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Dracut is a
town A town is a type of a human settlement, generally larger than a village but smaller than a city. The criteria for distinguishing a town vary globally, often depending on factors such as population size, economic character, administrative stat ...
in Middlesex 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. At the 2020 census, the town's population was 32,617, making it the second most populous town in Massachusetts with an
open town meeting Town meeting, also known as an "open town meeting", is a form of local government in which eligible town residents can directly participate in an assembly which determines the governance of their town. Unlike representative town meeting where ...
system of governance. The town covers a total area of 21.36 square miles, 0.5 square miles of which are water.


History

Before Europeans arrived in the mid-17th century, Dracut and the surrounding area were known as Augumtoocooke. Important
Pennacook The Pennacook, also known by the names Penacook and Pennacock, were Algonquian Indigenous people who lived in what is now Massachusetts, New Hampshire, and southern Maine. They were not a united tribe but a network of politically and culturally ...
Indian settlements were served by fishing at Pawtucket Falls on the
Merrimack River The Merrimack River (or Merrimac River, an occasional earlier spelling) is a river in the northeastern United States. It rises at the confluence of the Pemigewasset and Winnipesaukee rivers in Franklin, New Hampshire, flows southward into M ...
and abundant game in the surrounding marsh areas.History of Dracut, Massachusetts, called by the Indians Augumtoocooke and before incorporation, the wildernesse north of the Merrimac. First permanent settlement in 1669 and incorporated as a town in 1701, by Silas Roger Coburn (1922) From the late 16th to mid-17th centuries, the powerful
Sachem Sachems and sagamores are paramount chiefs among the Algonquians or other Native American tribes of northeastern North America, including the Iroquois. The two words are anglicizations of cognate terms (c. 1622) from different Eastern Alg ...
,
Passaconaway Passaconaway was a 17th century sachem and later ''bashaba'' (chief of chiefs) of the Pennacook people in what is now southern New Hampshire in the United States, who was famous for his dealings with the Plymouth Colony, Plimouth and Massachuset ...
and his family spent much of their lives on this land. Europeans began to settle in the area around 1653, and established the town of
Chelmsford Chelmsford () is a city in the City of Chelmsford district in the county of Essex, England. It is the county town of Essex and one of three cities in the county, along with Colchester and Southend-on-Sea. It is located north-east of London ...
, incorporated in 1655, on the opposite side of the
Merrimack River The Merrimack River (or Merrimac River, an occasional earlier spelling) is a river in the northeastern United States. It rises at the confluence of the Pemigewasset and Winnipesaukee rivers in Franklin, New Hampshire, flows southward into M ...
from modern Dracut. In October 1665, Bess, wife of Nobb How and daughter of Passaconaway, sold the Augumtoocooke land to Captain John Evered, also known as Webb of Draucutt of Norfolk County (the Webb family is associated closely with the town of Dreycot Foliat in Wiltshire, England) for four yards of duffill and one pound of
tobacco Tobacco is the common name of several plants in the genus '' Nicotiana'' of the family Solanaceae, and the general term for any product prepared from the cured leaves of these plants. More than 70 species of tobacco are known, but the ...
. Webb had months earlier sold of the land — which he did not then own — to Samuel Varnum for 400 pounds; the deed for "Drawcutt upon Mirrimack" was dated 1664."The Varnums of Dracutt", by John Marchall Varnum, 1907 Webb also sold land to Richard Shatswell, who traded it to Edward Colburn (also spelled "Coburn" or "Colborne") for his home and land in
Ipswich, Massachusetts Ipswich is a coastal town in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 13,785 at the 2020 census. Home to Willowdale State Forest and Sandy Point State Reservation, Ipswich includes the southern part of Plum Island. A res ...
. Colburn and his family were probably the first settlers in Dracut who owned land with the intention of permanently living on it. (Samuel Varnum lived on the Chelmsford side of the Merrimack River.) Even though this area, now known to the new settlers as Dracut (Draucutt), was across the Merrimack River from the Chelmsford town center, they agreed to pay taxes and relied on Chelmsford for protection, according to 1667 Middlesex Court documents. By summer 1669, however, protection became too costly and difficult, so the Chelmsford Mayor Henchman declared:
Wherefore, Honorable and Worshipful, I judge it highly needful and necessary that we have relief, and that speedily of about twenty men or more for the repulsing of the enemy and guarding some outplaces, which are considerable on each side of the Merrimac, as Messrs. Howard, Varnum, Coburn & company who must otherwise come in to us, and leave what they have to the enemy, or be exposed to the merciless cruelty of bloody and barbarous men.
On the morning of March 18, 1676, the Wamesit Indians burned down four of Edward Colburne's buildings, then attacked Samuel Varnum and family as they crossed the river to milk the cows grazing in the Dracut pastures. The Indians fired upon their boat, killing Samuel's two sons, and one died in his daughter's arms as she sat behind him. The accompanying soldiers and Samuel fired back, but the Indians fled. By the late 17th century the Varnum, Coburn, Richardson, and other families of the Dracut section of Chelmsford, dissatisfied with the protection provided, began to petition to the General Court to lay out their own township.
To the Hon. Council & Representatives of his Majesty's Province of the Massachusetts Bay in New England in General Court assembled February 1701. The petition of Samuel Sewall Esq., Benjamin Walker, John Hunt & Jonathan Belcher, proprietors of part of the Tract of Land called Dracut beyond Chelmsford in the County of Middlesex on the North Side of Merrimack River and of Samuel Varnum, ..., Thomas Colburne, ..., James Richardson, ..., Ezra Colburn,... Inhabitants and Proprietors of the said Tract of Land called Dracut, ... lyes very commodious for a Township & hath about twenty families already settled thereupon in which are about Eighty Souls & Forasmuch as the making said place a Township will not only be a great Encouragement to the Inhabitants thereof & be the means for a settlement of the Ministry among them (for the benefit of which they are now obliged to go to Chelmsford, which is a great difficulty & eamiot be attended by their children & several others by reason of the distance thereof) but will also be of considerable benefit to the Publick, and be a great strengthening of the Frontier parts by reason of the people which will be desirous to settle at said place when made a Township because of the convenient positionship thereof.
Your Petitioners humbly pray that by the grant of this Honorable Court, the Tract of land aforesaid may be made a Township, and that the Inhabitants, which are or shall settle thereupon, may have and enjoy all Libertys, Privileges & Immunities as the Inhabitants of other Towns within this Province have & do enjoy. And ... the Tract of Land therein described be made a Township & called by the name of Dracut, ... Sent up by concurrence Nehemiah Jewett, Speaker.
Dracut was granted separation from Chelmsford, and was officially incorporated as a town on February 26, 1701. Parts of the community were part of the Wamiset Praying Town, one of the preserves set aside by the colonists for Christianized Indians. The town has several large ponds, bogs and swamps, and numerous brooks (most notably Beaver Brook). Dracut's early economy relied on fishing, lumbering and milling, which led in turn to the 19th century industries of paper making and cotton textile manufacturing, including the Beaver Brook Mill. These mills attracted Irish and French-Canadian immigrants. Thomas Barrows was the part owner of one of the mills. There has been intense modern development in Dracut with suburban residential pressures from Lowell. Twice in the 19th century, Lowell annexed large sections of Dracut into its borders. However, some rural landscapes remain intact, as do some handsome historic houses. One of the better known, the 290-year-old Colburn/Cutter House, with its massive beams, huge center chimney and fireplaces, was torn down in 2023. The building, dating back from about 1717, had served as the site of the annual Dracut Craft Fair. In addition, Dracut holds an annual Old Home Day every September starting in 200

As of 2020, Dracut remains the only town in the world with its exact name and spelling. Other municipalities do exist with similar names but different spellings.


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 (2.15%) is water. Dracut is located in the Merrimack Valley of
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 ...
, zip code 01826, northwest of the state capital,
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 ...
. The southern end of Dracut is on the
Merrimack River The Merrimack River (or Merrimac River, an occasional earlier spelling) is a river in the northeastern United States. It rises at the confluence of the Pemigewasset and Winnipesaukee rivers in Franklin, New Hampshire, flows southward into M ...
, and the town is bisected by Beaver Brook. As part of a plan titled 'Make It Dracut', the town's Economic Development Committee designated nine Business Districts. With a couple exceptions, district names mirror those of historic neighborhoods within the town. Each district is visually identified by strategically placed street signage bearing the district name and a stylized symbol incorporating the initial letter of the name. The districts are titled: Bridge Street, Broadway, Collinsville, Dracut Center, East Dracut, Hovey Square, Kenwood, Lakeview, and Navy Yard Districts.


Adjacent towns

Dracut is bordered by Tyngsboro to the west and the city of Lowell to the south and west in Middlesex County, Methuen to the east in Essex County, and Pelham,
New Hampshire New Hampshire ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Gulf of Maine to the east, and the Canadian province of Quebec t ...
, to the north in
Hillsborough County, New Hampshire Hillsborough County is the most populous County (United States), county in the U.S. state of New Hampshire. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 422,937, almost one-third the population of the entire state. Its c ...
. Tewksbury (Middlesex County) and
Andover Andover may refer to: Places Australia *Andover, Tasmania Canada * Andover Parish, New Brunswick * Perth-Andover, New Brunswick United Kingdom * Andover, Hampshire, England ** RAF Andover, a former Royal Air Force station United States * Andov ...
(Essex County) border the town to the south over the
Merrimack River The Merrimack River (or Merrimac River, an occasional earlier spelling) is a river in the northeastern United States. It rises at the confluence of the Pemigewasset and Winnipesaukee rivers in Franklin, New Hampshire, flows southward into M ...
. There are no bridges connecting Dracut to Tewksbury or Andover directly, forcing travel through Lowell via several crossings or
I-93 Interstate 93 (I-93) is an Interstate Highway in the New England states of Massachusetts, New Hampshire, and Vermont in the United States. Spanning approximately along a north–south axis, it is one of three primary Interstate Highways ...
in Methuen.


Demographics

The earliest census data shows the town of Dracut having a population of 1,173 residents in 1765. 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 2010, there were 29,457 people, 10,451 households, and 7,733 families residing in the town. The
population density Population density (in agriculture: Standing stock (disambiguation), 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 geog ...
was . There were 10,643 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the town was: * 88.1%
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 ...
(U.S. Average: 75.1%) * 4.0% Asian (U.S. Average: 3.6%) * 2.3%
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 ...
(U.S. Average: 12.3%) * 0.09% Native American (U.S. Average: 0.1%) * 0.03%
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 ...
(U.S. Average: 0.1%) * 0.43% from other races (U.S. Average: 5.5%) * 0.96% from two or more races (U.S. Average: 2.4%)
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 1.55% of the population (U.S. Average: 12.5%). There were 10,939 households with the average household size was 2.69 and the average family size was 3.17. * 35.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them (U.S. Average: 32.8%). * 55.4% 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 (U.S. Average: 51.7%). * 12.9% had a female householder with no husband present (U.S. Average: 12.2%). * 28.2% were non-families (U.S. Average: 31.9%). * 20.9% of all households were made up of individuals (U.S. Average: 25.8%). * 8.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older (U.S. Average: 9.2%). In the town, the population had a median age of 41.1 years (U.S. Average: 35.3). * 25.5% under the age of 18 * 7.3% from 18 to 24 * 33.5% from 25 to 44 * 22.2% from 45 to 64 * 11.6% who were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females, there were 96.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 92.4 males. The median income for a household in the town was $57,676 (U.S. Average: $41,994), and the median income for a family was $65,633 (U.S. Average: $50,046). Males had a median income of $41,873 versus $31,396 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 $23,750. About 2.7% (U.S. Average: 9.2%) of families and 3.7% (U.S. Average: 12.4%) 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 3.2% of those under age 18 and 8.3% of those age 65 or over.


Government

Dracut is one of the largest towns in Massachusetts to still be governed by an open town meeting, whereby every registered voter is entitled to gather at stated times to conduct the business of the Town. There is an elected board of selectmen and school committee with five members each elected for three-year staggered terms. The voters also elect a town moderator, library trustees, and some members of the housing authority. Those who live in the Dracut Water Supply District also elect a district moderator and water commissioners. The board of selectmen, school committee, and library trustees hire a town manager, superintendent of schools, and library director respectively to execute their various duties.


Public safety


Police department

The town of Dracut has its own full-time police department, the Dracut Police Department, which employs 39 police officers who utilize 15 various types of police vehicles to perform their duties. As of January 2014, the Department has a K-9 unit. The Department's headquarters is located at 110 Loon Hill Road in the Parker Village section of the town. The town of Dracut is also secondarily protected by the
Massachusetts State Police The Massachusetts State Police (MSP) is an agency of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts' Executive Office of Public Safety and Security, responsible for law enforcement and vehicle regulation across the state. As of 2024, it has 2,500 sworn troop ...
and is periodically patrolled by troopers from the A-1 barracks in Andover.


Fire department

The Dracut Fire Department is a 24/7 career fire department of approximately 40 firefighters. It responds from three fire stations located throughout the town.fire station visits Station 1 – Headquarters: 488 Pleasant Street :*Engine 1 (In service) :*Engine 5 :*Engine 4 :*squad 1 :*Forestry 1 :*Ladder 1 :*tower (on order jun) :*Car 2 (Deputy Chief) :*Car 3 :*Car 4 (Shift commander) :*Utility 1 Station 2: 15 Jones Avenue :*Engine 2 :*Forestry 2 :*Engine 6 ( antique) Station 3: 539 Nashua Road :*Engine 3 :*Squad 3 :*UTV trailer :*Boat :*State Hazmat ORU 62


Education


Public schools

The Dracut School Department consists of six public schools: one high school, one middle school (grades 6–8), and four elementary schools (grades K–5). They are, with enrollment figures from the 2020–2021 school year: * Dracut Senior High School (889 students) * Richardson Middle School (920 students) * Englesby Elementary School (544 students) * Brookside Elementary School (444 students) * Campbell Elementary School (579 students) * Greenmont Elementary School (283 students) The school department also uses the former Parker Elementary School for a small portion of its special education activities. There are about 45 public school students attending out of district SPED programs and approximately 120 public school students attending out of town charter schools, as of FY14. In addition, about 440 Dracut students attend the Greater Lowell Technical High School.


Transportation

Dracut is in proximity to many major area highways.
Interstate 93 Interstate 93 (I-93) is an Interstate Highway in the New England states of Massachusetts, New Hampshire, and Vermont in the United States. Spanning approximately along a north–south axis, it is one of three primary Interstate Highways ...
, Interstate 495, and
U.S. Route 3 U.S. Route 3 (US 3) is a United States Numbered Highway running from Cambridge, Massachusetts, through New Hampshire, to the Canada–United States border near Third Connecticut Lake, where it connects to Quebec Route 257. Massachu ...
are among the most traveled.
Interstate 95 Interstate 95 (I-95) is the main north–south Interstate Highway on the East Coast of the United States, running from U.S. Route 1 (US 1) in Miami, Florida, north to the Houlton–Woodstock Border Crossing between Maine and the ...
is not far from Dracut either (roughly to the south), and the
Massachusetts Turnpike The Massachusetts Turnpike (colloquially the "Mass Pike" or "the Pike") is a controlled-access toll road that runs concurrently with Interstate 90 (I-90) in the U.S. state of Massachusetts. It the longest Interstate Highway in Massachu ...
(Interstate 90) is only to the southeast, in Boston. Massachusetts Route 38, Route 110 and Route 113 run directly through the town. The LRTA 10 bus connects to the Lowell train station on the
MBTA Commuter Rail The MBTA Commuter Rail system serves as the commuter rail arm of the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority's (MBTA's) transportation coverage of Greater Boston in the United States. Trains run over of track on 12 lines to 142 stations. It ...
Lowell Line The Lowell Line is a commuter rail service of the MBTA Commuter Rail system, running north–south between Boston, Massachusetts, Boston and Lowell, Massachusetts. It is long, with nine stations including the terminals at North Station and Lowel ...
. The Maritimes & Northeast Pipeline terminates in Dracut, connecting to the North American
natural gas Natural gas (also fossil gas, methane gas, and gas) is a naturally occurring compound of gaseous hydrocarbons, primarily methane (95%), small amounts of higher alkanes, and traces of carbon dioxide and nitrogen, hydrogen sulfide and helium ...
pipeline grid. The Portland Natural Gas Transmission System (PNGTS)), Tennessee Gas and the TransQuebec interconnect here.


Notable people

* Luis Ansart, (1742–1804), military officer * Wendell Corey, actor *
Scott Grimes Scott Christopher Grimes (born July 9, 1971) is an American actor and singer. Some of his most prominent roles include appearances in the TV series '' ER'' as Dr. Archie Morris, ''Party of Five'' as Will McCorkle, '' Band of Brothers'' as Technic ...
, actor * Harry Lew, pro basketball player * Lucy Lew, early African American rights leader * Roger Morin, Bishop of Biloxi * John Ogonowski (1951–2001), airline pilot who was piloting
American Airlines Flight 11 American Airlines Flight 11 was a domestic Airline, passenger flight that was hijacked by five al-Qaeda terrorists on the morning of September 11, 2001, as part of the September 11 attacks. The hijacked airliner was deliberately crashed into ...
on
9/11 The September 11 attacks, also known as 9/11, were four coordinated Islamist terrorist suicide attacks by al-Qaeda against the United States in 2001. Nineteen terrorists hijacked four commercial airliners, crashing the first two into ...
before it was hijacked * James Mitchell Varnum, lawyer and general during the American Revolution * Joseph Bradley Varnum, politician


See also

* Beaver Brook *
Greater Boston Greater Boston is the metropolitan region of New England encompassing the municipality of Boston, the capital of the U.S. state of Massachusetts and the most populous city in New England, and its surrounding areas, home to 4,941,632. The most s ...
* Greater Lowell * Merrimack Valley


References


Further reading


''1871 Atlas of Massachusetts''.
by Wall & Gray
Map of Massachusetts.Map of Middlesex County.
* ''History of Middlesex County, Massachusetts''
Volume 1 (A–H)Volume 2 (L–W)
compiled by Samuel Adams Drake, published 1879–1880. 572 and 505 pages
Dracut article
by Rev. Elias Nason in volume 1 pages 406–416.
Dracut School Data from 2005


External links

*
Dracut Public Library (Moses Greeley Parker Memorial Library)

Dracut Public Schools
{{Authority control 1653 establishments in the Massachusetts Bay Colony Massachusetts populated places on the Merrimack River Towns in Middlesex County, Massachusetts