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[[Image:Westford,_MA_Seal.jpg|thumb|150px|right|''Seal of Westford, MA'']]

'''Westford''' is a town located in [[Middlesex County, Massachusetts]]. As of the [[2000]] census, the town had a total population of 20,754.

== History ==

[[Image:Westford_Common_looking_down_Main_St.jpg|thumb|250px|left|''Westford Common,'' looking down Main Street]]

Westford was first settled in [[1635]]. Originally a part of neighboring [[Chelmsford, Massachusetts|Chelmsford]], West Chelmsford soon grew large enough to sustain its own governance, and was officially incorporated as Westford in [[1729]].

In the late 18th and early 19th centuries, Westford was primarily an agricultural village, primarily producing [[maize|corn]] and [[apples]] and a mill town that produced [[worsted]] yarn. The Abbot Worsted Company was the first company in the nation to use camel hair for worsted yarns. Citizens from Westford also had some notable involvement in the [[Revolutionary War]]. It has been alleged that the town was along the path of [[Paul Revere|Paul Revere's]] Ride on the eve of [[April 19th]], [[1775]], but Revere's path is well-documented, and he never even made it as far as Concord. Revere was nowhere near Westdford on that night of the 18th-19th, although the less well-known [[Samuel Prescott]] may possibly have alerted Westford's citizenry. Prescott probably alerted Acton, to the southeast, and he or one of his associates may have reached Westford. [http://wa.westford.mec.edu Westford Academy], the local public high school, was once attended by Paul Revere's son and a bell cast by Revere graces its lobby today.

By the end of the [[American_civil_war|civil war]], as roads and transportation improved, increasing the distance one could travel in a day, Westford began to serve as a residential suburb for the factories of [[Lowell, Massachusetts|Lowell]], becoming one of the earliest notable examples of suburban [[sprawl]]. Throughout the 20th century (and with the invention of the [[automobile]], Westford progressively grew, continuing to serve as residential housing for the industries of Lowell, and later, [[Boston]].

By the 1970s, with the advent of the [[128 Technology Belt]], Westford began to act as a suburb for high-tech firms in [[Burlington, Massachusetts|Burlington]], [[Woburn, Massachusetts|Woburn]], and other areas, and later became a center of technology itself.

By the 1990s, Westford was home to offices for [[Red Hat]], [[Samsung]], [[Seagate]], and many other technology firms.

Today, Westford's agricultural past has given way to a thriving, densely populated center of commerce and development, with continually rising growth rates.

Although discredited by many [[Historian|historians]] and [[Archaeologist|archaeologists]], some townspeople continue to claim that Westford was once a stopping point for [[Scotland|Scottish]] Prince [[Henry Sinclair|Henry Sinclair's]] surverying expedition to [[Greenland]], [[Iceland]], [[Nova Scotia]], and [[Massachusetts]] which is said to have occurred in [[1398]], nearly 90 full years before [[Christopher Columbus|Columbus]] made his discovery of [[The Americas]]. The primary evidence for this tale is in the form of a burial marker, (known by residents and historians as the [[Westford Knight]]), which some claim is the gravestone of [[James Gunn (explorer)|Sir James Gunn]] of Scotland, who traveled with Sinclair. The marker is generally accepted to be the result of 19th Century residents, but continues to be an integral part of Westford folklore.

'''''Notable Inhabitants:'''''

* Andy Hicks, [http://www.wbcn.com WBCN] disk-jockey

* Lt. Col. John Robinson, [[Revolutionary War]] soldier

* [[Aaron Stanford]], X-2 actor

* Joseph Thaxter, Revolutionary War era preacher

==Culture==

Westford is home to a ski resort called [http://www.skinashoba.com Nashoba Valley] and the [http://www.kimballfarm.com Kimball Farm], a spectacular miniature golf complex known for it's generous portions of ice cream and summertime classic car lawn events.

[http://www.westford.com/firstparish The First Parish Church] hosts two major annual festivals in Westford, the Apple Blossom Festival in April, and the Strawberry Festival in June - traditional celebrations dating back to the town's agricultural roots. While not an official town event, the Pig & Pepper Festival was formerly held each summer at [http://www.kimballfarm.com Kimball Farm] is New England's largest BBQ event.

Every August, the [http://www.westfordnet.org Westford Networks for Education and Technology Partnership] hosts a family bike ride called the Tour de Westford.

The town has a largely suburban residential culture and like many New England towns, an active civic life. The [http://www.roudenbush.org Roudenbush Community Center] and the [http://www.westford.com/pca Westford Parish Center for the Arts] are two notable places for residents to take classes or see concerts and art exhibitions. Westford is also home to the [http://www.westfordlibrary.org J.V. Fletcher Library], [http://butterflyplace-ma.com The Butterfly Place], [http://www.westford.com/museum The Westford Museum and Historical Society] and the [http://www.haystack.mit.edu MIT Haystack Observatory].

== Geography ==

According to the [[United States Census Bureau]], the town has a total area of 81.1 [[square kilometer|km²]] (31.3 [[square mile|mi²]]). 79.3 km² (30.6 mi²) of it is land and 1.9 km² (0.7 mi²) of it is water. The total area is 2.30% water.

The town is bordered by [[Chelmsford, Massachusetts|Chelmsford]] to the East, [[Tyngsboro, Massachusetts|Tyngsboro]] to the north, [[Groton, Massachusetts|Groton]] to the West, [[Littleton, Massachusetts|Littleton]] to the Southwest, [[Acton, Massachusetts|Acton]] to the South, and [[Carlisle, Massachusetts|Carlisle]] to the Southeast.

== Demographics ==

As of the [[census]][[Geographic references#2|²]] of [[2000]], there are 20,754 people, 6,808 households, and 5,807 families residing in the town. The [[population density]] is 261.8/km² (678.0/mi²). There are 6,941 housing units at an average density of 87.6/km² (226.8/mi²). The racial makeup of the town is 93.69% [[White (U.S. Census)|White]], 0.30% [[African American (U.S. Census)|African American]], 0.06% [[Native American (U.S. Census)|Native American]], 4.79% [[Asian (U.S. Census)|Asian]], 0.01% [[Pacific Islander (U.S. Census)|Pacific Islander]], 0.30% from [[Race (U.S. Census)|other races]], and 0.85% from two or more races. 1.10% of the population are [[Hispanic (U.S. Census)|Hispanic]] or [[Latino (U.S. Census)|Latino]] of any race.

There are 6,808 households out of which 48.8% have children under the age of 18 living with them, 76.2% are [[Marriage|married couples]] living together, 6.6% have a female householder with no husband present, and 14.7% are non-families. 11.7% of all households are made up of individuals and 4.3% have someone living alone who is 65 years of age or older. The average household size is 3.03 and the average family size is 3.31.

In the town the population is spread out with 31.8% under the age of 18, 4.2% from 18 to 24, 32.8% from 25 to 44, 23.9% from 45 to 64, and 7.2% who are 65 years of age or older. The median age is 37 years. For every 100 females there are 99.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there are 95.4 males.

Westford was once a town of large fields and forests and used as a summer home community by city residents. Development boomed once [[Interstate 495 (Massachusetts)|I-495]] was built in the [[1960]]s and people found it to be conveniently located for commuting to [[Boston, Massachusetts|Boston]].

The median income for a household in the town is $98,272, and the median income for a family is $104,029. Males have a median income of $77,417 versus $5.09 for females. The [[per capita income]] for the town is $37,979. 1.7% of the population and 1.3% of families are below the [[poverty line]]. Out of the total population, 2.2% of those under the age of 18 and 1.0% of those 65 and older are living below the poverty line.

== External Links ==

*[http://www.westford-ma.gov/ Town of Westford]

*[http://www.clangunn.us/knight.htm Discussion of the Westford Knight, from the Clan Gunn Society]

*[http://www.westford.com/museum/ Westford Historical Society and Museum]

*[http://www.westfordconservationtrust.org Westford Conservation Trust]

*[http://www.kimballfarm.com Kimball Farm]

*[http://www.skinashoba.com Nashoba Valley Ski Resort]

*[http://www.wymanscamping.com Wyman's Beach]

[[Category:Towns in Massachusetts]][[Category:Middlesex County, Massachusetts]]

{{Massachusetts}}