Blackstone is a town in Worcester County,

Massachusetts Massachusetts ( ; ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Maine to its east, Connecticut and Rhode ...

, United States. The population was 9,208 at the 2020 census. It is a part of the

Providence metropolitan area The Providence metropolitan area (Providence MSA) is a region extending into eight counties in two states. Its urban area, core is in the states of Rhode Island and Massachusetts; its largest city is Providence, Rhode Island. With an estimated po ...

History

This region was first inhabited by the

Nipmuc The Nipmuc or Nipmuck people are an Indigenous people of the Northeastern Woodlands, who historically spoke an Eastern Algonquian languages, Eastern Algonquian language, probably the Loup language. Their historic territory Nippenet, meaning 'the f ...

. Blackstone was settled by European immigrants in 1662 and was incorporated in 1845. The town was part of

Mendon, Massachusetts Mendon is a town in Worcester County, Massachusetts, Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 6,228 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Mendon is part of the Blackstone River Valley National Heritage Corridor, ...

, before becoming a separate municipality. It was named after

William Blaxton William Blaxton (also spelled William Blackstone; 1595 – 26 May 1675) was an early English settler in New England and the first European settler of Boston and Rhode Island. Early life and education William Blaxton was born in Horncastle, Li ...

, an early settler of

New England New England is a region consisting of six states in the Northeastern United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is bordered by the state of New York (state), New York to the west and by the ...

and the first

Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...

an settler of

Rhode Island Rhode Island ( ) is a state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Connecticut to its west; Massachusetts to its north and east; and the Atlantic Ocean to its south via Rhode Island Sound and Block Is ...

and

Boston Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...

. Blackstone is within the area of the John H. Chaffee Blackstone River Valley National Heritage Corridor of

and

Geography

According to the

United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau, officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the Federal statistical system, U.S. federal statistical system, responsible for producing data about the American people and American economy, econ ...

, the town has a total area of , of which is land and , or 2.94%, is water. The

Blackstone River The Blackstone River in the United States is a river that flows through Massachusetts and Rhode Island. It is long with a drainage area of 475 mi2 (1229 km2). It drains into the tidal river, Pawtucket River at Pawtucket, Rhode Island, Pawtuck ...

, birthplace of the

Industrial Revolution The Industrial Revolution, sometimes divided into the First Industrial Revolution and Second Industrial Revolution, was a transitional period of the global economy toward more widespread, efficient and stable manufacturing processes, succee ...

in the United States, meanders west to southeast, on the south border of town. The town is bordered by North Smithfield, Rhode Island and

Woonsocket, Rhode Island Woonsocket ( ), is a city in Providence County, Rhode Island, United States. The population was 43,240 at the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census, making it the sixth largest city in the state. Being Rhode Island's northernmost city, Woonsoc ...

to the south; Millville, Massachusetts to the west;

to the north, and Bellingham, Massachusetts ( Norfolk County) to the east. Named places in the town include:CIS: Unincorporated and Unofficial Names of Massachusetts Communities
/ref> * Blackstone Village * Central Village * East Blackstone * Farnum's Gate * Five Corners * High Rocks * Millerville * New City * Privilege * Rural District *

Waterford Waterford ( ) is a City status in Ireland, city in County Waterford in the South-East Region, Ireland, south-east of Ireland. It is located within the Provinces of Ireland, province of Munster. The city is situated at the head of Waterford H ...

* Wheelockville * Woonsocket Junction (

New York and New England Railroad The New York and New England Railroad (NY&NE) was a railroad connecting southern New York State with Hartford, Connecticut; Providence, Rhode Island; and Boston, Massachusetts. It operated under that name from 1873 to 1893. Prior to 1873 it was ...

junction) An East Blackstone railroad station used to be located in Bellingham.

Demographics

As of the

census A census (from Latin ''censere'', 'to assess') is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording, and calculating population information about the members of a given Statistical population, population, usually displayed in the form of stati ...

of 2000, there were 8,804 people, 3,235 households, and 2,355 families residing in the town. The population density was . There were 3,331 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the town was 97.39%

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...

, 0.33%

African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...

, 0.24% Native American, 0.76% Asian, 0.01%

Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, Pacificans, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the list of islands in the Pacific Ocean, Pacific Islands. As an ethnic group, ethnic/race (human categorization), racial term, it is used to describe th ...

, 0.24% from other races, and 1.03% from two or more races.

Hispanic The term Hispanic () are people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or broadly. In some contexts, Hispanic and Latino Americans, especially within the United States, "Hispanic" is used as an Ethnici ...

or Latino of any race were 1.03% of the population. There were 3,235 households, out of which 38.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 58.9% were

married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognised union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children (if any), and b ...

living together, 9.9% had a female householder with no husband present, and 27.2% were non-families. 22.4% of all households were made up of individuals, and 8.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.71 and the average family size was 3.20. In the town, the population was spread out, with 27.7% under the age of 18, 7.5% from 18 to 24, 33.7% from 25 to 44, 20.9% from 45 to 64, and 10.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 35 years. For every 100 females, there were 98.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 94.5 males. The median income for a household in the town was $55,163, and the median income for a family was $61,633. Males had a median income of $42,100 versus $27,448 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or average income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. In many countries, per capita income is determined using regular population surveys, such ...

for the town was $20,936. About 1.8% of families and 3.7% 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 ...

, including 2.2% of those under age 18 and 12.0% of those age 65 or over.

Education

Blackstone, being part of the broader Blackstone-Millville Regional School District, is home to the Blackstone-Millville Regional High School, serving both the town of Blackstone and its western neighbor, Millville. In 2003, a new middle school was constructed, the Frederick W. Hartnett Middle School, named after former superintendent of schools, Frederick Hartnett. Blackstone is also home to the Augustine F. Maloney Elementary School, and to the John F. Kennedy Elementary School.

Adjacent city and towns

* Millville * North Smithfield, Rhode Island * Mendon * Bellingham

Government

Notable people

* Albert J. Adams, racketeer * Perley Dunn Aldrich, composer * Con Daily, baseball player * Matthew Dicks, author * Eddie Eayrs, baseball pitcher and outfielder in parts of three seasons in the major leagues * Ambrose Kennedy, politician * Donald Pelletier, prelate * Bob Stewart, baseball umpire * Fernand St. Germain, politician * Eva March Tappan, author * Webster Thayer, judge * Gilbert Thompson, typographer

References

External links

Blackstone official website
{{authority control Towns in Worcester County, Massachusetts Towns in Massachusetts