Georgetown, Massachusetts
Georgetown, Massachusetts | |
---|---|
Spire of the First Congregational Church in central Georgetown | |
Location in Essex County in Massachusetts | |
Country | United States |
State | Massachusetts |
County | Essex |
Settled | 1639 |
Incorporated | 1838 |
Government | |
• Type | Open town meeting |
Area | |
• Total | 13.2 sq mi (34.1 km2) |
• Land | 12.9 sq mi (33.3 km2) |
• Water | 0.3 sq mi (0.8 km2) |
Elevation | 79 ft (24 m) |
Population (2010) | |
• Total | 8,183 |
• Density | 620/sq mi (240/km2) |
Time zone | UTC-5 (Eastern) |
• Summer (DST) | UTC-4 (Eastern) |
ZIP code | 01833 |
Area code | 351 / 978 |
FIPS code | 25-25625 |
GNIS feature ID | 0619445 |
Website | www |
Georgetown is a town in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 8,183 at the 2010 census.[1] It was incorporated in 1838 from part of Rowley.
History
Georgetown was originally settled in 1639 as a part of the town of Rowley by the Reverend Ezekiel Rogers. The town at the time stretched from the Atlantic coast to the Merrimack River, south of Newbury and north of Ipswich. Several farmers, finding suitable meadowlands in the western half of the settlement, began settling along the Penn Brook by the middle of the seventeenth century, creating Rowley's West Parish. Though not directly involved in King Philip's War, the village nonetheless did become a victim of Indian raids. The village, which became known as New Rowley, grew for many years, with small mills and eventually a shoe company opening up in the town. By 1838, the town was sufficiently large enough for its own incorporation, and was renamed Georgetown. Small industry continued, and today the town is mostly residential in nature, a distant suburb of Boston's North Shore.[2]
Geography
According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 13.2 square miles (34.1 km2), of which 12.9 square miles (33.3 km2) is land and 0.31 square miles (0.8 km2), or 2.20%, is water.[3] Georgetown is located on the edge of the hills and coastal plain of northeastern Massachusetts. It has many streams and brooks, as well as two major ponds, Rock Pond and Pentucket Pond. The town has several areas of protected land, including the Georgetown-Rowley State Forest to the south, the Crane Pond Wildlife Management Area to the north, the Lufkins Brook Area to the west, and a small portion of the Boxford State Forest in the southwest.
Georgetown is located approximately 10 miles (16 km) east of Lawrence and 28 miles (45 km) north of Boston, north of the center of Essex County. It is bordered by Groveland to the northwest, Newbury to the northeast, Rowley to the southeast, and Boxford to the southwest. Interstate 95 crosses through the eastern half of town, with one exit within the town, at Route 133. Route 133 crosses from east to west through town, with Route 97 crossing from northwest to south. Both state routes share a short stretch of road near the town center. The town has no mass transit; the nearest rail service can be found along the Newburyport/Rockport Line of the MBTA Commuter Rail in Rowley. The nearest air service is at Logan International Airport.
Demographics
Year | Pop. | ±% |
---|---|---|
1850 | 2,052 | — |
1860 | 2,075 | +1.1% |
1870 | 2,088 | +0.6% |
1880 | 2,231 | +6.8% |
1890 | 2,117 | −5.1% |
1900 | 1,663 | −21.4% |
1910 | 1,621 | −2.5% |
1920 | 1,478 | −8.8% |
1930 | 1,853 | +25.4% |
1940 | 1,803 | −2.7% |
1950 | 2,411 | +33.7% |
1960 | 3,755 | +55.7% |
1970 | 5,290 | +40.9% |
1980 | 5,687 | +7.5% |
1990 | 6,384 | +12.3% |
2000 | 7,377 | +15.6% |
2010 | 8,183 | +10.9% |
* = population estimate. Source: United States census records and Population Estimates Program data.[4][5][6][7][8][9][10][11][12][13] |
As of the census[14] of 2000, there were 7,377 people, 2,566 households, and 2,024 families residing in the town. The population density was 570.2 people per square mile (220.1/km²). There were 2,616 housing units at an average density of 202.2 per square mile (78.1/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 98.52% White, 0.15% African American, 0.14% Native American, 0.42% Asian, 0.31% from other races, and 0.46% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.64% of the population.
There were 2,566 households out of which 41.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 70.8% were married couples living together, 6.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 21.1% were non-families. 16.9% of all households were made up of individuals and 7.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.87 and the average family size was 3.27.
In the town the population was spread out with 28.6% under the age of 18, 5.0% from 18 to 24, 31.9% from 25 to 44, 25.1% from 45 to 64, and 9.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females there were 98.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 94.2 males.
According to the 2010 census the median income for a household in the town was $108,137, and in 2008 the median income for a family was $79,649. Males had a median income of $58,806 versus $36,108 for females. The per capita income for the town was $28,846. About 2.7% of families and 4.2% of the population were below the poverty line, including 3.8% of those under age 18 and 5.5% of those age 65 or over.
Government
Georgetown employs the open town meeting form of government, and is led by a board of selectmen and a town administrator. The current selectmen are C. David Surface, Stuart Egenberg (Chairman), Phil Trapani, Stephen Smith, and Gary Fowler. Georgetown has its own police department, two fire stations (Central Station in downtown and Erie Station in the Northern sector of town), a post office, library, electric department and highway department. The nearest hospitals to the town are in Haverhill, Newburyport and Beverly.
On the state level, Georgetown is under the jurisdiction of the Central District Court of Essex County, located in Haverhill. It is patrolled by the Newbury barracks of Troop A of the Massachusetts State Police. In state government, Georgetown is part of the Second and Eighteenth Essex Districts in the Massachusetts House of Representatives, and is part of the First Essex and Middlesex District in the Massachusetts Senate. On the national level, Georgetown is in Massachusetts's 6th congressional district, and has been represented since 1997 by John F. Tierney (D). In the United States Senate, Massachusetts's senior senator, elected in 2012, is Elizabeth Warren (D), and its junior senator, elected in 2013, is Edward Markey (D).
Education
Georgetown, unlike its neighboring municipalities, has its own municipal school district, and is not part of a regional school association or district. Georgetown has three schools:
- Perley Elementary School (formerly Perley High School) is a Blue Ribbon Schools Program award-winning elementary school for grades preK-1.
- Penn Brook Elementary School is an elementary school on Elm Street in Georgetown for grades 2–5.
- Georgetown Middle-High School is the only high school/middle school in the town and serves grades 6–12.
Georgetown High School's colors are royal blue and white, and its team name is the Royals, with a mounted knight as its mascot. They compete in the Small School division of the Cape Ann League, and have a Thanksgiving Day football rivalry with Manchester-Essex Regional High School. In addition to GHS, high school students may also attend Whittier Regional Vocational Technical High School in Haverhill, which serves as the eastern Merrimack Valley's vocational school. Private schools are also located throughout the area, the nearest being The Governor's Academy in Newbury.
Points of interest
- Brocklebank-Nelson-Beecher House
- Erie 4 Fire Company is the oldest privately owned and operated volunteer fire company in America.[15]
- Georgetown-Rowley State Forest
- Goodrich Massacre Site[16]
- The "Old Nancy" cannon, a relic of the Revolutionary War that is owned by the town, may be viewed at the Town Hall
- Union Cemetery. Cuffee Dole, an African-American man, was buried on the outskirts of the cemetery, but as it grew his plot became more centrally located.
- Georgetown Peabody Library is the town's only public library and named for the noted philanthropist George Peabody who provided the funds to build the library to honor his mother. Mr. Peabody provided the funds necessary for the building of the Peabody Institute Libraries in Danvers and Peabody, as well Georgetown (Washington, D.C.), Baltimore, Thetford, Vermont, Austin, Texas and others. He funded the establishment of the Peabody Museums at Harvard and Yale and in Salem. The Peabody Library recently finished an addition and renovation.
Notable people
- Paul Harding, best known for his debut novel Tinkers (2009) which won the 2010 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction[17]
- Terry O'Reilly, former hockey player and captain for the Boston Bruins
- Brian St. Pierre, former standout quarterback at St. John's Preparatory School and Boston College. He was drafted to the Pittsburgh Steelers in 2003 and now is a free agent.
- Jenny Thompson, U.S. Olympic swimming star, lived in town from 1974-early '80s
- John Updike, novelist, resided at 58 West Main Street from 1976 to 1982. His jogs through Georgetown provided backdrop for his 1981 novel Rabbit is Rich, which won him the National Book Critics Circle Award, the National Book Award and the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction [2].
- Charles Beecher, American minister, composer of religious hymns, and prolific author, preached in Georgetown and died in Georgetown as well.
Popular culture
- Georgetown served as the filming location for Diane English's movie The Women (2008). The movie starred numerous Hollywood leading ladies, including Eva Mendes, Meg Ryan, Carrie Fisher, Annette Bening, Jada Pinkett Smith, Candice Bergen, Bette Midler and Debra Messing. Primary filming location was at Camp Leslie, along the shore of Pentucket Pond.[18]
References
- ^ "Profile of General Population and Housing Characteristics: 2010 Demographic Profile Data (DP-1): Georgetown town, Essex County, Massachusetts". U.S. Census Bureau, American Factfinder. Retrieved August 31, 2012.
- ^ Town of Georgetown, MA - History of Georgetown
- ^ "Geographic Identifiers: 2010 Demographic Profile Data (G001): Georgetown town, Essex County, Massachusetts". U.S. Census Bureau, American Factfinder. Retrieved August 31, 2012.
- ^ "Total Population (P1), 2010 Census Summary File 1". American FactFinder, All County Subdivisions within Massachusetts. United States Census Bureau. 2010.
- ^ "Massachusetts by Place and County Subdivision - GCT-T1. Population Estimates". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved July 12, 2011.
- ^ "1990 Census of Population, General Population Characteristics: Massachusetts" (PDF). US Census Bureau. December 1990. Table 76: General Characteristics of Persons, Households, and Families: 1990. 1990 CP-1-23. Retrieved July 12, 2011.
- ^ "1980 Census of the Population, Number of Inhabitants: Massachusetts" (PDF). US Census Bureau. December 1981. Table 4. Populations of County Subdivisions: 1960 to 1980. PC80-1-A23. Retrieved July 12, 2011.
- ^ "1950 Census of Population" (PDF). Bureau of the Census. 1952. Section 6, Pages 21-10 and 21-11, Massachusetts Table 6. Population of Counties by Minor Civil Divisions: 1930 to 1950. Retrieved July 12, 2011.
- ^ "1920 Census of Population" (PDF). Bureau of the Census. Number of Inhabitants, by Counties and Minor Civil Divisions. Pages 21-5 through 21-7. Massachusetts Table 2. Population of Counties by Minor Civil Divisions: 1920, 1910, and 1920. Retrieved July 12, 2011.
- ^ "1890 Census of the Population" (PDF). Department of the Interior, Census Office. Pages 179 through 182. Massachusetts Table 5. Population of States and Territories by Minor Civil Divisions: 1880 and 1890. Retrieved July 12, 2011.
- ^ "1870 Census of the Population" (PDF). Department of the Interior, Census Office. 1872. Pages 217 through 220. Table IX. Population of Minor Civil Divisions, &c. Massachusetts. Retrieved July 12, 2011.
- ^ "1860 Census" (PDF). Department of the Interior, Census Office. 1864. Pages 220 through 226. State of Massachusetts Table No. 3. Populations of Cities, Towns, &c. Retrieved July 12, 2011.
- ^ "1850 Census" (PDF). Department of the Interior, Census Office. 1854. Pages 338 through 393. Populations of Cities, Towns, &c. Retrieved July 12, 2011.
- ^ "American FactFinder". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved 2008-01-31.
- ^ http://www.eriefour.com/eriefour/pubpages/history.cfm
- ^ [1]
- ^ http://www.newburyportnews.com/punews/local_story_105233442.html
- ^ Bette Midler, Meg Ryan and Annette Bening film 'The Women' in Georgetown - Georgetown, MA - Georgetown Record
Further reading
- Sammarco, Anthony Mitchell, Georgetown, Arcadia Publishing, Images of America series, 2002
External links
- Town of Georgetown official website
- Georgetown Public Library
- Georgetown Historical Society
- Erie 4 Fire Co.website
- Georgetown Record newspaper
- 1794 Map of Rowley by Joseph Chaplin
- 1830 Map of Rowley by Philander Anderson, which includes the New Rowley Parish which was incorporated in 1838 as Georgetown
- 1872 Atlas of Essex County. Map of Georgetown on Plate 59, Map of Georgetown Center on plate 61