Groveland is a town in
Essex 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. It is thirty-four miles north of
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 ...
. At the
2020 census, it had a population of 6,752.
The town is divided into two precincts, Groveland and South Groveland.
History
Groveland was originally the East Parish of
Bradford
Bradford is a city status in the United Kingdom, city in West Yorkshire, England. It became a municipal borough in 1847, received a city charter in 1897 and, since the Local Government Act 1972, 1974 reform, the city status in the United Kingdo ...
, which was originally part of the town of
Rowley. Before Bradford was separated from Rowley in 1672, it was called "Rowley on the Merrimack", or just "Merrimack". Bradford in turn was annexed by
Haverhill in 1897. Groveland officially incorporated as a separate town on September 9, 1850. Groveland residents celebrate the anniversary of this date as Groveland Day.
In December 1638, after seventeen years of service, the Reverend
Ezekiel Rogers was discharged from his post as rector of the parish of
Rowley in
Yorkshire
Yorkshire ( ) is an area of Northern England which was History of Yorkshire, historically a county. Despite no longer being used for administration, Yorkshire retains a strong regional identity. The county was named after its county town, the ...
, England. He had refused to read "that accursed book allowing sports on the Lord's Day." Believing the future of
Puritan
The Puritans were English Protestants in the 16th and 17th centuries who sought to rid the Church of England of what they considered to be Roman Catholic practices, maintaining that the Church of England had not been fully reformed and should b ...
ism was at stake, he and the members of twenty families sailed for the
New World
The term "New World" is used to describe the majority of lands of Earth's Western Hemisphere, particularly the Americas, and sometimes Oceania."America." ''The Oxford Companion to the English Language'' (). McArthur, Tom, ed., 1992. New York: ...
. Within these families were people of means and learning, including farmers, weavers, carpenters, and smiths. They landed at
Salem, Massachusetts
Salem ( ) is a historic coastal city in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States, located on the North Shore (Massachusetts), North Shore of Greater Boston. Continuous settlement by Europeans began in 1626 with English colonists. Salem was one ...
, but did not attempt to make a settlement until the following spring. The first
printing press
A printing press is a mechanical device for applying pressure to an inked surface resting upon a printing, print medium (such as paper or cloth), thereby transferring the ink. It marked a dramatic improvement on earlier printing methods in whi ...
brought to America was on board that same ship, the "John of London".
Since there were no plantations left along the coastline, Reverend Rogers settled a tract of land between
Ipswich
Ipswich () is a port town and Borough status in the United Kingdom, borough in Suffolk, England. It is the county town, and largest in Suffolk, followed by Lowestoft and Bury St Edmunds, and the third-largest population centre in East Anglia, ...
and
Newbury, where a land boom had developed. These two towns had already established grants on this tract, so the newcomers were required to purchase them for £800. Reverend Rogers's settlement was established in modern-day
Rowley. Named Roger's Plantation and later Rowley after the English town, the initial settlement comprised sixty families. In September 1639, the town incorporated, and included the territory now occupied by Rowley,
Georgetown, Groveland,
Boxford, and
Bradford
Bradford is a city status in the United Kingdom, city in West Yorkshire, England. It became a municipal borough in 1847, received a city charter in 1897 and, since the Local Government Act 1972, 1974 reform, the city status in the United Kingdo ...
.
The
Congregational church
Congregationalism (also Congregational Churches or Congregationalist Churches) is a Reformed Christian (Calvinist) tradition of Protestant Christianity in which churches practice congregational government. Each congregation independently a ...
in Groveland has a bell crafted by
Paul Revere
Paul Revere (; December 21, 1734 O.S. (January 1, 1735 N.S.)May 10, 1818) was an American silversmith, military officer and industrialist who played a major role during the opening months of the American Revolutionary War in Massachusetts, ...
. Of the 900 bells made by Revere's company, this is one of two remaining bells in active service (the other is in
Lowell, Massachusetts
Lowell () is a city in Massachusetts, United States. Alongside Cambridge, Massachusetts, Cambridge, it is one of two traditional county seat, seats of Middlesex County, Massachusetts, Middlesex County. With an estimated population of 115,554 in ...
). In town hall, the oldest hand-pump fire-engine in the country is on display. Built in 1798 and originally named ''Torrent'' of
Roxbury, Massachusetts
Roxbury () is a Neighborhoods in Boston, neighborhood in Boston, Massachusetts, United States.
Roxbury is a Municipal annexation in the United States, dissolved municipality and one of 23 official neighborhoods of Boston used by the city for ne ...
, the hand pumper was moved to Bradford in 1828 and renamed ''Engine 2''. In 1850, the same year East Bradford became Groveland, the pumper was renamed ''Veto''.
Downtown Groveland
Groveland's downtown is framed by the
gazebo
A gazebo is a pavilion structure, sometimes octagonal or Gun turret, turret-shaped, often built in a park, garden, or spacious public area. Some are used on occasions as bandstands.
In British English, the word is also used for a tent-like can ...
in Elm Park. Elm Park is a recent addition to Groveland. In the early part of the last century,
elm trees were dominant in the landscape. Then, about 1950, many of the trees died of
Dutch elm disease. It is only recently that resistant varieties of elms have been developed. With this development, the townspeople built a new park, planted with the new resistant variety. Since Groveland is primarily a
bedroom community
A commuter town is a populated area that is primarily residential rather than commercial or industrial. Routine travel from home to work and back is called commuting, which is where the term comes from. A commuter town may be called by many o ...
, there is considerable traffic during the commute drive time. However, once the rush is over, the town reverts to a sleepy village, with children and some grownups riding their bicycles about and walking.
Named Constitution Park when first created in 1832, it was only in 1857 that the elm trees arrived and with it the park's new name. Elm Park was the first planned housing development in the area. House lots were laid out around the common and the owners of which given rights to the well at the south end of the common. By the 1950s, Dutch elm disease had ravaged most of the trees. In the early 1960s, the last tree was taken down and the park's fountain dismantled. Thirty years later, thanks to the perseverance of Groveland residents and town officials, the town received the first of several state grants to restore Elm Park. With assistance from the Department of Environmental Management, the Historic Commission and others, Groveland has succeeded in restoring Elm Park to its historic charm.
Today visitors can walk along new sidewalks lit at night by new versions of the park's original lampposts. A new fountain resembling the original, a gazebo much like the old Methodist meeting house that sat at the south end of the park, and a new clock adorn the grounds. A large stone sign and monuments to local veterans depict some of the park and town's history. The new elm trees are planted in roughly the same pattern as the originals.
The first town post office was established in 1810 in Bradford, and was located in Squire Greenough's store on Main Street. Mr. Greenough was the postmaster until 1825, when he was succeeded by Capt. Benjamin Parker, who relocated the post office, at first, to his own store, and then to the blacksmith shop near the Haverhill Bridge. Later that same year, the building itself was moved to the other side of the street, where it remained for many years. After the town of Groveland was established in 1850, a new post office was built approximately half a mile from the present location on Main Street.
Geography and transportation
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 4.99%, is water. The town lies along the south banks 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 ...
, and several other brooks, as well as the
Parker River, pass through the town. There are two ponds, Crane Pond in the eastern end of town, and Johnson's Pond, on the Boxford town line. Along with a town forest, much of the eastern corner of town is taken up by the Crane Pond Wildlife Management Area.
Groveland is located in the northwestern part of Essex County, and is bordered by
Haverhill to the west and northwest,
West Newbury to the northeast, a small portion of
Newbury to the east,
Georgetown to the southeast, and
Boxford to the southwest. Groveland's town center is located northeast of
Lawrence and southwest of
Newburyport.
There are no interstates passing through Groveland, the town lying between
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 ...
and
Interstate 495.
Route 97 and
Route 113 both enter the town over the Bates Bridge from Haverhill. The bridge was opened in 2013, replacing a 1913 bridge that was immediately to the west of the new bridge. From the end of the bridge, Route 97 heads south through the town to Georgetown, while Route 113 bears eastward along the river towards West Newbury. The bridge project cost $49.7M.
The
Merrimack Valley Regional Transit Authority
Merrimack Valley Transit, formerly known as Merrimack Valley Regional Transit Authority is a public, non-profit organization in Massachusetts, United States, charged with providing public transportation to an area consisting of the cities and town ...
operates bus routes through town. The
Haverhill/Reading Line of 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 ...
terminates in neighboring Haverhill, providing rail service into Boston's
North Station. The nearest small-craft airport is
Lawrence Municipal Airport in North Andover, and the nearest national air service can be found at
Logan International Airport. There is a
Peter Pan
Peter Pan is a fictional character created by Scottish novelist and playwright J. M. Barrie. A free-spirited and mischievous young boy who can fly and never grows up, Peter Pan spends his never-ending childhood having adventures on the mythical ...
bus that goes to North Station that picks up/drops off at The Tea Garden, the Chinese food restaurant and bar in town.
Climate
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 2010, there were 6,459 people, 2346 households, and 1 families residing in the town. The population density was . There were 2,346 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the town was 97.38%
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 ...
, 0.48%
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 ...
, 0.08%
Native American, 0.91%
Asian, 0.26% from
other races, and 0.85% 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 was 1.32% of the population.
There were 2346 households, of which 34.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 65.2% were married couples living together, 8.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 22.8% were non-families. 18.5% of all households were made up of individuals, and 10.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.75 and the average family size was 3.15.
In the town, the population was spread out, with 24.7% under the age of 18, 6.9% from 18 to 24, 21.3% from 25 to 44, 32.1% from 45 to 64, and 15.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 43.5 years. For every 100 females, there were 93.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 90.4 males.
The median income for a household in the town was $84,232, and the median income for a family was $95,451. Males had a median income of $61,750 versus $54,023 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 $34,254; about 3.6% of families and 4.0% 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 8.2% of those under age 18 and 2.6% of those age 65 or over.
Government
Groveland has an open-town meeting form of government. The Select Board comprises five members, who are elected for three-year terms, in the annual town election. The Select Board is vested with all the municipal authority not specifically retained by the town's legislative body, town meeting, or other elected boards. The Selectmen are responsible for all facets of governmental duties. The warrants for the annual and special town meetings are generated from their office, as are any warrants for any elections or override votes scheduled. A Town Administrator appointed by the Select Board is the Chief Operating Officer of the town and serves as the agent of the Select Board in the daily administration of the town The Select Board work with the Town Administrator, the Town Accountant, and Finance Board members to establish the annual operating budget for the town. Every July 1 the Select Board appoints residents to various official boards and commissions, approve the hiring of all employees, hold public hearings on important town issues, and enforce town by-laws and regulations. The Select Board meets bi-weekly on Monday evenings, unless otherwise posted, at 6:30 in the main meeting room of Town Hall. Most all of the meetings on important town issues in which the public are expected to participate are held after normal "working hours." This allows the working public to participate fully in the government of the town.
Groveland Town Hall
The town's administrative complex is located on Main Street, and contains the town hall, police and fire stations, and the Langley-Adams Library. Located at 183 Main Street, the Groveland Town Hall contains most of Groveland's municipal offices. The large windows in front expose a showroom containing historic artifacts, including the famous "VETO No. 2" fire pumper, Groveland's first fire apparatus.
Groveland Police Department
Because of the low crime rate, there is not a lot of visible activity here. However, the police are on duty 24/7 and a dispatcher is always on site. This facility also contains a jail for temporary holding of suspects.
Groveland Fire Department
The Fire Department consists of 40 firefighters all of which serve on a paid call basis. There are two stations from which the firefighters are dispatched, Central Station (as seen in the picture on the left) and South Station. The workforce is divided equally between the two stations, with 20 firefighters in Central Station and 20 in South Station. The Fire Department serves the town in all areas of fire suppression including residential, commercial, and woodland properties. Currently the GFD has 8 in service apparatuses. In Central Station there is the Ladder Truck, Engine 1(pumper) Squad 1 and Tanker 1. In South Station you can find Squad 2, Engine 2 (Tanker/Pumper), Engine 3 (pumper) and Combo 2 (forestry truck). It is also responsible for conducting water and ice rescue in addition to providing numerous emergency medical service calls. Fire personnel undergo rigorous and diversified training on an ongoing basis in order to develop the skills necessary to provide the services needed in a rapidly growing community. The department's equipment and manpower is designed to be flexible, efficient, effective, and tailored to addressing the specific community needs.
Langley-Adams Library
Langley-Adams Library is a public library and a member of the
Merrimack Valley Library Consortium, sharing book-borrowing with other area libraries. The Library uses the Evergreen open source integrated library system that is common to all libraries in the Consortium.
Education
Groveland is a member of the
Pentucket Regional School District, which includes the towns of
West Newbury and
Merrimac. Groveland itself currently has one educational institution, the Dr. Elmer S. Bagnall Elementary School. Junior and senior high school students attend
Pentucket Regional Middle High School, located in West Newbury.
Places of worship
*Groveland Congregational Church, 4 King Street
*St James Episcopal Church, 121 Washington Street
*New Destiny Christian Church, 2 Esty Way
*St Patrick's Parish, 114 Center Street (part of Sacred Hearts Parish of Bradford)
Points of interest
The town supports baseball and soccer fields, basketball courts, picnic areas and parks, as well as boating facilities 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 ...
. In 2005, Groveland built Elm Park near its center, replacing a basketball court. North Groveland is also home to attractions such as Stickney's Boulder. South Groveland contains notable attractions such as Washington Park, and Nuns' Hill.
The Pines Recreation Area
The Pines Recreation area comprises two basketball courts, two baseball/softball diamonds, dog park, tennis and pickleball courts, playground, plus access to the Merrimack River. The Pines also provides a nature trail that runs through a wooded area along the river. Motor vehicles have been excluded from this trail so it is a quiet place to walk or jog.
Notable people
*
John G. B. Adams, American soldier who received the Medal of Honor for his actions during the American Civil War
*
Larry Dorr, lifelong resident. Manager of
Blood Sweat & Tears
Blood, Sweat & Tears (also known as "BS&T") is an American jazz rock music group founded in New York City in 1967, noted for a combination of brass with rock instrumentation. BS&T has gone through numerous iterations with varying personnel and ...
for 26 years, as well as many other musicians
References
An Outline of Groveland History*Kingsbury, J D
''Memorial History of Bradford'' published in 1883 by C C Morse and Son.
*Cogswell, John. ''History of Bradford''. from the History of Essex County vol.2 published by Hurd in 1888.
*Perry, Gardiner . ''Discourse on the History of Bradford''. published in 1821.
Topsfield Historical Society(1907)
''Vital Records of Bradford, Massachusetts to the Year 1849''at books.google. Full text transcription available a
.
*Kimball, Daniel and Daniel Stickney and Nathaniel Thurston
Map of Bradford 1795
*
Jeremiah Spofford and
Benjamin Greenleaf Map of Bradford 1831 click on the map to get a very large image.
* D.G.Beers, 1872 ''Atlas of Essex County''
Map of Groveland.Shows the Railway line.
External links
Town of Groveland official websiteGroveland Summer Recreation ProgramGroveland Public LibraryGroveland Historical Society Groveland Map of 1884 Atlas of Essex CountyCedardaleof the Congregational Church in Groveland (1800s)
City guide from masscities.com
{{Authority control
Massachusetts populated places on the Merrimack River