Canton
Canton earned its name in 1797 due to the early belief that Canton, China was on the exact opposite side of the earth. In 1801, Paul Revere chose Canton to be home to the nation’s first copper rolling mill. One of the oldest houses in America, the David Tilden House, has stood in Canton for nearly 300 years.
Canton lies at the foot of Great Blue Hill. The Canton River flows through the center of the town, linking a chain of small lakes including Bolivar and Forge Ponds and flowing into the Neponset River. In addition to wooded land, the area includes wetlands, particularly in the eastern part along Route 138 near the Randolph and Stoughton borders, and in the western part along I-95.
The Town was officially incorporated on February 23, 1797 from the town of Stoughton, Massachusetts and is located in Norfolk County, United States. In the 2020 census the population was 24,370. Canton is part of Greater Boston, about 15 miles (24 kilometers) southwest of downtown Boston and can be accessed through the Providence/Stoughton Commuter Rail Line. It has a total area of 19.6 square miles (51 km2), of which, 18.9 square miles (49 km2) of it is land and 0.6 square miles (1.6 km2) of it (3.27%) is water.
The Town of Canton has a collective mission to provide quality services, which efficiently and effectively promote, preserve, and protect its resident population, its environment, and its sense of community. The Town’s main goal is to enhance its special character and the quality of life for its residents.
The Canton School Department oversees a high school, a middle school, a regional technical school, three elementary schools and The Rodman Early Childhood Program all of which are committed to excellence in educating students.
Points of Interest include: The Paul Revere Heritage Site, Trillium Brewing Company, Eleanor Cabot Bradley Estate, Museum of American Bird Art at Mass Audubon and the Blue Hills Ski Area.
Easton
Incorporated in 1725, the Town of Easton is located 30 minutes from Boston, 45 minutes from Cape Cod, and 45 minutes from Providence. The community is approximately 29 square miles in area and has a 2020 US Census population of 25,053. Easton is governed by an Open Town Meeting and the executive branch is made up of an elected five-member Select Board, serving three-year terms. The Board hires a full-time Town Administrator to supervise the daily operations of the government.
Easton, although primarily a residential community, has an active and vibrant small business community along with an Industrial Park off Route 24. There are a variety of restaurants; both large scale and family style, offering residents not only fine dining options, but different ethnic foods as well.
Easton citizens have a long history of supporting an excellent school system. Oliver Ames is a comprehensive high school designed to meet the educational needs of all students and offers a broad range of honors and advanced placement courses. The high school has received recognition and awards for its music programs and achievement in girls’ and boys’ sports with many championships over the years.
The Town is also home to Southeastern Regional Vocational Tech, offering secondary school students an alternative to a traditional high school curriculum. Vocational training includes instruction in early childhood, automotive tech, graphic communications, computers, metal fabrication, and many other areas. The Regional School provides post-secondary education through a variety of day programs and continuing education night courses.
Stonehill College, a private Roman Catholic College founded in 1948, is a nationally renowned baccalaureate institution. The College is an integral part of the Town, supporting the community with student teachers and with educational and athletic facilities. The campus remains active during the summer months, hosting both educational and athletic camps for children.
Easton offers its citizens the enjoyment of the Natural Resource Trust “Sheep Pasture” and Borderland State Park. Approximately 15% of the community is dedicated conservation land.
The Town’s history is uniquely connected with the establishment of the Ames Shovel company in 1803 and the Ames family through many generations. The Ames family not only shaped the Town’s economy, but also its geography and architecture. In the late 19th century, the family created a remarkable legacy by donating several landmark buildings to the Town. This was noteworthy not only for its benevolence, but for its architectural significance; the famed architect H.H. Richardson designed Oakes Ames Memorial Hall, the Ames Free Library and the Old Colony Railroad Station. The Wayside estate, built in 1912, was donated in 1960 to the Town and currently serves as Town Hall. The community continues to preserve these buildings today as part of the proud heritage of Easton.
Easton is situated in the Greater Brockton Area, which is strategically located between State Route 128 and Interstate 495, the inner and outer loops around Boston. State Routes 3, 24, and 28 provide easy access to the air, port, and intermodal facilities of Boston and Providence. Principal highways are State Routes 106, 123, and 138. Commuter rail service to Back Bay and South Stations, Boston, is available from the neighboring towns of Mansfield (travel time to BBS: 25-38 min.; 775 MBTA parking spaces) and Stoughton (travel time 30-39 min.; 500 spaces).
Foxborough
The most frequently asked question…Is it Foxborough or Foxboro?
Foxborough was incorporated June 10, 1778. The ‘borough’ signifies a free-standing entity with its own government. Almost immediately, the name of the town became “Foxboro” in common usage. The United States Postal Service sought some level of consistency in an 1893 directive, asking postal patrons to use the short form for names like Foxborough, Attleborough, Middleborough, etc. The request had no official standing and did not change anything other than how most people would address their mail. Bottom line, since being incorporated, the town has been a municipality with a dual identity, Foxborough and Foxboro, and wears both names proudly. Just as one is official (and to some, preferred), and the other more a matter of convenience, familiarity and habit, perhaps, but no less respectful. In the final analysis, much that was Foxborough remained that way as did everything named later as Foxboro but there is now a trend in some circles to opt for the original spelling which delights the purists.
The Town of Foxborough, located at the intersections of Interstates 95 and 495, is known by its residents as “the Gem of Norfolk County”. Open Town Meeting is the form of government managed by a five member Board of Selectmen and a Town Manager.
The town is about 22 miles (35 km) southwest of Boston, 18 miles (29 km) northeast of Providence, Rhode Island and about 73 miles (117 km) northwest of Cape Cod. Foxborough is part of the Greater Boston area. The population was 18,618 at the 2020 census.
There are a total of 5 public schools in the town. Burrell, Igo or Taylor Elementary Schools (K-4 grades), Ahern Middle School (5-8 grades) and the High School (9-12 grades). Private schools include SAGE, Sabis Charter, the Montessori School, and other nursery schools.
The Board of Recreation provides an eight-week summer program at the Booth field and a year-round schedule of activities. Boyden Library, located off the Common on Bird Street, is a cultural and informational center providing lifelong and recreational learning.
Churches of mostly every denomination provide schedules of worship in the “Foxboro Reporter”.
Points of interest include: Foxboro Grange Hall, Orpheum Theatre, Gillette Stadium, Patriot Place, Harold B. Clark Town Forest, F. Gilbert Hills State Forest, Memorial Hall, Normandy Farms Campgrounds, Canoe River Campground, Kersey Point on the Neponset Reservoir, Hersey Farm and Wolf Meadow.
Milton
Milton was settled in 1640 by Puritans who began the settlement of Massachusetts Bay Colony in 1630. Originally a part of the town of Dorchester, Milton was incorporated as an independent town in 1662 and remains as such today, although it borders in the burgeoning city of Boston on the north along the Neponset River.
The town is a contemporary suburban community in eastern Massachusetts that prides itself on a rich historical heritage, tree-lined streets, and acres of protected open space. Milton is unique in that it has the most privately and publicly conserved land within 20 miles of Boston, giving the town a bucolic atmosphere near the cultural and business opportunities in the Greater Boston area.
Residents have quick access to major highways such as Routes 128, Interstate 93 and Interstate 95. The Red Line into Boston via the Mattapan Trolley it also available.
The Milton Public School system consists of 6 schools: 4 elementary (Collicott, Cunningham, Tucker and Glover), the Pierce Middle School, and Milton High School. Milton is also the home of renowned private schools such as Milton Academy, Fontbonne Academy, and Curry College.
Some of the Points of Interest include: Blue Hills Trailside Museum, Blue Hills Reservation, Blue Hills Ski Area, Houghton’s Pond, Forbes House Museum, Eustis Estate Museum and Study Center.
Norfolk
Norfolk is a rural suburban town on the periphery of metropolitan Boston, located on an upper valley of the Charles River. There were a half dozen small farms in the town after 1669, the result of a determined effort to populate the colonial frontier that had good agricultural lands, fresh water fishing and fish runs.
The town was abandoned during King Philip’s War, its inhabitants relocating to Dedham in 1676. When Norfolk was eventually reestablished, the settlers relied on agriculture and cattle grazing with some considerable lumbering and planting of orchards. After 1812, three cotton manufacturing companies were established at Stony Brook, and later in the 19th century George Campbell’s paper mill was opened at Highland Lake making heavy wrapping and building papers. The town saw a rapid increase in population after 1925 when a hospital and a state prison were built in Norfolk on the Walpole line. Major residential development took place before 1940 in the Pondville and Clark Streets section of town with scattered new housing along Seekonk and Main Streets, and suburban residential building has continued since.
Norfolk is located in eastern Massachusetts, bordered by Millis and Medfield on the north, Walpole on the east, Foxborough and Wrentham on the south, and Franklin and Medway on the west. Norfolk is 20 miles southwest of Boston; about 21 miles north of Providence, Rhode Island; and about 205 miles northeast of New York City.
The town is part of the Massachusetts Senate’s Norfolk, Bristol and Middlesex district.
As of 2022, there are three public schools located within the town: the H. Olive Day Elementary School (Grades Pre-K–2), the Freeman-Kennedy Elementary School (Grades 3–6), and King Philip Regional Middle School (Grades 7–8). Upon entering the 9th grade, students go on to attend King Philip Regional High School in Wrentham or, specialty high schools; Tri-County Regional Vocational Technical High School in Franklin and Norfolk County Agricultural High School in Walpole.
Norwood
The Town of Norwood, officially formed in 1872, was until that time, part of Dedham. During the American Revolution, there was a Minuteman company organized in the area. Its captain, Aaron Guild, on learning of the British marching on Lexington and Concord to seize the munitions stored there, rode to join the fight, and arrived in time to fire on the British at Concord Bridge and participate in the running battle that chased the Redcoats back to Boston.
Norwood, part of the Greater Boston area, is governed by representative town meeting and census-designated place in Norfolk County, Massachusetts. As of the 2020 census, the population was 31,611. Norwood is on the Neponset River, which runs all the way to Boston Harbor from Foxborough. It has a total area of 10.6 square miles (27.3 km2), of which, 10.5 square miles (27.1 km2) of it is land and 0.1 square miles (0.2 km2) of it is water.
Norwood’s town square is dominated by its town hall, the Norwood Memorial Municipal Building. It includes a 50-bell carillon tower housing the Walter F. Tilton Memorial Carillon, one of nine carillons in Massachusetts. Another noteworthy building is the Morrill Memorial Library, Joseph Ladd Neal, architect.
The Norwood Public Schools Department operates seven public schools – The Willett Early Childhood Center (preschool and kindergarten children), Balch, Callahan, Cleveland, Oldham, and Prescott elementary schools, the Dr. Philip O. Coakley Middle School (6th through 8th graders) and Norwood High School (grades 9–12). In addition, the Department operates the Universal Technical Institute, an automotive technical school featuring the Mercedes Benz Elite MSAT and the Ford FACT specialized training programs.
The Fine Mortuary College in Norwood includes a one-room museum featuring antique embalming tables and centuries-old wooden coffins.
A large cluster of automobile dealerships on Route 1 is known as the Norwood “Automile”. University Avenue in Norwood is the site of both semiconductor company Analog Devices Inc and medical software provider MEDITECH, Medical Information Technology, Inc., actually across the border in Westwood. Moderna opened its state-of-the-art clinical development site in 2018 and is the primary manufacturing site for its COVID-19 vaccine.
Sharon
Beauty and diversity are the key words for Sharon, an attractive community among its neighbors Canton, Norwood, Walpole, Foxboro, Stoughton, Mansfield, and Easton.
The town, located 22 miles south of Boston, and almost midway between Boston and Providence, has access to Boston and Providence via MBTA commuter trains stopping at the Sharon station, and to New York City and Washington, D.C., via Amtrak trains at nearby Route 128 station. Many town residents have second- and third-generation family roots in Sharon, but the town is also notable for its diversity and openness to newcomers. An Interfaith Clergy Council and an “Affirming Diversity” group foster cooperative understanding among several varieties of Christian and Jewish congregations, an Islamic mosque, and a Unitarian church as well as adherents of Eastern religions, and the group sponsors an annual Martin Luther King Day Celebration.
Sharon was established as the 2nd Precinct of Stoughton in 1740. It was incorporated as the Town of Stoughtonham in 1765 and named Sharon in 1783. Native Americans hunted and fished in the area for hundreds of years before British settlers came in 1637. During the American Revolution, the townspeople–mostly farmers and craftsmen–made cannonballs for the Continental Army. Among the old homes surviving since those times are the houses of the patriots Job Swift and Deborah Sampson Gannett.
Sharon has an Open Town Meeting form of government, with three Selectmen and volunteer committees providing town governance. The Sharon School Department oversees a high school (replacement due to be completed summer 2022), a middle school, a regional vocational school, and three elementary schools (East, Cottage and Heights), all of which are committed to excellence in educating students. Sharon High School sends 96% of its graduating seniors on to institutions of higher learning.
“Lake Massapoag–the treasure of Sharon for its fun, beauty, and peacefulness,” is also known for its concerts, fireworks, fishing, and swimming on Memorial Beach. The Town proudly holds 5,000 acres of protected open space that includes more than the 2,250-acre Massachusetts Audubon Moose Hill Wildlife Sanctuary, and 1,260 acres within Borderland State Parks, the Warner, Massapoag Brook and King Philip’s Rock nature trails.
The Community Center, a former resort hotel that the Town acquired in 1967, has activities for all ages, such as dance, karate, yoga, language lessons, chorus, chess, sports club, theater, and community television, and a beach for swimming and fishing. The Recreation Department and citizens’ groups sponsor a tots’ playground, baseball, basketball, tennis, and soccer as well as community events like Square Jam (music), Fourth of July, Family Week, and First Night (New Year’s).
Stoughton
Stoughton is a town in Norfolk County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 29,281 at the 2020 census. The town is located approximately 17 miles (27 km) from Boston, 25 miles (40 km) from Providence, and 35 miles (56 km) from Cape Cod.
According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 16.3 square miles (42 km2), of which 16.0 square miles (41 km2) is land and 0.2 square miles (0.52 km2) (2.41%) is water. Stoughton borders Canton to the north, Randolph to the northeast, Avon to the east, Brockton to the southeast, Easton to the south, and Sharon to the west.
The Town is governed by a selectmen-manager plan with a representative town meeting. Stoughton’s Annual Town Meeting convenes in May and is chaired by the Town Moderator. The selectmen appoint a town manager, who is the chief administrative officer in the executive branch of government. The town manager carries out the policies and plans set forth by the selectmen.
Stoughton is on an MBTA commuter rail line that runs to South Station in Boston via the Providence/Stoughton Line. The Brockton Area Transit Authority (BAT) provides local bus service.
The Stoughton Public Schools operates the following public schools – Jones Pre-School, Dawe Elementary, Gibbons Elementary, Hanson Elementary, South Elementary, Wilkins Elementary, O’Donnell Middle School, and Stoughton High School. There are also parochial and private schools in nearby towns.
Stoughton was settled in 1713, and officially incorporated in 1726 from the southwestern portion of the large town of Dorchester. At its founding, it included the current towns of Sharon (which separated in 1765), Canton (which separated in 1797) and Avon (which separated in 1888). It was named after William Stoughton, who was the first chief justice of Colonial Courts, and the notorious chief justice of the Salem Witch Trials.
The Suffolk Resolves were written in Old Stoughton (current day Milton, Massachusetts) at Doty’s Tavern. They are thought to be the basis for the Declaration of Independence. The meeting included the Rev. Samuel Dunbar and Paul Revere; the site was chosen by Samuel Adams and Dr. Joseph Warren.
Stoughton’s train station was built in 1888, and is the only one in Massachusetts to house a clock tower. The station is unique in another way as it was built out of stones from a West Street quarry that belonged to Stoughton resident Myron Gilbert. In 1974 it was listed on the National Register of Historic Places. In 2009, however, the MBTA permanently closed the station. In 2015, members of Town Meeting voted to purchase the train station from the state. Plans for use of the property are being developed by the Community Preservation Committee.
Several organizations exist in the town for recreation and sports; The Recreation Department, The Stoughton Youth Athletic Club (STOYAC), Stoughton Youth Soccer League (SYSL), Stoughton Youth Baseball, and Stoughton Lacrosse.
Westwood
The town of Westwood was originally a part of Dedham until it was officially incorporated in 1897. It is governed by the Board of Selectmen, which is made up of three members who are elected for three-year overlapping terms. The Town adopted a Home Rule Charter, which provides for the Selectmen, Open Town Meeting, and Town Administrator form of government.
As of the 2020 Census, Westwood is a community of 16,266. It is in Norfolk County and is 12 miles southwest of Boston. Westwood is situated at the junction of Route 95/128 and 93 and provides an excellent location for its residents with easy access to Boston, but with all the elements of a beautiful suburban community. Westwood also has two commuter rail lines and full MBTA bus service on Routes 1 and 1A (Washington Street).
Westwood is recognized for the quality of its education. There are five elementary schools: Deerfield, Downey, Paul R. Hanlon, Martha Jones and William E. Sheehan, Thurston Middle School and Westwood High School. The Town also encourages and maintains many recreational areas and facilities, including numerous conservation areas, playgrounds, ball fields and an indoor pool facility. Westwood is home to Xaverian Brothers High School, an all-boys Catholic prep school and the Westwood Montessori School, preschool.
Westwood is home to over two hundred businesses in established commercial areas, each varied in character. University Station, a mixed-use overlay project, is conveniently located near the Route 128 train station with a commuter rail stop and the station is the sole regional stop for AMTRAK high-speed rail service from Boston to New York and Washington. The highway business district, Route 1, is comprised of larger retail and service establishments as well as corporate offices. The shopping areas of High Street and Islington’s Washington Street provide retail services for residents that enhance the quality of life in town. Additionally, High Street houses the municipal buildings, the main public library, one fire station and the police department. Residents and businesses are served by first-rate town services, with water from the Dedham Westwood Water District, sewer services from the Massachusetts Water Resource Authority, electricity from NSTAR and natural gas from Algonquin Gas.
Points of Interest include: Hale, Westwood Library, Colburn School, the rock that King Philip’s men hid inside during King Philip’s War and Buckmaster Pond.