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142-777: Western Massachusetts , known colloquially as "western Mass," is a region in Massachusetts , one of the six U.S. states that make up the New England region of the United States . Western Massachusetts has diverse topography; 22 colleges and universities including UMass in Amherst, MA , with approximately 100,000 students; and such institutions as Tanglewood , the Springfield Armory , and Jacob's Pillow . The western part of western Massachusetts includes

284-566: A Wôpanâak word muswachasut , segmented as mus(ây) "big" + wach "mountain" + -s "diminutive" + - ut "locative". This word has been translated as "near the great hill", "by the blue hills", "at the little big hill", or "at the range of hills", in reference to the Blue Hills —namely, the Great Blue Hill , located on the boundary of Milton and Canton . Massachusett has also been represented as Moswetuset . This comes from

426-580: A right to shelter law, and the first U.S. state, and one of the earliest jurisdictions in the world to legally recognize same-sex marriage . Harvard University in Cambridge is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States , with the largest financial endowment of any university in the world. Both Harvard and MIT , also in Cambridge, are perennially ranked as either

568-516: A circular way), Nonotuck (in the midst of the river), Pocumtuck (narrow, swift river), and Sokoki (separated from their neighbors). The modern-day Springfield metropolitan area was inhabited by the Agawam people . The Agawam, as well as other groups, belong to the larger cultural category of Alongkian Indians . In 1634, a plague, probably smallpox , reduced the Native American population of

710-722: A co-founder of the Special Olympics . In 1966, Massachusetts became the first state to directly elect an African American to the U.S. senate with Edward Brooke . George H. W. Bush , 41st President of the United States (1989–1993) was born in Milton in 1924. Other notable Massachusetts politicians on the national level included Joseph W. Martin Jr. , Speaker of the House (from 1947 to 1949 and then again from 1953 to 1955) and leader of House Republicans from 1939 until 1959 (where he

852-565: A frontrunner in the Democratic primaries for the 2020 presidential election. However, she later suspended her campaign and endorsed presumptive nominee Joe Biden . Two pressure cooker bombs exploded near the finish line of the Boston Marathon on April 15, 2013, at around 2:49 pm local time ( EDT ). The explosions killed three people and injured an estimated 264 others. The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) later identified

994-494: A large population of grey seals . Since 2009, there has been a significant increase in the number of Great white sharks spotted and tagged in the coastal waters off of Cape Cod . Freshwater fish species in Massachusetts include bass , carp , catfish , and trout , while saltwater species such as Atlantic cod , haddock , and American lobster populate offshore waters. Other marine species include Harbor seals ,

1136-404: A long process of repatriation began. Tensions between the colonists and surrounding Indian tribes, which had already been poor for some time, continued to deteriorate in the years preceding the outbreak of King Philip's War . Colonial encroachment on Indian lands combined with the decimation of the native population with European diseases led to increasing Native resentment and hostility towards

1278-412: A microcosm of the rest of the United States. The third largest city in Massachusetts, Springfield is situated in the region, and it has struggled financially coming close to bankruptcy at the beginning of the 21st century. The unemployment rate in the area lags behind that of eastern Massachusetts by double though officials have pushed for ways to lure more longer-term business growth into the region to tap

1420-754: A neutral role in the colonial rivalry between Hartford and Springfield; however, Windsor's direct border with both settlements caused many discussions about whether to align with Massachusetts or Connecticut. Ultimately, Windsor sided with Connecticut. The Hartford & Springfield Street Railway , a trolley , connected with the Connecticut Company in Windsor Center until 1925. Buses replaced trolleys between Rainbow (a northern section of Windsor) and Windsor Center in 1930. Trolley cars continued to run from Windsor to Hartford until 1940. The original Windsor settlers have many descendants around

1562-591: A party of around 30 people, sponsored by Sir Richard Saltonstall , and led by the Stiles brothers, Francis, John and Henry, settled in the Windsor area. Governor John Winthrop of the Massachusetts Bay Company acknowledged in a letter to Saltonstall that the Stiles party was the second group to settle Connecticut. The first group of 60 or more people were led by Roger Ludlow , primary framer of

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1704-542: A path to decarbonize the state's economy. On April 22, 2020, Kathleen A. Theoharides, the state's Secretary of Energy and Environmental Affairs, released a Determination of Statewide Emissions limits for 2050. In her letter, Theoharides stresses that as of 2020, the Commonwealth has experienced property damage attributable to climate change of more than $ 60 billion. To ensure that the Commonwealth experiences warming no more than 1.5 °C of pre-industrialization levels,

1846-430: A peaceful lesson about integrity and reliability. Windsor's cattle were starving, however, and the citizens of Hartford were furious. With Windsor's consent, Hartford commissioned the famous Indian fighter John Mason to travel to Springfield with "money in one hand and a sword in the other" to threaten the natives, and thereby force the grain trade . The natives capitulated and ultimately sold their grain. After "negotiating

1988-624: A prototype nuclear power plant for the Naval Nuclear Propulsion Program. The former site has the distinction of being the first nuclear reactor site to receive unrestricted release after demolition and decontamination efforts. Windsor is home to the following locations on the National Register of Historic Places : Tobacco farming in Connecticut has a long history. When the first settlers came to

2130-722: A push for adding high-speed rail from western Massachusetts for eastern Massachusetts. The residents of western Massachusetts have vibrant culture in and support the local mix of arts, tourism, and culture. The decline of manufacturing as the region's economic engine since World War II—and in particular, since the controversial closing of the Springfield Armory —was counterbalanced in western Massachusetts by growth in post-secondary education and healthcare. This created new jobs, land development, and had gentrifying effects in many college towns . State and community-funded schools (e.g., University of Massachusetts Amherst and Westfield State University ) were conspicuous in their growth, as were

2272-436: A significant change to the state's built environment and ecosystems. In Boston alone, costs of climate change-related storms will result in $ 5 to $ 100 billion in damage. Warmer temperatures will also disrupt bird migration and flora blooming. With these changes, deer populations are expected to increase, resulting in a decrease in underbrush which smaller fauna use as camouflage. Additionally, rising temperatures will increase

2414-474: A small party, arriving at the site on September 26, 1633, where they founded a trading post. The spot of the trading post is at the confluence of the Farmington and Connecticut Rivers. The Loomis Chaffee School currently owns the land as the spot is now the school's sports fields. Native Americans referred to the area as Matianuck . It was about 50 miles (80 km) up river from Long Island Sound , at

2556-728: A term interchangeable with the Hill Towns west of the Pioneer Valley. The mountain range in Berkshire County at the western end of Massachusetts is conventionally known as the "Berkshires". Geologically, however, the Berkshires are a westward continuation of uplands west of the Connecticut River and a southern extension of Vermont's Green Mountains . The Hilltown-Berkshire upland ends at the valley of

2698-474: A three-track-wide plate girder bridge was installed to carry tracks over Palisado Avenue. Windsor's highest point is on Day Hill at 230 feet (70 m) above sea level. Windsor's lowest point is on the Connecticut River , at 5 feet (1.5 m) above sea level. The Connecticut River defines Windsor's eastern border. The city of Hartford , the capital of Connecticut, is adjacent to Windsor to

2840-493: A variety of other methods. Native people began to construct and gather in palisaded “forts”―structures that were not necessary beforehand. These sites were excavated in the 19th and 20th centuries by anthropologists who took cultural objects and human remains and displayed them for years in area museums. With the passage of the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA) in 1990,

2982-588: A war against colonial expansion in New England which spread across the region. As the conflict grew in its initial months, colonists throughout western Massachusetts became deeply concerned with maintaining the loyalty of "their Indians." The Agawams cooperated, even providing valuable intelligence to the colonists. In August 1675, a group of colonists in Hadley demanded the disarming of a “fort” of Nonotuck Indians. Unwilling to relinquish their weapons, they left on

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3124-402: Is Boston . Other major cities are Worcester , Springfield and Cambridge . Massachusetts is also home to the urban core of Greater Boston , the largest metropolitan area in New England and a region profoundly influential upon American history , academia , and the research economy . Massachusetts has a reputation for social and political progressivism ; becoming the only U.S. state with

3266-658: Is a town in Hartford County, Connecticut , United States, and was the first English settlement in the state. It lies on the northern border of Connecticut's capital, Hartford . The town is part of the Capitol Planning Region . The population of Windsor was 29,492 at the 2020 census . Poquonock ( / p ə ˈ k w ɒ n ə k / ) is a northern area of Windsor that has its own zip code (06064) for post-office box purposes. Other unincorporated areas in Windsor include Rainbow and Hayden Station in

3408-561: Is an ancient downfaulted graben or rift valley that formed during the Mesozoic Era when rifting developed in the Pangaea supercontinent to separate North America from Europe and South America from Africa. Secondary rifts branched off the main crustal fracture, and this one was eventually occupied by the Connecticut River. The Metacomet Ridge is a series of narrow traprock ridges where lava penetrated this rift zone, beginning at

3550-474: Is its largest city. Despite its small size, Massachusetts features numerous topographically distinctive regions. The large coastal plain of the Atlantic Ocean in the eastern section of the state contains Greater Boston , along with most of the state's population, as well as the distinctive Cape Cod peninsula . To the west lies the hilly, rural region of Central Massachusetts , and beyond that,

3692-715: Is now known as Rhode Island , and Hutchinson joined him there several years later. Religious intolerance continued, and among those who objected to this later that century were the English Quaker preachers Alice and Thomas Curwen , who were publicly flogged and imprisoned in Boston in 1676. By 1641, Massachusetts had expanded inland significantly. The Commonwealth acquired the Connecticut River Valley settlement of Springfield , which had recently disputed with—and defected from—its original administrators,

3834-471: Is quite wet. Frosts are frequent all winter, even in coastal areas due to prevailing inland winds. Boston has a relatively sunny climate for a coastal city at its latitude, averaging over 2,600 hours of sunshine a year. Climate change in Massachusetts will affect both urban and rural environments, including forestry, fisheries, agriculture, and coastal development. The Northeast is projected to warm faster than global average temperatures; by 2035, according to

3976-668: Is sometimes regarded as defining western Massachusetts; for example, the Western Massachusetts Office of the Governor serves residents of these counties. Towns at the western edge of Worcester County , especially those near the Quabbin Reservoir , may be considered to be in western Massachusetts for some purposes; for example, two Worcester County towns have telephone numbers in western Massachusetts's area code 413 . Hampden County, with over half of

4118-723: Is the most populous state in New England, the 16th-most-populous in the country, and the third-most densely populated , after New Jersey and Rhode Island. Massachusetts was a site of early English colonization . The Plymouth Colony was founded in 1620 by the Pilgrims of the Mayflower . In 1630, the Massachusetts Bay Colony , taking its name from the Indigenous Massachusett people , also established settlements in Boston and Salem. In 1692,

4260-641: The American Human Development Index and the standard Human Development Index , first in per capita income , and as of 2023, first in median income . Consequently, Massachusetts typically ranks as the top U.S. state, as well as the most expensive state, for residents to live in. The Massachusetts Bay Colony was named after the Indigenous population, the Massachusett or Muhsachuweesut , whose name likely derived from

4402-691: The Berkshire Mountains , where there are several vacation resorts. The eastern part of the region includes the Connecticut River Valley , which has a number of university towns , the major city Springfield , and numerous agricultural hamlets. In the eastern part of the area, the Quabbin region is a place of outdoor recreation. Archeological efforts in the Connecticut River Valley have revealed traces of human life dating back at least 9,000 years. Pocumtuck tradition describes

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4544-544: The Boston metropolitan area . Innovations originating in the valley include the sports of basketball ( James Naismith , 1895) and volleyball ( William Morgan , 1895); the first American automobile ( Duryea , 1893); the first motorcycle company ( Indian , 1901); the first use of interchangeable parts in manufacturing ( Thomas Blanchard , 1825); and the first commercial radio station, ( WBZ , 1920, from Springfield's Kimball Hotel ). Significant Massachusetts towns and cities in

4686-863: The Cape Cod National Seashore and the Boston Harbor Islands National Recreation Area . In addition, the Department of Conservation and Recreation maintains a number of parks , trails, and beaches throughout Massachusetts. The primary biome of inland Massachusetts is temperate deciduous forest . Although much of Massachusetts had been cleared for agriculture, leaving only traces of old-growth forest in isolated pockets, secondary growth has regenerated in many rural areas as farms have been abandoned. Forests cover around 62% of Massachusetts. The areas most affected by human development include

4828-609: The Commonwealth of Massachusetts , is a state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States . It borders the Atlantic Ocean and Gulf of Maine to its east, Connecticut and Rhode Island to its south, New Hampshire and Vermont to its north, and New York to its west. Massachusetts is the sixth-smallest state by land area . With over seven million residents as of 2020, it

4970-749: The Connecticut border. Numerous other towns stretching east towards Worcester are sometimes included in the Quaboag Valley region. Geology is similar to the Hilltown-Berkshire uplands with resistant metamorphic rocks overlain by thin and rocky soil. With less relief, the river valleys are less pronounced, but still moderately high gradient. The Quaboag Hills and Valley, the Quabbin Regions, and populated places stretching east towards Worcester are all locally known as "Hill Towns";

5112-482: The Connecticut Colony opened in 1638 between Windsor and Hartford . Two years later, the highway was extended north to the colony's 1636 settlement at Springfield , with the road also connecting to Wethersfield and thus the four settlements that came to dominate the region for much of colonial history were connected. In the summer of 1640, an event took place that would forever change the boundaries of

5254-484: The Connecticut Colony . This established Massachusetts's southern border in the west. However, this became disputed territory until 1803–04 due to surveying problems, leading to the modern Southwick Jog . In 1652 the Massachusetts General Court authorized Boston silversmith John Hull to produce local coinage in shilling, sixpence and threepence denominations to address a coin shortage in

5396-580: The Connecticut River Valley . Along the western border of Western Massachusetts lies the highest elevated part of the state, the Berkshires , forming a portion of the northern terminus of the Appalachian Mountains . The U.S. National Park Service administers a number of natural and historical sites in Massachusetts . Along with twelve national historic sites, areas, and corridors, the National Park Service also manages

5538-594: The Fundamental Orders of Connecticut , having trekked overland from Dorchester, Massachusetts . They had arrived in the New World five years earlier on the ship Mary and John from Plymouth , England, and settled in Dorchester. Reverend Warham promptly renamed the Connecticut settlement "Dorchester". During the next few years, more settlers arrived from Dorchester, outnumbering and soon displacing

5680-726: The Holyoke Range and the Mount Tom Range , this relatively small area contains a number of college towns, urban environments, and rural hamlets. The portion of this valley in Massachusetts is also commonly referred to as the Pioneer Valley . At its southern tip, the Springfield-Hartford region is home to 29 colleges and universities and over 160,000 university students—the United States' second highest concentration of higher learning institutions after

5822-742: The Housatonic River which flows south to Long Island Sound, and in the extreme north west of Massachusetts at the Hoosic River , a tributary of the Hudson . From these valleys, uplands to the east appear as a rounded mountain range, rising some 1,600 feet (490 meters) although they are actually a plateau . West of the Housatonic-Hoosic valley system rises the narrower Taconic Range along the New York border. Upper tributaries of

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5964-637: The Industrial Revolution . There was hardly a land rush into such marginal land, but the uplands were slowly settled by farmers throughout most of the 18th century and organized into townships . Then in the early 1800s better land opened up in Western New York and the Northwest Territory . The hilltown agricultural population went into a long decline and fields began reverting to forest. The Connecticut River Valley

6106-473: The Massachusetts Bay Colony —now known as Boston—in 1630. The Puritans believed the Church of England needed to be further reformed along Protestant Calvinist lines, and experienced harassment due to the religious policies of King Charles I and high-ranking churchmen such as William Laud , who would become Charles's Archbishop of Canterbury , whom they feared were re-introducing "Romish" elements to

6248-418: The Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act in 1990 ordered museums across western Massachusetts and the country to repatriate these remains to Native peoples, an ongoing process. The region was inhabited by several Algonkian-speaking Native American communities, culturally connected but distinguished by the place names they assigned to their respective communities: Agawam (low land), Woronco (in

6390-670: The New Hampshire border. The South Quabbin region (formerly the Swift River Valley) includes the towns of Barre , Belchertown , Pelham , Ware , Hardwick , Leverett , and Shutesbury . This area once included the four "Lost Towns" of Enfield, Dana, Greenwich, and Prescott, which were destroyed to make way for the Quabbin Reservoir . Farther south, the area called the Quaboag Hills includes Hampden , Monson , Wales , Warren , Holland , and Wilbraham on

6532-518: The census of 2010, there were 29,044 people, 11,233 households, and 7,881 families residing in the town. The population density was 984.5 persons per square mile (380.2/km ). There were 11,767 housing units at an average density of 398.9 per square mile (154.0/km ). The racial makeup of the town was 54.7% White , 34.3% African American , 0.2% Native American , 4.5% Asian , 0.01% Pacific Islander , 3.1% some other race , and 3.2% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 8.4% of

6674-492: The common loon are becoming rare. A significant population of long-tailed ducks winter off Nantucket . Small offshore islands and beaches are home to roseate terns and are important breeding areas for the locally threatened piping plover . Protected areas such as the Monomoy National Wildlife Refuge provide critical breeding habitat for shorebirds and a variety of marine wildlife including

6816-496: The monarchy the former colonies were fighting against during the American Revolutionary War . The name "State of Massachusetts Bay" appeared in the first draft, which was ultimately rejected. It was also chosen to include the "Cape Islands" in reference to Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket —from 1780 to 1844, they were seen as additional and separate entities confined within the Commonwealth. Massachusetts

6958-403: The steam engine to power factories. Canals and railroads were being used in the state for transporting raw materials and finished goods. At first, the new industries drew labor from Yankees on nearby subsistence farms, though they later relied upon immigrant labor from Europe and Canada. Although Massachusetts was the first slave-holding colony with slavery dating back to the early 1600s,

7100-554: The "Atlas of Independence", was highly involved in both separation from Britain and the Constitution of Massachusetts , which effectively (the Elizabeth Freeman and Quock Walker cases as interpreted by William Cushing ) made Massachusetts the first state to abolish slavery. David McCullough points out that an equally important feature was its placing for the first time the courts as a co-equal branch separate from

7242-484: The 19th century, Massachusetts became a national leader in the American Industrial Revolution , with factories around cities such as Lowell and Boston producing textiles and shoes, and factories around Springfield producing tools, paper, and textiles. The state's economy transformed from one based primarily on agriculture to an industrial one, initially making use of water-power and later

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7384-462: The 48 states. After the world war, the economy of eastern Massachusetts transformed from one based on heavy industry into a service-based economy . Government contracts, private investment, and research facilities led to a new and improved industrial climate, with reduced unemployment and increased per capita income. Suburbanization flourished, and by the 1970s, the Route 128 / Interstate 95 corridor

7526-743: The American Revolution, a rebellion led by Daniel Shays culminated in a battle at the National Armory in Springfield. The Berkshires have long been patronized by artists (e.g. Herman Melville , who wrote Moby-Dick while living in Pittsfield ; Edith Wharton , who wrote The House of Mirth and Ethan Frome while living in Lenox ; and Norman Rockwell , many of whose painting were based on scenes that he observed in

7668-419: The British government, were a primary reason for the unity of the Thirteen Colonies and the outbreak of the American Revolution in 1775. The Battles of Lexington and Concord , fought in Massachusetts in 1775, initiated the American Revolutionary War . George Washington , later the first president of the future country, took over what would become the Continental Army after the battle. His first victory

7810-555: The British monarchy, including open rebellion under the Dominion of New England in the 1680s. Protests against British attempts to tax the colonies after the French and Indian War ended in 1763 led to the Boston Massacre in 1770, and the 1773 Boston Tea Party escalated tensions. In 1774, the Intolerable Acts targeted Massachusetts with punishments for the Boston Tea Party and further decreased local autonomy, increasing local dissent. Anti-Parliamentary activity by men such as Samuel Adams and John Hancock , followed by reprisals by

7952-456: The Chapter 70 structure which the state presently uses to allocate education funding to cities and towns. Western Massachusetts used to be the Republican stronghold in an otherwise heavily Democratic state, but it is now consistently viewed by political analysts as one of the most politically liberal regions in the United States. In 2006 and 2010, the region voted heavily in favor of Democratic gubernatorial candidate Deval Patrick . In Crash!ng

8094-457: The Civil War. Massachusetts was the first state to recruit, train, and arm a Black regiment with White officers, the 54th Massachusetts Infantry Regiment . In 1852, Massachusetts became the first state to pass compulsory education laws. Although the U.S. stock market had sustained steep losses the last week in October 1929, Tuesday, October 29 is remembered as the beginning of the Great Depression. The Boston Stock Exchange , drawn into

8236-464: The Colony of Georgia in 1735.) Later, Adams was active in early American foreign affairs and succeeded Washington as the second president of the United States . His son, John Quincy Adams , also from Massachusetts, would go on to become the nation's sixth president. From 1786 to 1787, an armed uprising led by Revolutionary War veteran Daniel Shays , now known as Shays' Rebellion , wrought havoc throughout Massachusetts and ultimately attempted to seize

8378-508: The Connecticut River Valley produced streams and rivers with gradients around 40 feet/mile (8 meters/km) flowing through steep-sided valleys, notably the Westfield and Deerfield rivers and their larger tributaries. Mills were built to exploit the kinetic energy of falling water, and mill towns grew up around them, or company towns integrating production, residential and commercial activities. The development of steam engines to free industrialization from reliance on water power brought about

8520-490: The Connecticut River Valley to a tiny percentage of its previous size. Governor Bradford of Massachusetts writes that in Windsor , notably the site of a trading post, where European diseases often spread to Native populations, "of 1,000 of [the Native Americans] 150 of them died." With so many dead, English colonists were emboldened to attempt significant settlement of the region. The first European explorers to reach western Massachusetts were English Puritans , who in 1635, at

8662-399: The Connecticut River Valley. During a grain famine, the founder of Springfield, William Pynchon , was given authority by Windsor and Hartford to negotiate a price for grain for the three settlements with the natives. First, the natives refused to sell grain at the usual market price, and then refused to sell it at "a reasonable price". Pynchon refused to buy it, attempting to teach the natives

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8804-431: The Connecticut River in Windsor. The Farmington River is dammed in the northwestern corner of Windsor to form the 234-acre (0.95 km ) Rainbow Reservoir. The Joseph Kesselring stage play and Frank Capra movie Arsenic and Old Lace was inspired by actual events that took place in a three-story brick house on Prospect Street, just off the north end of the Windsor green. Sixty men died between 1907 and 1917 while in

8946-650: The Greater Boston area in the east and the Springfield metropolitan area in the west, although the latter includes agricultural areas throughout the Connecticut River Valley. There are 219 endangered species in Massachusetts. A number of species are doing well in the increasingly urbanized Massachusetts. Peregrine falcons utilize office towers in larger cities as nesting areas, and the population of coyotes , whose diet may include garbage and roadkill, has been increasing in recent decades. White-tailed deer , raccoons , wild turkeys , and eastern gray squirrels are also found throughout Massachusetts. In more rural areas in

9088-452: The Hoosic separate Massachusetts' highest peak, Mount Greylock 3,491 ft (1,064 meters) from both ranges, however Greylock's geology connects it with the Taconics. Most of this region is a rolling upland of schist , gneiss and other resistant metamorphics with intrusions of pegmatite and granite . Scraping by continental glaciers during the Pleistocene left thin, rocky soil that supported hardscrabble subsistence farming before

9230-411: The Massachusetts Marijuana Legalization Initiative , also known as Question 4. Massachusetts is the seventh-smallest state in the United States . It is located in the New England region of the Northeastern United States . It has an area of 10,555 square miles (27,340 km ), 25.7% of which is water. Several large bays distinctly shape its coast, giving it the nickname "the Bay State". Boston

9372-991: The Massachusetts legislative and executive branches know little of and care little about western Massachusetts, which comprises 20% of the total population of the state. Among the incidents that have created this feeling: Long a haven for small, independent businesses, western Massachusetts has expressed conflicted feelings towards big box corporations, leading to controversies about zoning changes and variances that would allow companies such as Wal-Mart to build in western Massachusetts towns. The debate has been particularly strong in northern towns; for example, in Greenfield, Massachusetts . The following regional transit authorities operate in western Massachusetts: Massachusetts Masshole Massachusite (traditional) Massachusetts ( / ˌ m æ s ə ˈ tʃ uː s ɪ t s / , /- z ɪ t s / MASS -ə- CHOO -sits, -⁠zits ; Massachusett : Muhsachuweesut [məhswatʃəwiːsət] ), officially

9514-445: The Northeast United States has risen by ten percent from 1895 to 2011, and the number of heavy precipitation events has increased by seventy percent during that time. These increased precipitation patterns are focused in the winter and spring. Increasing temperatures coupled with increasing precipitation will result in earlier snow melts and subsequent drier soil in the summer months. The shifting climate in Massachusetts will result in

9656-402: The Party , Ralph Nader includes western Massachusetts as one of the few places in the country where he believes small-town spirit is still strong. In a 2010 editorial, the Boston Globe berated communities in northern western-Massachusetts for resisting efforts to force consolidation of local school districts. In response, the Franklin County School Committee Caucus released a map that overlaid

9798-434: The U. S. Global Change Research Program, the Northeast is "projected to be more than 3.6°F (2°C) warmer on average than during the preindustrial era". As of August 2016, the EPA reports that Massachusetts has warmed by over two degrees Fahrenheit, or 1.1 degrees Celsius. Shifting temperatures also result in the shifting of rainfall patterns and the intensification of precipitation events. To that end, average precipitation in

9940-411: The United States. The town center is well-planned in comparison to many others in the Greater Hartford area. It has a relative diversity of chains and local shops, as well as a restored Amtrak train station dating to the 1850s. The Vintage Radio and Communications Museum of Connecticut is located in Windsor. From 1957 to 2006, the town was the location of the S1C Nuclear Powered Training Unit;

10082-478: The abundance of students being turned out by colleges and universities in the area. To combat the higher cost of telecommunications which were roughly double that of eastern Massachusetts, the government of the Commonwealth invested $ 45.4 Million in building out a broadband network using Federal grant under the 'Massachusetts Technology Park - MassBroadband 123' initiative, funds which were matched by $ 45 million in federal investment. The 1,200 mile 'middle mile' project

10224-406: The broad transition zone to Humid Subtropical climates. The warm to hot summers render the oceanic climate rare in this transition, only applying to exposed coastal areas such as on the peninsula of Barnstable County . The climate of Boston is quite representative for the commonwealth, characterized by summer highs of around 81 °F (27 °C) and winter highs of 35 °F (2 °C), and

10366-601: The care of Amy Archer-Gilligan . Most were proven to be victims of arsenic poisoning. On historic Palisado Avenue, one can find the First Church in Windsor, Congregational , and adjacent graveyard. Across the street on the Palisado Green stands a statue of John Mason , a founder of Windsor and a colonial leader in the Pequot War . Further north is the home of Oliver Ellsworth , third Chief Justice of

10508-420: The coastal Massachusetts Bay Colony , shaping the region's political boundaries. The Massachusetts Bay Colony settled at the Connecticut River Valley's most fertile land―stretching from Windsor, Connecticut , (once part of Springfield,) to Northampton, Massachusetts ―from 1636 to 1654. For the next several decades, Native people experienced a complex relationship with European settlers. The fur trade stood at

10650-544: The colonists in exchange for the future promise of beavers. However, trade with the colonists made pelts so lucrative that the beaver was rapidly overhunted. The volume of the trade fell, from a 1654 high of 3723 pelts to a mere 191 ten years later. With every mortgage, Native people lost more land, although their population recovered and expanded from the old plague. In a process that historian Lisa Brooks calls "the deed game", colonists acquired an increasing amount of land from Indian tribes through debt, fraudulent purchases and

10792-633: The colonists. Though some Indians became integrated into colonial society, with many being employed in white households, numerous pieces of legislation were passed which prevented Indians from marrying settlers and staying in colonial settlements after dark, while colonists were prevented from living among the Indians. In 1662, the leader of the eastern Massachusetts Wampanoag Indian tribe, Wamsutta , died shortly after being questioned at gunpoint by Plymouth colonists. Wamsutta's brother, Chief Metacomet (known to inhabitants of Springfield as "Philip,") began

10934-546: The colony did not move to renew his contract or appoint a new mintmaster. The coinage was a contributing factor to the revocation of the Massachusetts Bay Colony charter in 1684. In 1691, the colonies of Massachusetts Bay and Plymouth were united (along with present-day Maine , which had previously been divided between Massachusetts and New York ) into the Province of Massachusetts Bay . Shortly after,

11076-564: The colony. Before that point, the colony's economy had been entirely dependent on barter and foreign currency, including English, Spanish, Dutch, Portuguese and counterfeit coins. In 1661, shortly after the restoration of the British monarchy , the British government considered the Boston mint to be treasonous. However, the colony ignored the English demands to cease operations until at least 1682, when Hull's contract as mintmaster expired, and

11218-646: The country and beyond. Many are members of the Descendants of the Founders of Ancient Windsor (DFAW). When the Springfield Line of the NY, New Haven & Hartford RR was built, station stops included Windsor station in Windsor Center with stations also at Wilson in the south of town and Hayden in the north, named for owners who provided land for the railroad right of way. The line was double tracked until

11360-493: The county north-to-south over Metro Boston. The overlay reached from Rhode Island in the south to New Hampshire in the north and Framingham in the west. In 2008 the Office of the Governor of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts opened a local office in western Massachusetts. The western portion of Massachusetts consists approximately of the four counties of Franklin , Hampshire , Hampden and Berkshire . This set of four counties

11502-517: The creation of Lake Hitchcock in Deerfield by a giant beaver, possibly representing the action of a glacier that retracted at least 12,000 years ago. Western Massachusetts was originally settled by Native American societies, including the Pocomtuc , Nonotuck Mohawk , Nipmuck , and Mahican . Various sites indicate millennia of fishing, horticulture, beaver-hunting, and burials. The passage of

11644-631: The departure of several manufacturing companies, the state's industrial economy began to decline during the early 20th century. By the 1920s, competition from the American South and Midwest , followed by the Great Depression , led to the collapse of the three main industries in Massachusetts: textiles, shoemaking, and precision mechanics. This decline would continue into the latter half of the 20th century. Between 1950 and 1979,

11786-831: The development of tourism throughout that valley. This far-western zone is linked to New York City and Albany, New York , more than with the rest of Massachusetts, however both populated zones are ultimately part of the Northeast megalopolis . The rest of western Massachusetts is lightly populated, particularly the Hilltowns where densities below 50 persons per square mile (20 per km) are the rule. In descending order of size, its largest communities are: Springfield, Chicopee, Pittsfield, Westfield, Holyoke, Northampton, Agawam, West Springfield, Amherst Center (CDP), Easthampton, Longmeadow (CDP), East Longmeadow, North Adams , and Greenfield (CDP). Western Massachusetts has been compared as

11928-538: The early 1600s, European colonists caused virgin soil epidemics such as smallpox , measles , influenza , and perhaps leptospirosis in what is now known as the northeastern region of the United States. Between 1617 and 1619, a disease that was most likely smallpox killed approximately 90% of the Massachusetts Bay Native Americans . The first English colonists in Massachusetts Bay Colony landed with Richard Vines and spent

12070-576: The end of waters navigable by ship and above the Dutch fort at Hartford , offering an advantageous location for the English to trade with the Indians before they reached the Dutch. (The Sicaog tribe had made a similar offer to mediate to the Dutch in New Amsterdam . New Netherland had far fewer European settlers than New England, and they were not in a position to take up the opportunity.) In 1635,

12212-465: The endangered North Atlantic right whales , as well as humpback whales , fin whales , minke whales , and Atlantic white-sided dolphins . The European corn borer , a significant agricultural pest, was first found in North America near Boston, Massachusetts in 1917. Most of Massachusetts has a humid continental climate , with cold winters and warm summers. Far southeast coastal areas are

12354-515: The era of Lake Hitchcock accounts for this region's exceptionally rich agricultural soil, which attracted settlers as early as 1635. Although the Connecticut River Valley's soil is the richest in New England, many of its fields have been covered by urban and suburban development. Regardless, the valley remains New England 's most productive farmland. Tobacco, tomatoes, sweet corn, and other vegetables are still produced there in commercial quantities. Berkshire, Franklin, Hampshire and Hampden counties, in

12496-604: The escarpment zone. On top, elevations rise gradually to the west. Williamsburg in Hampshire County and Becket in Berkshire County are prominent hilltowns. Generally, the hilltowns west of the Connecticut River Valley were less attractive for agricultural uses, which resulted in later migration there than, for example, the fertile Connecticut River Valley. Subsistence farming predominated in this area. The 1,000-foot elevation difference between uplands and

12638-508: The exclusion of same-sex couples from the right to a civil marriage was unconstitutional. In 2004, Massachusetts senator John Kerry , who won the Democratic nomination for President of the United States, lost to incumbent George W. Bush . Eight years later, former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney (the Republican nominee) lost to incumbent Barack Obama in 2012. Another eight years later, Massachusetts senator Elizabeth Warren became

12780-497: The executive. (The Constitution of Vermont , adopted in 1777, represented the first partial ban on slavery among the states. Vermont became a state in 1791 but did not fully ban slavery until 1858 with the Vermont Personal Liberty Law. The Pennsylvania Gradual Abolition Act of 1780 made Pennsylvania the first state to abolish slavery by statute - the second English colony to do so; the first having been

12922-691: The federal Springfield Armory . The rebellion was one of the major factors in the decision to draft a stronger national constitution to replace the Articles of Confederation . On February 6, 1788, Massachusetts became the sixth state to ratify the United States Constitution . In 1820, Maine separated from Massachusetts and entered the Union as the 23rd state due to the ratification of the Missouri Compromise . During

13064-498: The heart of their economic interactions, a lucrative business that guided many other policy decisions. White settlers traded wampum, cloth and metal in exchange for furs, as well as horticultural produce. Because of the seasonal nature of goods provided by Native people compared with the constant availability of colonial goods, a credit system developed. Land, the natural resource whose availability did not fluctuate, served as collateral for mortgages in which Native people bought goods from

13206-416: The late 1990s (including Franklin, Hampshire, Hampden, Berkshire and Worcester), most county functions were assigned to the state government. The municipalities of Franklin and Hampshire counties then organized two voluntary county-oriented "regional councils of government". Some residents of western Massachusetts are critical towards Boston , the state's capital and largest city. This group believes that

13348-545: The late 1990s and redouble tracked in 2018. Sidings at Windsor station allowed cars to be spotted at the freight house and on the Loomis trestle just to its south. The trestle was removed in the late 1980s. An 1856 brownstone arch bridge carries the tracks over Pleasant St and the Farmington River. Incorporating a horizontal curve, its engineering was noteworthy when built. Following a fatal grade crossing accident,

13490-533: The more powerful Pequot, who claimed their land. Eventually, the Podunk invited a small party of settlers from Plymouth, Massachusetts , to settle as a mediating force between the other tribes. In exchange they granted them a plot of land at the confluence of the Farmington River and the west side of the Connecticut River . After Edward Winslow came from Plymouth to inspect the land, William Holmes led

13632-415: The most or among the most highly regarded academic institutions in the world. Massachusetts's public-school students place among the top tier in the world in academic performance. Massachusetts is the most educated and one of the most highly developed and wealthiest U.S. states, ranking first in the percentage of population 25 and over with either a bachelor's degree or advanced degree , first on both

13774-645: The name of the Moswetuset Hummock (meaning "hill shaped like an arrowhead") in Quincy , where Plymouth Colony commander Myles Standish (a hired English military officer) and Squanto (a member of the Patuxet band of the Wamponoag people , who have since died off due to contagious diseases brought by colonists) met Chief Chickatawbut in 1621. Although the designation "Commonwealth" forms part of

13916-624: The national church. They decided to colonize to Massachusetts, intending to establish what they considered an "ideal" religious society. The Massachusetts Bay Colony was colonized under a royal charter, unlike the Plymouth colony, in 1629. Both religious dissent and expansionism resulted in several new colonies being founded, shortly after Plymouth and Massachusetts Bay, elsewhere in New England. The Massachusetts Bay banished dissenters such as Anne Hutchinson and Roger Williams due to religious and political conflict. In 1636, Williams colonized what

14058-469: The new province's first governor, William Phips , arrived. The Salem witch trials also took place, where a number of men and women were hanged for alleged witchcraft . The most destructive earthquake known to date in New England occurred on November 18, 1755, causing considerable damage across Massachusetts. Massachusetts was a center of the movement for independence from Great Britain . Colonists in Massachusetts had long had uneasy relations with

14200-540: The night of August 25. A hundred colonists pursued them, catching up to them at the foot of Sugarloaf Hill, which was a sacred space for the Nonotucks called the Great Beaver. The colonists attacked, but the Nonotucks forced them to withdraw and were able to keep moving. The shedding of Native blood on sacred land was an attack on their entire kinship network, and caused Native peoples in western Massachusetts to join

14342-517: The north, and Wilson and Deerfield in the south. The Day Hill Road area is known as Windsor's Corporate Area, although other centers of business include New England Tradeport, Kennedy Industry Park and Kennedy Business Park, all near Bradley International Airport and the Addison Road Industrial Park . The coastal areas and riverways were traditional areas of settlement by various American Indian cultures, who had been in

14484-740: The northern end of the graben near Greenfield and extending south across Massachusetts and Connecticut to Long Island Sound . Fossil dinosaur footprints in Holyoke attest to the life present in this region during the Mesozoic. As continental glaciers receded near the end of the last glacial period , a moraine at Rocky Hill, Connecticut , dammed the river to create Lake Hitchcock , extending northward some 200 miles (320 km) inundating places such as Springfield, Agawam, and West Springfield, while certain highlands remained above water, (i.e. sections of Holyoke). Accumulation of fine sediments during

14626-456: The number of Massachusetts residents involved in textile manufacturing declined from 264,000 to 63,000. The 1969 closure of the Springfield Armory , in particular, spurred an exodus of high-paying jobs from Western Massachusetts, which suffered greatly as it de-industrialized during the century's last 40 years. Massachusetts manufactured 3.4 percent of total United States military armaments produced during World War II , ranking tenth among

14768-568: The number of reported Lyme disease cases in the state. Ticks can transmit the disease once temperatures reach 45 degrees, so shorter winters will increase the window of transmission. These warmer temperatures will also increase the prevalence of Asian tiger mosquitoes , which often carry the West Nile virus . To fight this change, the Massachusetts Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs has outlined

14910-518: The ongoing conflict. Following the war, the greater part of the Native American population left western Massachusetts behind. Many refugees of the war joined the Wabanaki in the north, where their descendants remain today. Native American influence remains evident in the land and culture of western Massachusetts, from the practice of tobacco farming to the names of cities and rivers In 1777, George Washington and Henry Knox selected Springfield for

15052-937: The original Plymouth contingent, who returned to Plymouth in 1638 after selling their parcel to a Matthew Allyn of Hartford. On February 21, 1637, the colony's General Court changed the name of the settlement from Dorchester to Windsor, named after the town of Windsor, Berkshire , on the River Thames in England. The same day, Windsor was incorporated as a town along with Hartford and Wethersfield. Several "daughter towns" were formed from Windsor's original boundaries. These include portions or all of Barkhamsted , Bloomfield , Bolton , Colebrook , Coventry , East Granby , East Windsor , Ellington , Enfield , Granby , Harwinton , Litchfield , Manchester , Morris , Simsbury , South Windsor , Suffield , Tolland , Torrington , Vernon , and Windsor Locks . The first "highway" in

15194-427: The period 2009–2011, median income for a household in the town was $ 78,211, and median income for a family was $ 89,726. Male full-time year-round workers had a median income of $ 58,668 versus $ 50,529 for females. The per capita income for the town was $ 34,899. About 3.1% of families and 4.5% of the population were below the poverty line , including 6.0% of those under age 18 and 4.8% of those age 65 or over. Windsor

15336-539: The population of western Massachusetts, includes the City of Springfield ; to the north, Hampshire County contains the college towns of Northampton , Amherst and South Hadley ; further north, rural Franklin County borders Vermont and New Hampshire; to the west is Berkshire County, bordering New York, Vermont and Connecticut and the other three counties. After a number of county governments were eliminated in Massachusetts in

15478-409: The population. There were 11,233 households, out of which 28.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 50.9% were headed by married couples living together, 14.9% had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.8% were non-families. 24.1% of all households were made up of individuals, and 8.8% were someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size

15620-466: The re-routing of several other major highways. The project was often controversial, with numerous claims of graft and mismanagement, and with its initial price tag of $ 2.5   billion increasing to a final tally of over $ 15   billion. Nonetheless, the Big Dig changed the face of Downtown Boston and connected areas that were once divided by elevated highway. Much of the raised old Central Artery

15762-500: The region for thousands of years. They relied on the rivers for fishing, water and transportation. Before European contact, the historic Pequot and Mohegan tribes had been one Algonquian -speaking people. After they separated, they became competitors and traditional enemies in the Connecticut region. During the first part of the 17th century, the Pequot and Mohegan nations had been at war. The Podunk were forced to pay tribute to

15904-446: The region's highly regarded liberal arts colleges , including Williams founded 1793, Amherst founded 1821, Mount Holyoke founded 1837, Smith founded 1871, and American International founded 1885. Despite the gains in higher ed, the region has sought to obtain equitable share of the state's education budget to place into local primary education as well. Several communities in western Massachusetts have fought to have changes made

16046-410: The request of William Pynchon, settled the land that they considered most advantageous for both agriculture and trading in modern-day Agawam , adjacent to modern Metro Center , Springfield . In 1636, a group of English colonists—lured by the promise of a "great river" and the northeast's most fertile farmland—ventured to Springfield, where they established a permanent colony. Originally, this settlement

16188-484: The site of the fledgling United States' National Armory . Built atop a high bluff overlooking the Connecticut River, Washington and Knox agreed that Springfield provided an ideal location—beside a great river and at the confluence of major rivers and highways. For the following 200 years, the Springfield Armory would bring concentrated prosperity and innovation to Springfield and its surrounding towns. After

16330-666: The so-called Second Industrial Revolution when railroads were built along the rivers to take advantage of relatively gentle grades over the Appalachians. And so as hilltop farming towns declined in importance, industrial towns in the river valleys rose to local prominence. In northern Massachusetts, the higher altitude area to the east of the Connecticut River Valley is known as the North Quabbin region. These northern municipalities include Warwick , Orange , Petersham , Phillipston , Wendell , New Salem , and Athol near

16472-480: The south. The town of Windsor Locks , home of Bradley International Airport , is adjacent to Windsor to the north. Prior to its incorporation in 1854, it was known as the Pine Meadow section of Windsor. The towns of East Windsor and South Windsor are on the east side of the Connecticut River. The town of Bloomfield is to the west. The town of East Granby is to the northwest. The Farmington River joins

16614-468: The state as a whole. Western Massachusetts' population is concentrated in the cities and suburbs along the Connecticut River in an urban axis surrounding Springfield that is contiguous with greater Hartford, Connecticut (i.e. the Knowledge Corridor .) A secondary population concentration exists in the Housatonic-Hoosic valley due to the industrial heritage of Pittsfield and North Adams, and

16756-488: The state became a center of progressivist and abolitionist (anti-slavery) activity in the years leading up to the American Civil War . Horace Mann made the state's school system a national model. Henry David Thoreau and Ralph Waldo Emerson , both philosophers and writers from the state, also made major contributions to American philosophy. Furthermore, members of the transcendentalist movement within

16898-616: The state emphasized the importance of the natural world and emotion to humanity. Although significant opposition to abolitionism existed early on in Massachusetts, resulting in anti-abolitionist riots between 1835 and 1837, abolitionist views there gradually increased throughout the next few decades. Abolitionists John Brown and Sojourner Truth lived in Springfield and Northampton, respectively, while Frederick Douglass lived in Boston and Susan B. Anthony in Adams . The works of such abolitionists contributed to Massachusetts's actions during

17040-822: The state will work towards two goals by 2050: to achieve net-zero emissions , and to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 85 percent overall. The State of Massachusetts has developed a plethora of incentives to encourage the implementation of renewable energy and efficient appliances and home facilities. The Mass Save program, formed in conjunction with the State by several companies that provide power and gas in Massachusetts, provides homeowners and renters with monetary incentives to retrofit their homes with efficient HVAC equipment and other household appliances. Appliances such as water heaters, air conditioners, washers and driers, and heat pumps are eligible for rebates in order to incentivize change. Windsor, Connecticut Windsor

17182-416: The state's official name, it has no practical implications in modern times, and Massachusetts has the same position and powers within the United States as other states. John Adams may have chosen the word in 1779 for the second draft of what became the 1780 Massachusetts Constitution ; unlike the word "state", the word " commonwealth " had the connotation of a republic at the time. This was in contrast to

17324-509: The suspects as brothers Dzhokhar Tsarnaev and Tamerlan Tsarnaev . The ensuing manhunt ended on April 19 when thousands of law enforcement officers searched a 20-block area of nearby Watertown . Dzhokhar later said he was motivated by extremist Islamic beliefs and learned to build explosive devices from Inspire , the online magazine of al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula . On November 8, 2016, Massachusetts voted in favor of

17466-739: The town of Salem and surrounding areas experienced one of America's most infamous cases of mass hysteria , the Salem witch trials . In the late 18th century, Boston became known as the "Cradle of Liberty" for the agitation there that later led to the American Revolution . In 1786, Shays' Rebellion , a populist revolt led by disaffected American Revolutionary War veterans, influenced the United States Constitutional Convention . Originally dependent on agriculture , fishing , and trade , Massachusetts

17608-530: The town of Stockbridge ). Cultural institutions include Lenox's Tanglewood , Becket's Jacob's Pillow , and Stockbridge's Norman Rockwell Museum , as well the Clark Art Institute in Williamstown . The city of Pittsfield is the largest community located in the Berkshires. New England's largest river, the Connecticut , flows through the center of its agricultural valley. Nearly bisected by

17750-734: The town. The movie Parrish , starring Troy Donahue and Karl Malden, was set and filmed in the tobacco farms of Windsor. The film was released in 1961. The Connecticut Valley Tobacco Museum , containing authentic farming implements and tools, can be found at Northwest Park in Windsor. Community Health Resources - CHR Easterseals Capital Region & Eastern Connecticut Kiwanis Club of Windsor Mary's Place, A Center for Grieving Children and Families Rotary Club of Windsor Saint Casmir's Lithuanian Society Inc. VFW-Veterans of Foreign Wars-Windsor Post 4740 Vintage Radio and Communications Museum of Connecticut Windsor Art Center Windsor Food and Fuel Bank Windsor Historical Society As of

17892-469: The trade", Mason refused to share the grain with Springfield, and, to add further insult, insisted that Springfield pay a tax when sailing ships passed Windsor. Outraged, Springfield forever sided with the Massachusetts Bay Colony , a Puritan settlement in Boston , rather than with the Connecticut Colony, which was much closer geographically and far more compatible ideologically. Windsor played

18034-440: The valley in the 1630s, tobacco was already being grown by the native population. By 1700 it was being exported via the Connecticut River to European ports. The use of Connecticut tobacco as a cigar wrapper leaf began in the 1820s. Area farmers grew tobacco for the two outside layers of cigars, the binder and the wrapper. Approximately 34,000 acres (140 km ) of land in Connecticut is covered by Windsor Soil , named after

18176-499: The valley's so-called "Knowledge Corridor" include Northampton , Amherst , Easthampton , Holyoke , Chicopee , West Springfield , East Longmeadow , Longmeadow , Ludlow , Agawam , and Westfield . The Hilltowns include the areas of Berkshire, Franklin, Hampshire, and Hampden counties west of and above the escarpment bordering the ancient rift valley through which the Connecticut River flows. Elevations increase from about 200 feet (60 m) to at least 1,000 feet (300 m) in

18318-475: The western part of Massachusetts, larger mammals such as moose and black bears have returned, largely due to reforestation following the regional decline in agriculture. Massachusetts is located along the Atlantic Flyway , a major route for migratory waterfowl along the eastern coast. Lakes in central Massachusetts provide habitat for many species of fish and waterfowl, but some species such as

18460-625: The whirlpool of panic selling that beset the New York Stock Exchange, lost over 25 percent of its value in two days of frenzied trading. The BSE, nearly 100 years old at the time, had helped raise the capital that had funded many of the Commonwealth's factories, railroads, and businesses. " Governor of Massachusetts Frank G. Allen appointed John C. Hull the first Securities Director of Massachusetts. Hull would assume office in January 1930, and his term would end in 1936. With

18602-653: The winter in Biddeford Pool near Cape Porpoise (after 1820 the State of Maine) in 1616. The Puritans , arrived at Plymouth in 1620. This was the second permanent English colony in the part of North America that later became the United States, after the Jamestown Colony . The "First Thanksgiving" was celebrated by the Puritans after their first harvest in the " New World " and lasted for three days. They were soon followed by other Puritans, who colonized

18744-441: The year 2020 collectively had 828,188 residents, a population greater than that of any one of the six smallest U.S. states. The population amounted to approximately 12.84% of the 2000 population of the entire state of Massachusetts, which was 6,349,097. Its average population density is 293.07 inhabitants per square mile (113.16/km), compared to 422.34/km (1,093.87/sq mi) for the rest of Massachusetts, and 312.68/km (809.83/sq mi) for

18886-447: Was 2.54 and the average family size was 3.04. In the town, the population was spread out, with 21.5% under the age of 18, 7.4% from 18 to 24, 23.9% from 25 to 44, 31.8% from 45 to 64, and 15.3% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 43.1 years. For every 100 females, there were 90.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 87.8 males. According to the U.S. Census Bureau's American Community Survey , for

19028-430: Was called Agawam Plantation , and administered by the Connecticut Colony . (Springfield lies only 4 miles north of Connecticut; however, Agawam included lands as far south as Windsor Locks , as far north as Holyoke , and as far west as Westfield .) In 1640, Springfield voted to separate from the Connecticut Colony following a series of contentious incidents and, after a brief period of independence, decided to align with

19170-756: Was completed in early 2014, connecting public institutions throughout central and western Massachusetts, but also providing a fiber-optic backbone to allow for further expansion in these regions. Building off of that project, the Commonwealth launched a 'Last Mile' initiative targeting 54 communities that were unserved or under-served by broadband. That program has invested in municipal fiber-to-the-home networks, which are also supported by municipal bonds; private provider projects; and advanced wireless projects to connect homes and businesses in these communities. Small, rural towns such as Mount Washington, Mass., now have access to internet speeds that reach 500 megabit per second (Mbps) symmetrical service. In recent years there has been

19312-642: Was dotted with high-tech companies who recruited graduates of the area's many elite institutions of higher education. In 1987, the state received federal funding for the Central Artery/Tunnel Project. Commonly known as "the Big Dig ", it was, at the time, the biggest federal highway project ever approved. The project included making the Central Artery , part of Interstate 93 , into a tunnel under downtown Boston, in addition to

19454-429: Was one of a handful of towns in the country where, in the 2000 United States Census , median income for black households ($ 64,159) was larger than white households ($ 63,624). Asian households had a median income of $ 75,716. Hispanic or Latino (of any race) households have a median income of $ 69,808. Windsor High School has 1,471 students enrolled. Demographics for 2004–2005 were: Top employers in Windsor according to

19596-545: Was originally inhabited by tribes of the Algonquian language family , including Wampanoag , Narragansett , Nipmuc , Pocomtuc , Mahican , and Massachusett . While cultivation of crops like squash and corn were an important part of their diet, the people of these tribes hunted , fished , and searched the forest for most of their food. Villagers lived in lodges called wigwams as well as longhouses . Tribes were led by male or female elders known as sachems . In

19738-556: Was replaced with the Rose Fitzgerald Kennedy Greenway . The project also improved traffic conditions along several routes. The Kennedy family was prominent in 20th-century Massachusetts politics. The children of businessman and ambassador Joseph P. Kennedy Sr. included John F. Kennedy , who was a senator and U.S. president before his assassination in 1963; Ted Kennedy , a senator from 1962 until his death in 2009; and Eunice Kennedy Shriver ,

19880-635: Was the siege of Boston in the winter of 1775–76, after which the British were forced to evacuate the city. The event is still celebrated in Suffolk County only every March 17 as Evacuation Day . On the coast, Salem became a center for privateering . Although the documentation is incomplete, about 1,700 letters of marque , issued on a per-voyage basis, were granted during the American Revolution. Nearly 800 vessels were commissioned as privateers, which were credited with capturing or destroying about 600 British ships. Bostonian John Adams , known as

20022-720: Was the only Republican to serve as Speaker between 1931 and 1995), John W. McCormack , Speaker of the House in the 1960s, and Tip O'Neill , whose service as Speaker of the House from 1977 to 1987 was the longest continuous tenure in United States history. On May 17, 2004, Massachusetts became the first state in the U.S. to legalize same-sex marriage . This followed the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court 's decision in Goodridge v. Department of Public Health in November 2003, which determined that

20164-602: Was transformed into a manufacturing center during the Industrial Revolution . Before the American Civil War , the state was a center for the abolitionist , temperance , and transcendentalist movements. During the 20th century, the state's economy shifted from manufacturing to services ; and in the 21st century, Massachusetts has become the global leader in biotechnology , and also excels in artificial intelligence , engineering , higher education , finance , and maritime trade . The state's capital and most populous city , as well as its cultural and financial center ,

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