Stoughton, Massachusetts
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Stoughton, Massachusetts | |
| Nickname: "Birthplace of American Liberty" | |
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| Coordinates: | |
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| Country | United States |
| State | Massachusetts |
| County | Norfolk |
| Settled | 1713 |
| Incorporated | 1726 |
| Government | |
| - Type | Representative town meeting |
| Area | |
| - Total | 16.3 sq mi (42.1 km²) |
| - Land | 16.0 sq mi (41.5 km²) |
| - Water | 0.2 sq mi (0.6 km²) |
| Elevation | 236 ft (72 m) |
| Population (2000) | |
| - Total | 27,149 |
| - Density | 1,692.6/sq mi (653.5/km²) |
| Time zone | Eastern (UTC-5) |
| - Summer (DST) | Eastern (UTC-4) |
| ZIP code | 02072 |
| Area code(s) | 339 / 781 |
| FIPS code | 25-67945 |
| GNIS feature ID | 0618330 |
| Website: http://www.stoughton-ma.gov/ | |
Stoughton (Official Name: Town of Stoughton) is a town in Norfolk County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 27,149 at the 2000 census.
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[edit] History
Stoughton was first settled in 1713 and was officially incorporated in 1726. 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.
In 1874 the Stoughton Public Library was established. [1]
The Suffolk Resolves were written in Old Stoughton (current day Milton, Massachusetts) at Doty's Tavern. [2] They are thought to be the basis for the Declaration of Independence. The meeting included Samuel Dunbar and Paul Revere, while the site was chosen by Samuel Adams and Dr. Joseph Warren.
The oldest choral society in the United States is located in Stoughton. Founded in 1786 as The Stoughton Musical Society, it is now known as the Old Stoughton Musical Society.
Stoughton's close proximity to Boston and Providence attracts a diverse cultural, ethnic, and religious population.
The citizens of Stoughton pride themselves on their social activism. The Save Our Stoughton campaign attracted national attention in the 1980s for their work picketing a local adult book store. Most recently, Stoughton became the first municipality in Massachusetts to declare itself a "No Place for Hate" town.
[edit] Geography
According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 16.3 square miles (42.1 km²), of which, 16.0 square miles (41.5 km²) of it is land and 0.2 square miles (0.6 km²) of it (1.41%) is water.
[edit] Demographics
As of the census[3] of 2000, there were 27,149 people, 10,254 households, and 7,270 families residing in the town. The population density was 1,692.6 people per square mile (653.5/km²). There were 10,488 housing units at an average density of 653.9/sq mi (252.5/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 88.46% White, 5.70% African American, 0.10% Native American, 2.14% Asian, 0.05% Pacific Islander, 1.27% from other races, and 2.28% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.54% of the population.
There were 10,254 households out of which 30.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 55.8% were married couples living together, 11.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.1% were non-families. 24.4% of all households were made up of individuals and 9.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.60 and the average family size was 3.13.
In the town the population was spread out with 22.4% under the age of 18, 6.8% from 18 to 24, 30.4% from 25 to 44, 25.2% from 45 to 64, and 15.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females there were 92.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 87.5 males.
The median income for a household in the town was $57,838, and the median income for a family was $69,942. Males had a median income of $44,853 versus $31,971 for females. The per capita income for the town was $25,480. About 3.1% of families and 4.6% of the population were below the poverty line, including 4.8% of those under age 18 and 5.8% of those age 65 or over.
[edit] Government
The Town is governed by a Selectmen-Manager plan with a representative Town meeting. The Board of Selectmen of the town consist of five members all of whom are elected at large for a term of three years. The Selectmen appoint a Town Manager who is the chief administrative officer in the executive branch of Town government and he carries out the policies and plans set forth by the Selectmen. John J. Kowalczyk is the current Chairman of the Board of Selectman. [4]
The Stoughton Fire Department provides fire suppression, rescue and EMS services to Stoughton. The Freeman Street Fire Station was opened on June 13, 1927 and has received updates throughout the years and is still open today. The Central Fire Station located at 1550 Central Street, Stoughton was opened in 2001. Currently the Central Fire Station is shut down due to problem with mold in the Fire Station. So as of October of 2006 all of the Stoughton Fire Department is operating out of the Freeman Street Fire Station. [5]
[edit] Education
There is one public high school in Stoughton, one public middle school, 5 elementary schools, and several Catholic private schools in nearby towns. Stoughton High School has an award-winning music program, as well as an award-winning newspaper, The SHS Knight. It also has a healthy selection of sports teams. In 2005, the Stoughton High School Marching Black Knights marching band earned the title of best marching band in the NESBA championships, along with nabbing the award for best music and the highest score in visual performance. This marked the third time in 6 years that the Black Knights have captured the New England title. The marching band is under the direction of Ron Christianson. He has been the key to the success of the Black Knights music program. The school mascot is the Black Knight, and their colors are black and orange.
The school also boasts an award winning Jazz Band. The Jazz band has won four consecutive gold medals at the IAJE State Finals, receiving invitations to Boston's historic Hatch Shell on the bank of the Charles River in each of the last five years (2004-2008). In 2006, the Jazz Band traveled with the rest of the music program to New York City for a competition hosted by Heritage Music Festivals. The Jazz Band received the first ever perfect score of 100 given in the festival's 28 year history.
In 2007 the recently formed Jazz Choir, under the direction of Dan Davey, earned their first Gold medal at the state IAJE festival.
[edit] Transportation
Stoughton is on an MBTA commuter rail line that runs to South Station in Boston and through Canton junction, MA, giving residents easy access to employment opportunities in Boston's medical, educational, and financial districts. The Brockton Area Transit Authority (BAT) provides local bus service.
[edit] Annual events
Every year, there are fireworks at the high school for celebration of the 4th of July.
Other Stoughton attractions include local drama groups, summer-time outdoor concerts, and annual parades to honor our veterans.
[edit] Notable Stoughton residents
- John Bailey (Massachusetts) (1786-1835) - U.S. House of Representatives
- Edward Barber - Photographer / Filmmaker
- Supply Belcher (1751-1836) - American Composer
- Forrest Bird - Inventor
- Elmer Hewitt Capen (1838-1905) - Third President of Tufts College
- Fannie Bishop Capen (1853-1926) - early Methodist missionary in the Amazon
- Mary Baker Eddy (1821-1910) - Founded the Church of Christ, Scientist
- Richard Gridley (1710-1796) - Soldier and Army Engineer
- Edwin Arthur Jones (1853-1911) - American Composer
- Darin Jordan - Athlete. (SHS '83) retired Pittsburgh Steelers and San Francisco 49ers linebacker, member of Super Bowl XXIX championship team
- Kerry Keating - Head Coach, Santa Clara University Broncos and former UCLA Bruins' assistant coach.[6]
- Ryan LaCasse - Athlete, retired Indianapolis Colts, member of Super Bowl XXIX championship team
- David Allen Lambert - Author, Historian and Genealogist
- Ed McGuinness - Comic book artist
- Lori McKenna - Singer / Songwriter
- Henry L. Pierce (1825-1896) - Mayor of Boston
- Deborah Sampson (1760-1827) - Female Soldier of the Revolution
- Roger Sherman (1721-1790) - The only person to sign all four great state papers: the Articles of Association, the Declaration of Independence, the Articles of Confederation and the United States Constitution.
- Kenny Wormald - Television personality; from MTV's Dancelife
- Bertha Reynolds - Influential Social Worker
[edit] References
- ^ The Trustees of the Stoughton Public Library gratefully acknowledge the generous assistance of the many interested citizens in the
- ^ The Doty Tavern
- ^ American FactFinder. United States Census Bureau. Retrieved on 2008-01-31.
- ^ Stoughton Community Profile
- ^ Stoughton Fire Department First Organized in 1852
- ^ Kerry Keating, CSTV. Accessed November 17, 2007. "Keating was born on July 15, 1971 in Stoughton, Mass., and was raised in Rockville Centre, N.Y."
[edit] External links
- Town of Stoughton
- Stoughton Chamber of Commerce
- Stoughton Massachusetts History & Genealogy Website
- Stoughton Historical Society
- Singing Stoughton
- Stoughton Public Schools Website
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