Groton, Massachusetts


Groton is a town in northwestern Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States, within the Greater Boston metropolitan area. The population was 10,873 at the 2012 town census. It is home to two prep schools: Groton School, founded in 1884, and Lawrence Academy at Groton, founded in 1792 and the third-oldest private school in Massachusetts. Lawrence Academy was founded with a charter from John Hancock.
The town was a battlefield in King Philip's War and Queen Anne's War, with children taken captive in a raid by Abenaki and French; it had incidents of insurrection during Shays' Rebellion, and was the birthplace of William Prescott, who commanded the colonial forces at the Battle of Bunker Hill during the American Revolution.

History

The area surrounding modern-day Groton has, for thousands of years, been the territory of various cultures of indigenous peoples. They settled along the rivers, which they used for domestic tasks, fishing and transportation. Historic tribes were the Algonquian-speaking Nipmuc and Nashaway Indians.
of Groton from 1886 by L.R. Burleigh with list of landmarks
The Anglo-American Groton started with the trading post of John Tinker, who conducted business there with the Nashaway at the confluence of Nod Brook and the Nashua River. The Nashaway called the area Petapawag, meaning "swampy land." As Tinker had, other pioneers followed the Algonquian trails from Massachusetts Bay. They found the region productive for fishing and farming.
The town was officially settled and incorporated in 1655, named for Groton in Suffolk, England. Called The Plantation of Groton, it included all of present-day Groton and Ayer, almost all of Pepperell and Shirley, large parts of Dunstable, Littleton, and Tyngsborough, plus smaller parts of Harvard and Westford in Massachusetts, as well as Nashua and Hollis, New Hampshire.
During King Philip's War, on March 13, 1676, Native Americans burned all buildings except for four Groton garrisons. Among those killed was John Nutting, a Selectman at Groton. Survivors fled to Concord and other safe havens, but two years later returned to rebuild. Native Americans attacked the town again during the Raid on Groton in 1694.
In 1704 during Queen Anne's War, a French-Abenaki raid captured three children of Thomas Tarbell and his wife, among others, taking them overland about 300 miles to the Mohawk village of Kahnewake south of Montreal, where they would be held for ransom or adopted into the tribe by individual Mohawk families. The trade in captives was a thriving business between the opposing colonies of the English and French. The two Tarbell boys, John and Zachariah, were adopted by Mohawk families and became fully assimilated, later marrying into the tribe, having families, and becoming chiefs. They were among the founders in the 1740s of Akwesasne, after moving up the St. Lawrence River from Kahnewake. The brothers' older sister Sarah Tarbell was ransomed by a French family, and converted to Catholicism. She joined a Catholic teaching/nursing religious order in Montreal and served with them for the rest of her life. There are Tarbell-named descendants among Mohawk of Kahnewake and Akwesasne in the 21st century.
In 1775, the common in front of the First Parish Church was an assembly area for Minutemen who fought in the Battle of Lexington and Concord.

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, Groton has a total area of 33.7 square miles, of which 32.8 square miles is land and 0.9 square miles is water. Groton is the largest town in Middlesex County in terms of square mileage. The town is drained by the Nashua River, Squannacook River, and Merrimack River. The center of the town is dominated mainly by Gibbet Hill, with several other large hills throughout the town.
Groton is served by state routes 40, 111, 119 and 225. It borders the towns of Pepperell, Dunstable, Tyngsborough, Westford, Littleton, Ayer, Shirley, and Townsend.
Groton has a hot-summer humid continental climate bordering on Dfb and monthly averages range from 23.8° F in January to 71.8° F in July. The hardiness zone is 5b.

Demographics

See also: Groton, Massachusetts
As of the census of 2000, there were 9,547 people, 3,268 households, and 2,568 families residing in the town. The population density was 291.3 people per square mile. There were 3,393 housing units at an average density of 103.5 per square mile. The racial makeup of the town was 97.22% White, 0.35% Black or African American, 0.13% Native American, 0.97% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 0.27% from other races, and 1.04% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.14% of the population.
There were 3,268 households out of which 46.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 70.0% were married couples living together, 6.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 21.4% were non-families. Of all households 17.1% were made up of individuals and 5.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.90 and the average family size was 3.31.
The age distribution of the town's population was 32.6% under the age of 18, 4.2% from 18 to 24, 32.7% from 25 to 44, 23.5% from 45 to 64, and 7.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females, there were 98.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 94.5 males.
The median income for a household in the town was $118,041, and the median income for a family was $136,653. Males had a median income of $101,117 versus $60,402 for females. The per capita income for the town was $44,756. About 1.1% of families and 1.8% of the population were below the poverty line, including 1.0% of those under age 18 and none of those age 65 or over.

Sports

Groton annually hosts the National Shepley Hill Horse Trials, an equestrian competition. The Groton-Dunstable Crusaders high school football team also competes in the town.

Government

The town is governed by an open Town Meeting and administered by an elected Board of Selectmen and appointed Town Manager.
Voter Registration and Party Enrollment as of February 15, 2012Voter Registration and Party Enrollment as of February 15, 2012Voter Registration and Party Enrollment as of February 15, 2012Voter Registration and Party Enrollment as of February 15, 2012Voter Registration and Party Enrollment as of February 15, 2012Voter Registration and Party Enrollment as of February 15, 2012
PartyPartyNumber of VotersPercentage--

Education

Public schools

District schools

Over 30% of the land in Groton, Massachusetts is protected open space. The majority of this open space is accessible to the public. Groton also has over 100 miles of trails. Many of these trails can be walked and biked, others are availably for hunting and/or camping. The trails are made and maintained by the and the land itself is managed by the .

Notable people