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Worcester Regional Transit Authority
Worcester Regional Transit Authority (WRTA) is a public, non-profit organization charged with providing public transportation to the city of Worcester, Massachusetts and the surrounding towns. The WRTA was created in September 1974 under Chapter 161B of the Massachusetts General Laws. This act also created several other regional transit authorities in Massachusetts, including the Greater Attleboro-Taunton Regional Transit Authority and the Pioneer Valley Transit Authority among others; in terms of ridership, the WRTA is the second largest regional transit authority and third largest transit system in Massachusetts. WRTA buses have been free to ride since March 2020, making it the longest-running fare-free system of public transportation in the United States. Currently, the fare-free program is extended until June 2026. History Public transit in Worcester began with the Worcester Horse Railway in 1861. It was merged in 1887 into the Worcester Consolidated Street Railway, w ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Worcester, Massachusetts
Worcester ( , ) is the List of municipalities in Massachusetts, second-most populous city in the U.S. state of Massachusetts and the list of United States cities by population, 113th most populous city in the United States. Named after Worcester, England, the city had 206,518 people at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, also making it the second-List of cities in New England by population, most populous city in New England, after Boston, Massachusetts. Worcester is about west of Boston, east of Springfield, Massachusetts, and north-northwest of Providence, Rhode Island. Because it is near the geographic center of Massachusetts, Worcester is known as the "Heart of the Commonwealth"; a heart is the official symbol of the city. Worcester is the historical county seat, seat of Worcester County, Massachusetts, Worcester County. Worcester developed as an industrial city in the 19th century because the Blackstone Canal and railways facilitated the import of raw materials and ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Brookfield, Massachusetts
Brookfield is a town in Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. Brookfield was first settled by Europeans in 1660. The population was 3,439 at the 2020 census. History Brookfield was first settled by Europeans in 1660 and was officially incorporated in 1718. The town was settled by men from Ipswich as part of the Quaboag Plantation lands. In August 1675, King Philip's War reached central Massachusetts. Brookfield, one of the most isolated settlements in the colony, was attacked by Nipmuck forces. After an ambush, the town was besieged. For two days the townsfolk, consisting of 80 people, sought shelter in the garrison house while the rest of the town was completely destroyed. The settlement lay abandoned for twelve years. During the winter of 1776, General Henry Knox passed through the town with cannon from Fort Ticonderoga to end the Siege of Boston. A marker along Route 9 commemorates his route. Bathsheba Spooner In March 1778, Joshua Spooner, a wealthy farme ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Grafton (MBTA Station)
Grafton station is an MBTA Commuter Rail station in the North Grafton village of Grafton, Massachusetts, served by the Framingham/Worcester Line. The station is fully accessible, with mini-high platforms serving both of the line's two tracks. A former station at North Grafton was open from the 1800s until 1960. The modern station, located near Tufts University's Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine east of the former station, opened in 2000. History Former station The Boston and Worcester Railroad, which later became part of the Boston and Albany Railroad (B&A) opened to Worcester on July 4, 1835. Grafton station was established near New England Village (later called North Grafton) along the road to Shrewsbury by 1838. Improvements to the station facilities were made around 1845. The Grafton Centre Railroad, a narrow-gauge feeder line, opened on August 20, 1874. Grafton station was renamed North Grafton to differentiate it from the Grafton Centre terminus. The branch ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Westborough, Massachusetts
Westborough is a New England town, town in Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 21,567 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, in over 7,000 households. Incorporated in 1717, the town is governed under the New England open town meeting system, headed by a five-member elected Board of Selectmen whose duties include licensing, appointing various administrative positions, and calling a town meeting of citizens annually or whenever the need arises. History Before recorded time, the area now known as Westborough was a well-travelled crossroads. As early as 7,000 Common Era, BCE, prehistoric people in dugout canoes followed the Sudbury River, Sudbury and Assabet River, Assabet Rivers to their headwaters in search of quartzite for tools and weapons. From 1200 to 1600 Common Era, CE, seasonal migrations brought Nipmuc Nation, Nipmuc Indians to hunt and fish near Cedar Swamp and Lake Hoccomocco. Using Fay Mountain as a landmark, Indians crisscrossed ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Northbridge, Massachusetts
Northbridge is a town in Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 16,335 at the 2020 census. The Northbridge Town Hall is located at 7 Main Street in Whitinsville. The town is now a part of the Blackstone River Valley National Heritage Corridor, of the National Park Service. Northbridge claims to history include: Native American Nipmuc lands, Colonel John Spring, who led the Uxbridge militia training company in the American Revolution, Samuel Spring, Revolutionary War Chaplain, the Residence of Ezra T. Benson 1830–1832, the birthplace of President Millard Fillmore's mother, Phoebe, and home to the Whitin Machine Works from 1831 to 1964. For geographic and demographic information on the village of Whitinsville, please see the article Whitinsville, Massachusetts. History Early history The earliest residents were the Nipmuc, or "Small Pond People". They had a well-developed agriculture, made tools, and had a graphite mine at Sturbridge. Northb ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Grafton, Massachusetts
Grafton is a town in Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 19,664 at the 2020 census. The town consists of the North Grafton, Grafton, and South Grafton geographic areas, each with a separate ZIP Code. Incorporated in 1735, the town is home to a Nipmuc village known as '' Hassanamisco'' Reservation, the Willard House and Clock Museum, Community Harvest Project, and the Tufts University Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine. History Bands of the Nipmuc tribe are the indigenous inhabitants, and maintain a state-recognized reservation known as Hassanamesit, or Hassanamisco, which was formerly a Praying Indian village from 1647 when the Reverend John Eliot came and converted the Hassanamiscos to Christianity . in 1727 the Hassanamesit reservation of 8,000 acres was divided into 7,500 acres to 40 English proprietors and 500 acres to 7 Nipmuc proprietors. This became Grafton, officially incorporated in 1735. Grafton stands tall in the industrializat ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
West Boylston, Massachusetts
West Boylston is a town in Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States and a northern suburb of Worcester. The population was 7,877 at the 2020 census. West Boylston includes the village of Oakdale, located on the opposite side of the Wachusett Reservoir from West Boylston center along Route 140. Although the town was split off from Boylston, it has a larger population than its eastern namesake. History West Boylston was originally part of several neighboring towns— Lancaster, Shrewsbury, Boylston, Holden and Sterling. The town was created as part of a dispute between Boylston and West Boylston over the location of a new town meeting house. The town was officially incorporated in 1808. During the 1800s the town grew with textile and other industries and became a prosperous community. This prosperity was interrupted as the town was selected as the site of the Wachusett Reservoir to provide water for Boston. It was selected due to its location at the junction of thr ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Webster, Massachusetts
Webster is a town in Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 17,776 at the 2020 census. Named after statesman Daniel Webster, the town was founded by industrialist Samuel Slater, and was home to several early American textile mills. It is home to the Chaubunagungamaug Reservation of the Nipmuc, as well as Lake Chaubunagungamaug, the third largest body of freshwater, and largest natural lake, in Massachusetts. History The area that is now Webster was the ancestral home of the Nipmuc people for thousands of years. It was first colonized by Europeans in 1713 and was officially incorporated on March 6, 1832. The area forming the town had previously been divided among the town of Dudley, the town of Oxford and an unincorporated gore. The primary founder was the manufacturer Samuel Slater, who came to the area after his celebrated activities in Pawtucket, Rhode Island, and founded several textile mills, one of which was taken over by the Cranst ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Spencer, Massachusetts
Spencer is a town in Worcester County, Massachusetts, Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 11,992 at the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census. For geographic and demographic information on the census-designated place Spencer, please see the article Spencer (CDP), Massachusetts, Spencer (CDP), Massachusetts. History Spencer was first settled in 1717 by Nathaniel Wood, and first permanently settled by Samuel Bemis in 1721. Spencer is located in central Worcester County, twenty minutes west of Worcester, Massachusetts, Worcester via Massachusetts Route 9, Route 9, and about forty-five east of Springfield, Massachusetts, Springfield via Routes 49, 20, and the Massachusetts Turnpike. It was officially incorporated on April 12, 1753, splitting from the town of Leicester, Massachusetts, Leicester. Spencer was named after the then-acting governor of Massachusetts, Spencer Phips. Spencer was the home of the Howe family of inventors, including Elias Howe, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Southbridge, Massachusetts
Southbridge is a city in Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 17,740 at the 2020 census. Although Southbridge has a city form of government, it is legally known as the Town of Southbridge. History The area was initially inhabited by the Nipmuck and Mohegan tribes, with the Quinebaug River dividing their territories. As early as 1638, John Winthrop Jr. purchased Tantiusques, a tract for mining "lead" centered at what is now Leadmine Road in Sturbridge (it was thought at the time that where there was lead, there should be silver nearby). In fact the mineral deposit was graphite which the Winthrops commercialized employing Nipmuck miners. Southbridge was first settled by Europeans in 1730. In 1801 a poll parish, named the Second Religious Society of Charlton, and popularly called Honest Town, was formed from the west part of Dudley, the southwest part of Charlton and the southeast part of Sturbridge. In 1816 this parish was incorporated to b ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Shrewsbury, Massachusetts
Shrewsbury (/ˈʃruzberi/ ''SHROOZ-bury'') is a town in Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 38,325 according to the 2020 United States census, in nearly 15,000 households. Incorporated in 1727, Shrewsbury prospered in the 19th century due to its proximity to Worcester, Massachusetts, Worcester, and from visitors to Lake Quinsigamond. The town is governed under the New England representative town meeting system, headed by the Town Manager and five-member elected Select Board. History The Town of Shrewsbury, named for Shrewsbury, England, is a community with an uneven and hilly terrain cut by a number of minor streams providing several small water power sites. Grants of land were made in what would eventually be the town beginning in 1664, with the grant called Haynes Farm as the largest. In 1664 Native American leader, Peter Jethro, and other Nipmuc Indians deeded land around Lake Quinsigamond to settlers in the area.Barry, William, ''A History of ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Oxford, Massachusetts
Oxford is a town in Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 13,347 as of the 2020 United States Census. It was the birthplace of Clara Barton, the first president and founder of the American Red Cross. History Pre-Colonial Era Present day Oxford and the areas surrounding it were inhabited for thousands of years before European colonization of the Americas, European colonization. Although archaeological sites exist in Central Massachusetts dating back to the Paleo-Indians, Paleoindian period (12,000-9000 years before present) there are much more abundant archaeological remains starting in the period from 6500 to 3000 years before present, including an arrowhead identified in Oxford Massachusetts.Massachusetts Historical Commission State Survey Team, Feb 1985. "Historical and Archaeological Resources of Central Massachusetts: A Framework for Preservation Decisions." Accessed 7/3/2024 from: https://www.sec.state.ma.us/mhc/mhchpp/RegReconnRpts.htm An arro ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
