Misplaced Pages

#485514

80-599: The Combat Capabilities Development Command Soldier Center ( CCDC SC ), formerly the United States Army Natick Soldier Research, Development and Engineering Center , is a military research complex and installation in Natick, Massachusetts , charged by the U.S. Department of Defense with the research and development (including fielding and sustainment) of food, clothing, shelters, airdrop systems, and other servicemember support items for

160-400: A 2007 estimate, the median income for a household in the town was $ 61,855, and the median income for a family was $ 85,056. Males had a median income of $ 51,964 versus $ 41,060 for females. The per capita income for the town was $ 36,358. About 1.7% of families and 2.8% of the population were below the poverty line , including 2.4% of those under age 18 and 5.3% of those age 65 or over. Natick

240-482: A 47-acre commercial site within the former Fort Devens. This facility is to be used for development and manufacture of fusion power equipment and plants, none of which were yet in commercial use anywhere worldwide as of 2021. The following military units are based at this location: On December 21, 1989, Fort Devens was listed as superfund because historic underground storage tanks /fuel depots had contaminated soils with heavy metals and petroleum products. In 2016,

320-614: A Board of Selectmen and a Town Administrator. The members of the Board and the dates their terms end are (as of March 2023): The town is part of the Massachusetts Senate's Norfolk, Bristol and Middlesex district . Mismanagement of Middlesex County's public hospital in the mid-1990s left the county on the brink of insolvency, and in 1997 the Massachusetts legislature stepped in by assuming all assets and obligations of

400-555: A citizens' petition for Devens to become a legally incorporated town . Efforts to make Devens the state's 352nd town failed on the local level in 2006. As of 2018, Devens is "a regional enterprise zone and census-designated place in the towns of Ayer and Shirley, in Middlesex County and Harvard in Worcester County," (see Fort Devens (CDP), Massachusetts ). In March 2021, Commonwealth Fusion Systems established

480-610: A disc golf course, and a golf course. Veterans of the Army Security Agency have also expressed interest in building a museum there as Fort Devens was their principal training facility for nearly 25 years. Devens became a United States Army Reserve installation under the command the Army Installation Management Command (IMCOM) with an Army Reserve, Massachusetts Army National Guard and Marine Corps Reserve presence. In 2007

560-533: A glimpse of Evans. Photos were taken of him and his co-star sitting on a bench on the commons as well as inside and outside Park Street Ice Cream. Defending Jacob released on Apple TV+ on April 24, 2020. Fort Devens Fort Devens is a United States Army Reserve military installation in the towns of Ayer and Shirley , in Middlesex County and Harvard in Worcester County in

640-630: A location for his Praying Indian settlement. Natick was settled in 1651 by John Eliot, a Puritan missionary born in Widford, England , who received a commission and funds from England's Long Parliament to settle the Massachusett Indians called Praying Indians on both sides of the Charles River, on land deeded from the settlement at Dedham. Natick was the first of Eliot's network of praying towns and served as their center for

720-413: A long time. While the towns were largely self-governing under Indian leaders, such as Waban and Cutshamekin , the praying Indians were subject to rules governing conformity to Puritan culture (in practice Natick, like the other praying towns, combined both indigenous and Puritan culture and practices). Eliot and Praying Indian translators printed America's first Algonquian language Bible. Eventually,

800-464: A new training center in the area. This was dedicated in 2011 as the David S. Connolly Armed Forces Reserve Center . The three buildings total 280,000 square feet and are on 57 acres. It also supported 650 Army Reserve and Army National Guard Soldiers and Marines, and included space to store nearly 800 military vehicles. The total cost was $ 100 million. In January 2011 a group of Devens residents filed

880-557: A permanent US Army post in 1931. However, during the depression , construction was slow; most of the work was done by the Works Progress Administration . A few years later, Fort Devens Army Airfield was established. In 1940, at the onset of World War II , Fort Devens was designated a reception center for all men in New England who would serve one year as draftees. A massive $ 25 million building project

SECTION 10

#1732790384486

960-709: A population of 37,006 at the 2020 census . 10 miles (16 km) west of Boston , Natick is part of the Greater Boston area. Massachusetts's center of population was in Natick at the censuses of 2000–2020, most recently in the vicinity of Hunters Lane. The name Natick comes from the language of the Massachusett Native American tribe and is commonly thought to mean "Place of Hills." A more accurate translation may be "place of [our] searching," after John Eliot 's successful search for

1040-779: A subordinate element of the ATC. A U.S. Army Soldier Systems Command (SSC) was activated at Natick in November 1994. Elements subsequently established at the SSC included the Sustainment & Readiness Directorate (February 1995) and Product Manager-Soldier Support (October 1995); elements subsequently relocated to Natick included the Clothing and Services Office (October 1996; from Ft. Lee, Virginia) and Product Manager- Force Provider (June 1997). The Sustainment & Readiness Directorate became

1120-695: A subordinate element to the Troop Support Command in July 1973 and was redesignated two years later as the U.S. Army Natick Development Center and reassigned to the AMC. The NDC was redesignated the U.S. Army Natick Research and Development Command in January 1976 and assigned to the U.S. Army Materiel Development and Readiness Command. (The same month, AMC was redesignated the U.S. Army Materiel Development and Readiness Command (DARCOM).) In September 1980,

1200-471: A summer vacation area, with tiny cottages surrounding Jennings Pond. Over the years, some houses were enlarged, but the area remains quaint and quiet with no thru traffic. On the westerly side of South Oak is a neighborhood of Cape style houses with streets named after World War II Generals. North of Route 9, other developments of small Cape-style homes were built in the early and mid-1950s and were popular with first-time home buyers due to their affordability. As

1280-477: A team from the town fire department won "The World's Hook and Ladder Championship", a competition between the fire departments of four area towns. The victory gave the town its nickname "Home of Champions". Miles 8 through 12 of the Boston Marathon run through Natick on Patriots' Day every year along Route 135/Central St. , and thousands of residents and visitors line the road to watch. According to

1360-459: Is developing the following items or systems: This article contains information that originally came from US Government publications and websites and is in the public domain. Natick, Massachusetts Natick ( / ˈ n eɪ t ɪ k / NAY -tik ) is a town in Middlesex County, Massachusetts , United States. It is near the center of the MetroWest region of Massachusetts, with

1440-500: Is happening throughout the region, the capes are getting large additions or replaced by much larger homes. There are two Industrial Parks along north Oak St that contain office buildings on one side of the road and larger warehouses on the eastern side. Just south of the Natick Common, Cottage Street begins what is commonly called Little South, named so because of its proximity to South Natick. Little South nomenclature extends to

1520-541: Is located at Fort Dix , New Jersey, and whose Commanding General serves as the Senior Commander for Ft. Devens. The units with the original 94th Regional Readiness Command were realigned with similar commands along the East Coast. The base still remained an active training site for Reserve and National Guard Forces as well as regional law enforcement agencies. The Army announced in 2008 that it would build

1600-425: Is surrounded, on three sides, by five of the eleven most affluent towns in Massachusetts with Wayland to the north, Weston to the northeast, Wellesley to the east, Dover to the southeast, and Sherborn to the southwest. Source: Companies based in Natick include Cognex Corporation , MathWorks , and Exponent . Natick has representative town meeting form of government (consisting of 180 members) with

1680-400: Is the most densely populated section of town, with its thousands of condominiums and apartments clustered across the street from the train station. Natick is a small town, and thus, the various sections of tract development homes are considered neighborhoods. These were houses built by several contractors in the late 1940s until the late 1950s. Listed here, are a few of these sections. One of

SECTION 20

#1732790384486

1760-560: The Army Security Agency Training Center & School (ASATC&S) from April 1951 to 1996. In the 1950s or 1960s the fort was home to the 56th Air Defense Artillery Brigade , part of 1st Region, Army Air Defense Command . On 15 February 1958 the 2d Infantry Brigade was reactivated at Fort Devens, Massachusetts as the Pentomic 2nd Infantry Brigade with its own shoulder sleeve insignia . It spent

1840-557: The Confederate States Navy died as a prisoner of war at Fort Warren in 1863. He was originally buried at Fort Warren but his remains were moved to Deer Island and Governors Island in Boston Harbor before being moved to Fort Devens in 1939. In 2002 his remains were finally returned to his home state of Florida. The Jack Benny Program broadcast on December 20, 1942 was recorded at Fort Devens. The fort

1920-608: The Greater Boston Area. The CCDC is subordinate to United States Army Futures Command (AFC) headquartered in Austin, Texas, which was activated in July 2018. Futures Command was formerly U.S. Army Research, Development, and Engineering Command (RDECOM) at Aberdeen Proving Ground . The SSC is sometimes called the Natick Army Labs , although this designation more properly refers to one of its tenant units,

2000-879: The Integrated Material Management Center in October 1997. SSC merged with the Chemical Biological Defense Command to become the Soldier and Biological Chemical Command in October 1998. At this time the installation was renamed the United States Army Soldier Systems Center. At some time prior to January 2017 the installation was renamed Soldier Systems Center Natick. The SSC hosts several tenant units and facilities at its Natick installation: Natick Labs has developed or

2080-802: The U.S. state of Massachusetts . Due to extensive environmental contamination it was listed as a superfund site in 1989. Most of the fort's land was sold off in 1996, but the cantonment area of the post was retained by the Army as the Devens Reserve Forces Training Area (RFTA). Fort Devens was reactivated in May 2007, though no units of active Army have been located there. The Devens Range Complex operates on property in Lancaster , south of Route 2, for live-fire training with small arms, machine guns, grenades, and rockets. In 2011,

2160-483: The United States Census Bureau , the town has an area of 16.0 square miles (41 km ), of which 15.1 square miles (39 km ) is land and 1.0 square mile (2.6 km ) is water. The total area is 7.04% water, including Lake Cochituate and Dug Pond . Natick borders Wellesley , Wayland , Weston , Framingham , Sherborn and Dover . Natick Center, also known as Downtown Natick, is at

2240-486: The 1918 flu pandemic . Approximately 850 soldiers, mostly privates, died at the camp during 1918 from the Spanish flu . In 1918, it became a separation center for over 150,000 troops upon their return from France. Put on inactive status, it served next as a summer training camp for National Guardsmen, Reservists and ROTC cadets. In 1920, following years of debate regarding preparedness for another global war, passage of

2320-527: The 1990s new downtown construction of a town hall, fire/police station, and enlargement to the library gave the downtown a fresh new look. New municipal buildings exist alongside several historic buildings and churches, the restored Central Fire House, several banks, restaurants and small businesses. In 2012 the Massachusetts Cultural Council voted unanimously to make Natick Center one of the newest state-designated cultural districts,

2400-532: The 2013 American drama film Labor Day (film) starring Kate Winslet , Josh Brolin and Tobey Maguire were filmed in Natick, at locations including The Center for Arts in Natick and Park Street Ice Cream. Natick appears in the 2015 video game Fallout 4 , which is set in the greater Boston area (referred to in the game as The Commonwealth). Part of South Natick made an appearance in the Oscar-nominated movie Knives Out . While filming on location,

2480-777: The 595th Medical Company and the 46th Combat Support Hospital, the 46th CSH was inactivated July 15, 1994. Finally, the 624th Military Police Company was stationed until the post closed. Headquarters, Army Readiness Region I and Readiness Group Devens were also located there in the late 1970s and early 1980s. The mission was to assist the training of reserve component units, state National Guard and Army Reserve units in New York and New England. Other subordinate Readiness Groups were located at Secena Army Depot and Fort Hamilton in NYC. Exact establishment dates and/or inactivation dates could not be found. The U.S. Army post which resided at Fort Devens

Combat Capabilities Development Command Soldier Center - Misplaced Pages Continue

2560-522: The 84-acre Shepley's Hill landfill site out of the groundwater remediation. As of 2022, there is ongoing groundwater remediation at the former Moore Army Airfield and the former Shepley's Hill Landfill in addition to long-term groundwater monitoring at four petroleum contaminated sites. Fort Devens has a cemetery which has the graves of U.S. military personnel, their dependents and about 20 German and Italian prisoners of war who died there either during or shortly after World War II. A number of graves predate

2640-573: The Army started looking for PFAS , which it detected in groundwater and in the municipal water supply wells for Devens and the Town of Ayer. In May 2021, Restoration Advisory Board community members were concerned about PFAs making their way into the Nashua River , especially with water from the river being used to irrigate crops in communities downstream. They also discussed progress of the pump and treat system to get dissolved arsenic and iron at

2720-543: The Arts, as well as many Victorian era houses lining Walnut, Highland and Bacon Streets. The Wethersfield area of Natick is a residential neighborhood north of Route 9. It is a typical 1950s development of Campanelli ranch houses, and remains popular with first-time home buyers due to the relatively inexpensive slab-style houses. This area includes Drury Lane and all connecting roads within the boundaries of route 9, Pine Street, and Route 27. South of Route 9, this section began as

2800-554: The Charles River, has some of Natick's oldest homes. Just before South Natick begins, there is a Virgin Mary statue on a large rock on the south side of the Charles River, enveloped by pine trees. As of the census of 2010, there were 32,786 people, 13,080 households, and 8,528 families residing in the town. The population density was 2,132.9 inhabitants per square mile (823.5/km ). There were 13,368 housing units at an average density of 886.3 per square mile (342.2/km ). The racial makeup of

2880-661: The Lilja School. Longfellow Health Club, which features a gym, pool, and tennis courts, is in East Natick off Oak St. in the Industrial Park. The stretch of Route 9 in East Natick as one heads into Wellesley contains a multitude of ever-changing retail businesses. West Natick is a large section of Natick that borders the town of Framingham . The Natick Mall , as well as the strip mall called Sherwood Plaza with its office Industrial Park behind, are considered to be

2960-595: The Massachusetts towns of Hudson, Maynard, Stow and Sudbury to Fort Devens to become a field training facility. The land had been an ordnance supply depot during World War II. After being an Environmental Protection Agency "superfund" cleanup site in the 1990s it became the Assabet River National Wildlife Refuge . In October 1992, the NRDC was redesignated the U.S. Army Natick Soldier Research, Development and Engineering Center , still

3040-466: The NRDC was redesignated as the U.S. Army Natick Research & Development Laboratories and three years later as the U.S. Army Natick Research and Development Center, a subordinate element of the U.S. Army Troop Support Command in St. Louis, Missouri. (DARCOM and TSC merged in July 1992 forging the U.S. Army Aviation & Troop Command, St. Louis, Mo.) In 1982, Natick Labs surrendered control of 3,100 acres in

3120-653: The Natick Common. South Natick, known for its scenic nature, is where the Native American settlers first arrived and began the town on the shores of the Charles River . Housing developers like Martin Cerel lived in South Natick, and thus refrained from building major tract neighborhoods in this part of town. Most South Natick residents consider themselves to have a strong, separate cultural identity from

3200-522: The Natick Indians were sent to Deer Island . Many died of disease and cold, and those who survived found their homes destroyed. The Indian village did not fully recover, and the land held in common by the Indian community was slowly sold to white settlers to cover debts. By 1785, most of the Natick Indians had drifted away. After King Philip's War, Elliot's and a few other missionaries' opposition to

3280-558: The National Defense Act established an important role for the citizen army. In 1927, appropriations were made for permanent construction of buildings, but the stock market crash nearly called a halt. Congresswoman Edith Nourse Rogers , of Lowell, recognized the economic significance of Camp Devens to this largely agricultural community. In 1929, Robert Goddard briefly used the post for his rocket operations. In 1931, through her efforts, Camp Devens became Fort Devens,

Combat Capabilities Development Command Soldier Center - Misplaced Pages Continue

3360-707: The New Englanders to prioritize missionary work over growth, "the killing of those poor Indians....How happy a thing it had been if you had converted some before you had killed any." Chastened in the wake of the Mystic Massacre which occurred during the Pequot War , sincere efforts at evangelizing began. A school was set up, a government established, and the Indians were encouraged to convert to Christianity . In November 1675, during King Philip's War ,

3440-732: The Quartermaster Research and Engineering Command. July 1961 saw the activation of the U.S. Army Research Institute of Environmental Medicine at Natick and a year later the QREC was placed under the U.S. Army Materiel Command (AMC). In November 1962, the QREC was redesignated as Natick Laboratories and the following year the Food and Container Institute moved to Natick. July 1967 saw the Navy Clothing and Textile Research Facility relocate to Natick. Natick Laboratories became

3520-687: The U.S. military. It is a component unit of the United States Army Combat Capabilities Development Command and is a tenant unit of the United States Army Natick Soldier Systems Center ( SSC ). The installation includes facilities from all the military services, not just the Army, and is so configured to allow cross-service cooperation and collaboration both within the facility and with the many academic, industrial and governmental institutions in

3600-611: The United States Army Combat Capabilities Development Command Soldier Center. The SSC occupies 78 acres (320,000 m) at its main Natick campus and has an additional 46 acres (190,000 m) in neighboring communities. The main campus is located to the northwest of Natick center and abuts upon Lake Cochituate . Employee/tenant numbers total 1,957 (159 military personnel, 1,048 civilians and 750 contractors). The SSC public relations office reports that

3680-481: The aim of turning Devens into a residential and business community. The Bureau of Prisons used its land for the Federal Medical Center, Devens , a prison hospital. Since the closing of the military base, many of the existing buildings have been renovated or reconstructed; housing developments now exist, along with a growing business park, a new hotel, restaurants, several public and private schools,

3760-550: The church in Natick was led for several decades by an indigenous pastor, Rev. Daniel Takawambait . The colonial government placed such settlements in a ring of villages around Boston as a defensive strategy. Natick was the first and best documented settlement. The land was granted by the General Court as part of the Dedham Grant . After a period of expansion and little focus on evangelism, Reverend John Robinson told

3840-576: The commercial hub of West Natick. In addition to its retail development, post World War II housing developments like Westfield, Pelham, and Sherwood as well as the National Guard depot and a golf course on Speen St brought many people to this part of town. There are many businesses in West Natick along West Central Street as well as another MBTA Commuter Rail station in addition to the one downtown. The area in West Natick, along Route 135

3920-480: The county. The government of Middlesex County was officially abolished on July 11, 1997. The sheriff and some other regional officials with specific duties are still elected locally to perform duties within the county region, but there is no county council or commissioner. Communities are now granted the right to form their own regional compacts for sharing services. These are the remaining elected officers for Middlesex County: The Natick Public School District operates

4000-444: The duel and his remains were later discovered in a walled off part of Fort Independence is not true. In reality, Drane was later promoted to captain and continued to serve in the Army until his death in 1846. Massie was originally buried at Fort Independence, and his remains were relocated to Fort Devens, along with others buried at Forts in Boston Harbor, in the 1950s after the forts were closed. Lieutenant Edward John Kent Johnson of

4080-500: The earliest post World War II developments in West Natick, the homes are colonial in style, with street names reminiscent of the Robin Hood legend. The homes were built in 1948 and the neighborhood remains popular due to the fact that there's no through traffic, and most of the houses have been enlarged with additions. Walnut Hill is a neighborhood north of downtown. It is known for the private boarding school Walnut Hill School for

SECTION 50

#1732790384486

4160-587: The east portions of Everett Street, down to Eliot St. Homes along Cottage St. were primarily built in the early 1950s and are mostly modest and well-maintained. The best-known landmarks in Little South are a WWII monument dedicated to the fallen soldiers from Natick, and The Tobin School, a private daycare and elementary school that has two large buildings off of Cottage St. Everett St. has larger farm homes situated on generous lots. Eliot St., which runs parallel to

4240-528: The executions and enslavement of Indians were eventually silenced by death threats. In 1775, both European and Indian citizens of Natick participated in the battles of Lexington, Concord and Bunker Hill , as well as serving in the Continental Army . The names of Natick's Praying Indian soldiers are memorialized on a stone marker, along with all of Natick's Revolutionary War veterans, on a stone marker on Pond Street, near downtown Natick. The town

4320-601: The field of food irradiation and freeze-drying techniques. Improved body armor , new military parachuting technology, and enhanced military garments designed for a variety of environments are all ongoing efforts. Construction of the Quartermaster Research Facility at Natick, authorized by Congress in October 1949, began in November 1952. A year later, the QRF was redesignated as the Quartermaster Research and Development Center and four years later as

4400-656: The following schools: Natick Center station , in the downtown area, is served by the MBTA Commuter Rail Framingham/Worcester Line . Bus service is provided in Natick by the MetroWest Regional Transit Authority . Natick was the setting for Harriet Beecher-Stowe 's 1869 fictional novel Oldtown Folks . The novel is based on her husband's childhood in Natick, and it accurately details town landmarks, ministers, and inhabitants despite renaming

4480-634: The fort had a population of 306 enlisted personnel, 2,151 reservists, 348 civilians, and 1,399 family members, and maintained 25 ranges, 21 training areas, and 15 maneuver areas on nearly 5,000 acres (20 km ) of land. It was home to the United States Army Base Camp Systems Integration Laboratory as well as the United States Army System Integration Laboratory . Part of the former area of

4560-477: The fort's establishment as they were relocated after the closure of several coast defense forts in Boston Harbor after World War II. The oldest grave is that of 1st Lieutenant Robert F. Massie of the Corps of Artillery , who was killed in a sword duel with First Lieutenant Gustavus S. Drane at Fort Independence , in Boston Harbor, on Christmas Day 1817. The legend that Lieutenant Drane mysteriously disappeared after

4640-419: The headquarters of the 94th Regional Readiness Command, which was responsible for the command and control of Army Reserve units throughout New England, as well as providing Army Reserve support for Federal Emergency Management Agency operations in the New England region, was disbanded under the consolidation of forces and buildings within the area came under the control of the 99th Regional Support Command, which

4720-751: The installation’s FY2006 funding totaled approximately $ 1 billion and that the facilities infuse more than $ 135 million annually into the local economy through installation salaries, utilities and local contracts. The installation commander is a U.S. Army Brigadier General , currently BG Vincent Malone, who also serves as the Deputy Commanding General of the U.S. Army Combat Capabilities Development Command. The SSC includes facilities designed to research and test both materials (textiles, combat rations), advanced technologies and human performance (human research volunteers) under simulated environmental extremes (altitude, heat, cold, wind, etc.). The requirement for improved combat rations has led to groundbreaking developments in

4800-433: The intersection of Central Street and Main Street and serves as the town's civic and cultural hub. Many public services and public land use are downtown. Municipal buildings like the Natick Town Hall, Natick Fire Department, Natick Police Department and Morse Institute Library are there, along East Central Street. Also directly downtown is the Natick Town Common, where many town events and community activities are held. In

4880-404: The location to Oldtown. Beecher-Stowe is best known for writing abolitionist fiction novel Uncle Tom's Cabin . Natick appears on the Family Guy episode " Da Boom " when the family sets out to the town after Peter reveals that there is a Twinkie factory there (Natick did contain a Hostess factory until 2007 when the Natick Mall expanded into the collection). He eventually starts a town on

SECTION 60

#1732790384486

4960-410: The loss of property was greater in proportion to the town's wealth than the Great Chicago Fire of 1871. In 1875, Natick's new Central Fire Station was completed on Summer Street and opened with grand ceremony on the same city block where the fire was first discovered. The Central Fire Station is now the home of The Center for Arts in Natick (TCAN), a private nonprofit performing arts center. In 1891,

5040-477: The military base is now home to Federal Medical Center, Devens , a federal prison for male inmates requiring specialized or long-term medical or mental health care. Camp Devens, named after jurist and Civil War general Charles Devens , was established on September 5, 1917, as a temporary cantonment for training soldiers during World War I . About 5,000 acres (2,000 ha) of land was leased then later purchased from 112 owners who sold 230 parcels of land in

5120-456: The next five years training in northern Massachusetts and Cape Cod . The Brigade was prepared to support the Marines landing in the 1958 Lebanon crisis but did not deploy. The 2d Infantry Brigade was inactivated on 19 February 1963 at Fort Devens; in 1962 when it was reflagged as 2d Brigade, 5th Infantry Division . It was reactivated on 23 October 1963 as Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 2d Brigade, 1st Infantry Division and moved (with

5200-466: The project had the code name "Morning Bell". Other scenes were shot in surrounding towns such as Wellesley, Framingham, and Waltham. In April 2019 Chris Evans was in Natick filming an upcoming TV series, Defending Jacob . The production was seen filming on the Natick Common, Park Street, and at Park Street Ice Cream. The ice cream shop was temporarily converted into "K.D. Scoops" for the filming. Many Natick residents crowded around in hopes of getting

5280-426: The rate of 10.4 new buildings every day. It was a reception center for war selectees and became a demobilization center after the war. As one of 16 temporary cantonments, Camp Devens processed and trained more than 100,000 soldiers. Three divisions (the 12th , the 26th and the 76th ) were activated and trained at Devens during the war. In 1918, Camp Devens, was afflicted by the late 1918 deadly second wave of

5360-402: The regiment was further decimated when a battalion from Fort Devens was reflagged as the 3d Battalion, 8th Cavalry Regiment, and sent to Korea to join the 1st Cavalry Division . The 7th Infantry deployed to San Francisco, California and sailed for Japan on 20 August 1950, arriving on 16 September 1950 to marry-up with the 15th Infantry Regiment and the division headquarters. Fort Devens hosted

5440-438: The rest of Natick. It is the only community in Natick that can be separately addressed officially via the US Postal Office, and street signage such as a sign along Route 16 coming from Wellesley communicates arrival in "So. Natick." East Natick is a community of Natick along Oak Street and at the intersection of Oak Street and Worcester Street . Notable landmarks include Jennings Pond, the Industrial Park on Oak St North, and

5520-429: The rest of the Division) to Fort Riley , Kansas in January 1964. From 1968 to 1995, Fort Devens was the home of the 10th Special Forces Group . It also served as a training center for members of the Army Reserve and National Guard. Fort Devens was the home of the 10th Special Forces Group (Airborne), less 1st Battalion based in (West) Germany, from 1968 until the Group's move to Fort Carson , Colorado in 1995. It

5600-463: The ruins of the community, renaming it New Quahog. To solvers of crossword puzzles such as those of The New York Times and the Los Angeles Times , "natick" (as coined by Rex Parker ) refers to any square a solver cannot fill in correctly without guessing because the solver does not know either entry that passes through it (and there are at least two letters that are reasonable guesses). Such entries are generally proper nouns. Scenes included in

5680-453: The tenth district to win this designation from the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. The Cultural Districts Initiative is designed to help communities attract artists and cultural enterprises, encourage business and job growth, expand tourism, preserve and reuse historic buildings, enhance property values, and foster local cultural development. Natick Center Cultural District is anchored by The Center for Arts in Natick , Morse Institute Library and

5760-550: The town was 85.4% White , 2% African American , 0.1% Native American , 7.2% Asian , 0.0% Pacific Islander , 0.5% from other races and 2% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 3% of the population. There were 13,080 households, out of which 30.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 54.5% were married couples living together, 8.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 34.8% were non-families. Of all households, 28.3% were made up of individuals, and 9.8% had someone living alone who

5840-610: The towns of Ayer , Harvard , Lancaster and Shirley by the federal government. Some was fine farmland along the Nashua River and other was "sprout" land where trees had been cut leaving stumps. The Fort's siting was due primarily to its location at a major hub of the rail network in New England. Construction, by the largest labor force assembled in the United States, to build an entire city for 10,000 requiring barracks, training buildings, water and sewer systems, raced at

5920-440: Was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.42 and the average family size was 3.02. In the town, the population was spread out, with 23.0% under the age of 18, 5.1% from 18 to 24, 34.3% from 25 to 44, 23.3% from 45 to 64, and 14.3% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females, there were 89.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 85.3 males. According to

6000-502: Was also the home of the 39th Engineer Battalion (CBT) until the 39th was inactivated in 1992. The 39th Engineer (CBT) was reactivated in 2014 at Fort Campbell , Kentucky . The Army Security Agency Training Center & School (ASATC&S) was established at Devens in April 1951. In 1976 it became known as the U.S. Army Intelligence School, Devens, or USAISD, and was moved to Fort Huachuca, Arizona in 1996. The 36th Medical Battalion including

6080-473: Was begun, including more than 1200 wooden buildings and an airfield. The 1st , 32nd , and 45th Divisions trained at Devens during the war. Devens also housed a prisoner-of-war camp for German and Italian prisoners from 1944 to 1946. It was designated as early as 1942 for detaining enemy aliens of Italian, German and Japanese birth. The 7th Infantry Regiment , 3rd Infantry Division was located at Fort Devens from 1946 to 1950. Already at reduced strength,

6160-521: Was incorporated in 1781. Henry Wilson , a U.S. senator who became the 18th Vice President of the United States (1873–1875), lived most of his life in Natick as a shoemaker and schoolteacher known as the "Natick Cobbler" and is buried there. He is the namesake of one of Natick's middle schools. Though Natick was primarily a farming town, the invention of the sewing machine in 1858 led to the growth of several shoe factories. The business flourished and peaked by 1880, when Natick, with 23 operating factories,

6240-566: Was manufactured by the firm of H. Harwood & Sons in their factory, the world's first plant for the manufacture of baseballs. In 1988 H. Harwood & Sons was converted into baseball factory condominiums. In 1874, a fire in downtown Natick demolished 18 business blocks, two shoe factories, the Town Hall, Natick's only fire engine house and the Congregational Church, as well as many private homes. Though there were no deaths,

6320-463: Was officially closed in 1996 after 79 years of service. The Base Realignment and Closure process for land distribution for all parcels on the former Fort Devens allowed the Federal Bureau of Prisons , Shriver Job Corps , Massachusetts National Guard , Massachusetts Veterans and MassDevelopment to acquire the land. The bulk of the land was purchased by MassDevelopment for $ 17 million with

6400-522: Was third in the nation in the quantity of shoes produced. The shoes made in Natick were primarily heavy work shoes with only one or two companies making lighter dress shoes. Natick was famous for its brogan (shoes) , a heavy ankle-high boot worn by soldiers in the American Civil War . The wound core for a more resilient baseball was developed by John W. Walcott and combined with the figure-eight stitching devised by Colonel William A. Cutler. It

#485514