Millbury, Massachusetts

Millbury, Massachusetts
Town
The Torrey House
Seal
Location in Worcester County and the state of Massachusetts.
Coordinates: 42°11′38″N 71°45′38″W / 42.19389°N 71.76056°W / 42.19389; -71.76056Coordinates: 42°11′38″N 71°45′38″W / 42.19389°N 71.76056°W / 42.19389; -71.76056
Country	United States
State	Massachusetts
County	Worcester
Settled	1716
Incorporated	1813
Government
• Type	Open town meeting
• Town    Manager	Bob Spain
Area
• Total	16.3 sq mi (42.1 km2)
• Land	15.7 sq mi (40.7 km2)
• Water	0.5 sq mi (1.3 km2)
Elevation	417 ft (127 m)
Population (2010)
• Total	13,261
• Density	810/sq mi (310/km2)
Time zone	Eastern (UTC-5)
• Summer (DST)	Eastern (UTC-4)
ZIP code	01527
Area code(s)	508 / 774
FIPS code	25-41340
GNIS feature ID	0618373
Website	http://www.millbury-ma.org/

Millbury is a town in Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 13,261 at the 2010 census. The town is part of the Blackstone River Valley National Heritage Corridor.

History

Millbury Center c. 1905

Millbury was first settled by white Europeans in 1716 and was officially incorporated in 1813.

Millbury has a long history as a New England mill town, from which the town's name is derived. The Blackstone River flows through the town which during the Industrial Revolution provided much of the water power to the town's many textile mills and factories.

Millbury was originally the Second or North Parish of Sutton. Because traveling from one part of Sutton to the other for town meetings, etc. was difficult and time-consuming, the inhabitants of the Northern Parish petitioned the Massachusetts General Court to split the town of Sutton into two separate towns. The North Parish became the town of Millbury on June 11, 1813 by way of an act of incorporation.^[1]

Millbury's industrial history can be traced to the early 18th century, not long after the area's settlement. In 1735, John Singletary began operating a mill on Singletary Brook, a stream flowing out of Singletary Lake. Around 1753, John Singletary built the S & D Spinning mill, which is still in operation, making it one of the oldest continuously operating mills in the United States. The mill is featured on the Town Seal.^[2] The mill also makes the red stitching that is on major league baseballs.

1870 Millbury and Auburn map

In the late 18th and early 19th centuries, after learning the trade of firearms production from their father, Asa Waters II and his brother Elijah purchased land along the Blackstone River and built mills producing goods such as guns, scythes and sawmill saws. In 1808, Asa and Elijah erected an armory which was successful until forced to close suddenly in 1841. It reopened at the start of the Civil War in 1861, doing work for the U.S. government.^[3] With the wealth Asa Waters II received from his factories, he began construction, in 1826, of a Federal-style mansion, near the town center on Elm Street. Designed by Boston architect Asher Benjamin, it was completed in 1832. It took two years to collect materials for construction of the house, including marble from Italy and bricks from Baltimore. Known as the Asa Waters Mansion, it is an icon of the town.^[4]

President William Howard Taft spent many summer vacations in Millbury as a young boy, attending the public schools for a season.^[5] When he grew older, he visited his grandparents most summers. He visited his aunt, Delia C. Torrey, during his presidency for the occasion of Millbury's 100th birthday. The Torrey House, where President Taft stayed during his visit, is commonly called the Taft House today.^[6]

In the early 1970s, Millbury experienced a number of large fires. The town hall burned down, followed by the Union School. Local realtor Manual Gonzalez-Rios donated profits from his towing company to assist in rebuilding the town hall. A propane plant near Route 146 exploded spectacularly, with tanks blown 100 feet or more into the air, making nationwide news. Millbury celebrated its Bicentennial in 2013 with many town events. A proposal for a casino was made in 2013, but company pulled out when it became clear that a large majority of the towns people were against the idea. ^[7]

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 16.3 square miles (42 km²), of which 15.7 square miles (41 km²) is land and 0.5 square miles (1.3 km²), or 3.20%, is water. The town is drained by the Blackstone River.

Adjacent cities and towns

		Worcester
	Auburn		Grafton
		Millbury
		Sutton

Demographics

As of the census^[18] of 2000, there were 12,784 people, 4,927 households, and 3,443 families residing in the town. The population density was 812.5 inhabitants per square mile (313.7/km²). There were 5,109 housing units at an average density of 324.7 per square mile (125.4/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 97.19% White, 0.53% African American, 0.15% Native American, 1.02% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 0.23% from other races, and 0.84% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.02% of the population.

There were 4,927 households out of which 30.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 55.7% were married couples living together, 10.9% had a female householder with no husband present, and 30.1% were non-families. 24.6% of all households were made up of individuals and 10.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.53 and the average family size was 3.03.

In the town the population was spread out with 23.1% under the age of 18, 6.3% from 18 to 24, 31.2% from 25 to 44, 23.4% from 45 to 64, and 16.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females there were 93.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 88.4 males.

The median income for a household in the town was $51,415, and the median income for a family was $62,564. Males had a median income of $41,912 versus $28,973 for females. The per capita income for the town was $23,531. About 4.1% of families and 6.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 8.2% of those under age 18 and 8.4% of those age 65 or over.

Government

Library

The Millbury public library began in 1864.^[19][20] In fiscal year 2008, the town of Millbury spent 1.15% ($358,097) of its budget on its public library—some $26 per person.^[21]

Education

Public schools in Millbury fall under the jurisdiction of Millbury Public Schools school district. Approximately 2,000 students are educated in three schools: Elmwood Street School, a 625 student primary school for grades Preschool – 3; Raymond E. Shaw Elementary School, a 423 student intermediate school for grades 4–6; and Millbury Memorial Junior/Senior High School, a 936 student secondary school for grades 7–12.^[22]

Notable people

• Ron Darling, baseball pitcher
• James Kallstrom, former head of the New York FBI office, Forensic Files (TV)
• Albert L. Nash, politician
• George A. Sheridan, congressman
• George E. White, congressman
• Howie Winter, member of the Winter Hill Gang
• Michael O. Moore, Massachusetts State Senator

See also

• List of mill towns in Massachusetts

References

Further reading

• Benedict, William A.; Tracy, Hiram A.: A History of the Town of Sutton, Massachusetts, from 1704 to 1876, p. 142, Sanford & Company, 1878

External links

Media related to Millbury, Massachusetts at Wikimedia Commons

• Town of Millbury, Massachusetts
• Millbury Public Library
• Millbury Historical Society
• Millbury Public Schools
• A History of the Town of Millbury, MA
• TheDailyMillbury.com
• MillingMillbury.com - A visual journal of Millbury, MA

Municipalities and communities of Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States
County seat: Worcester
Cities	Fitchburg Gardner Leominster Southbridge Worcester
Towns	Ashburnham Athol Auburn Barre Berlin Blackstone Bolton Boylston Brookfield Charlton Clinton Douglas Dudley East Brookfield Grafton Hardwick Harvard Holden Hopedale Hubbardston Lancaster Leicester Lunenburg Mendon Milford Millbury Millville New Braintree North Brookfield Northborough Northbridge Oakham Oxford Paxton Petersham Phillipston Princeton Royalston Rutland Shrewsbury Southborough Spencer Sterling Sturbridge Sutton Templeton Upton Uxbridge Warren Webster West Boylston West Brookfield Westborough Westminster Winchendon
CDPs	Athol Baldwinville Barre Clinton Cordaville Devens East Brookfield East Douglas Fiskdale Hopedale Lunenburg Milford North Brookfield Northborough Oxford Rutland South Ashburnham South Lancaster Spencer Sturbridge Upton-West Upton Warren Webster West Brookfield Westborough Whitinsville Winchendon
Other villages	Gilbertville Ironstone Linwood North Uxbridge Old Furnace Still River Union Chapel Wheelockville Wheelwright
Ghost town	Dana