population density Population density (in agriculture: standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geographical term.Matt RosenberPopul ...
was . There were 1,606 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the town was 96.71%
White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully reflect and scatter all the visible wavelengths of light. White on ...
, 0.67%
African American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...
, 0.22% Native American, 1.37%
Asian Asian may refer to: * Items from or related to the continent of Asia: ** Asian people, people in or descending from Asia ** Asian culture, the culture of the people from Asia ** Asian cuisine, food based on the style of food of the people from Asi ...
, 0.25% from
other races Other often refers to: * Other (philosophy), a concept in psychology and philosophy Other or The Other may also refer to: Film and television * ''The Other'' (1913 film), a German silent film directed by Max Mack * ''The Other'' (1930 film), a ...
, and 0.77% from two or more races.
Hispanic The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or Hispanidad. The term commonly applies to countries with a cultural and historical link to Spain and to Vic ...
or
Latino Latino or Latinos most often refers to: * Latino (demonym), a term used in the United States for people with cultural ties to Latin America * Hispanic and Latino Americans in the United States * The people or cultures of Latin America; ** Latin A ...
of any race were 0.57% of the population. There were 1,573 households, out of which 33.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 63.9% were
married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognized union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children, and between t ...
living together, 6.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 27.5% were non-families. 22.3% of all households were made up of individuals, and 8.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.55 and the average family size was 3.02. In the town, the population was spread out, with 24.3% under the age of 18, 4.4% from 18 to 24, 31.3% from 25 to 44, 27.8% from 45 to 64, and 12.3% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40 years. For every 100 females, there were 99.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 96.5 males. The median income for a household in the town was $67,703, and the median income for a family was $77,604. Males had a median income of $56,019 versus $43,277 for females. The
per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or total income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. It is calculated by dividing the area's total income by its total population. Per capita i ...
for the town was $32,274. About 2.4% of families and 2.8% of the population were below the
poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for t ...
, including 0.5% of those under age 18 and 9.8% of those age 65 or over.


Government


Library

The Boylston Public Library was established in 1880. In fiscal year 2008, the town of Boylston spent 1.35% ($152,562) of its budget on its public library—some $35 per person.


Education

Boylston currently operates a junior-senior high school with the neighboring town of Berlin, called the Tahanto Regional Middle/High School. It is part of the
Berlin-Boylston Regional School District The Berlin-Boylston Regional School District consists of one school serving grades 6-12: Tahanto Regional Middle/High School. The school is physically situated in Boylston, Massachusetts, adjacent to the Wachusett Reservoir. The towns of Berlin ...
. The town is also home to the
Tower Hill Botanic Garden New England Botanic Garden at Tower Hill is a 171-acre botanic garden and arboretum located in Boylston, Massachusetts, approximately north of central Worcester, Massachusetts, Worcester in Worcester County, Massachusetts. The Garden features 18 ...
, operated by the
Worcester County Horticultural Society The Worcester County Horticultural Society is a non-profit American horticulture, horticultural society based in Boylston, Massachusetts, USA, whose stated mission in 2014 was to "inspire the use and appreciation of horticulture to improve lives, e ...
, which offers adult education classes in horticulture, cooking, and gardening. The school mascot is a
stag Deer or true deer are hoofed ruminant mammals forming the family Cervidae. The two main groups of deer are the Cervinae, including the muntjac, the elk (wapiti), the red deer, and the fallow deer; and the Capreolinae, including the reindeer ...
, and the teams' colors are white and green.


Photos

Image:Boylston_center.jpg, Boylston Commons, Winter


Footnotes


Further reading

* Flagg, Charles Allcott. ''A Guide to Massachusetts Local History.'' Salem, MA: Salem Press Company, 1907. Cf.p. 225. * Fuhrer, Mary Babson. ''A Crisis of Community: The Trials and Transformation of a New England Town, 1815-1848.'' Chapel Hill, NC: University of North Carolina Press, 2014. * Hastings, Gordon, " The HASTINGS of Boylston, Massachusetts. Create Space Independent Publishing Platform. 2018. * Hastings, Gordon, " Rocky Road To Dublin" Amazon Independent Publishing, 2018, .


External links


Town of Boylston official website

Boylston Historical Society and Museum

Berlin-Boylston School District
{{authority control Towns in Worcester County, Massachusetts Towns in Massachusetts