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North Grafton, Massachusetts

Grafton, Massachusetts
Town
Grafton center in 2006
Grafton center in 2006
Official seal of Grafton, Massachusetts
Seal
Location in Worcester County and the state of Massachusetts.
Location in Worcester County and the state of Massachusetts.
Coordinates: 42°12′25″N 71°41′10″W / 42.20694°N 71.68611°W / 42.20694; -71.68611Coordinates: 42°12′25″N 71°41′10″W / 42.20694°N 71.68611°W / 42.20694; -71.68611
Country United States
State Massachusetts
County Worcester
Settled 1718
Incorporated 1735
Government
 • Type Open town meeting
 • Town
   Administrator
Timothy McInerney
 • Board of
   Selectmen
Craig Dauphinais
Jennifer Thomas
Bruce Spinney
Brook Padgett
Dennis Flynn
 • Town Moderator Ray Mead
Area
 • Total 23.3 sq mi (60.3 km2)
 • Land 22.7 sq mi (58.9 km2)
 • Water 0.5 sq mi (1.4 km2)
Elevation 425 ft (130 m)
Population (2010)
 • Total 17,765
 • Density 760/sq mi (290/km2)
Time zone Eastern (UTC-5)
 • Summer (DST) Eastern (UTC-4)
ZIP code 01519, 01536, 01560
Area code(s) 508 / 774
FIPS code 25-26430
GNIS feature ID 0619480
Website www.grafton-ma.gov

Grafton is a town in Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. The population, indicated by the 2014 town records is 14, 268, in nearly 5,700 households. Incorporated in 1735, Grafton is the home of a Nipmuc village known as Hassanamisco Reservation, the Willard House and Clock Museum, Community Harvest Project, and the Tufts University Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine. Grafton consists of the North Grafton, Grafton, and South Grafton geographic areas, each with a separate zip code. Grafton also operates the state's largest On-Call Fire Department, with 74 members.

Bands of the Nipmuc tribe were the indigenous inhabitants, and maintain a state-recognized reservation known as Hassanamessit, or Hassanamisco, which was formerly a Praying Indian village from 1647 when the Reverend John Elliot came and converted the Hassanamiscos to Christianity . Grafton was first settled by Europeans in 1724 and was officially incorporated in 1735.

Grafton stands tall in the industrialization of the Blackstone Valley. Its Northeast Village was once known as "New England Village". The following is an excerpt from the Blackstone Daily about the history of the town:

Grafton has been a significant contributor in the success and progress of the American Industrial Revolution that was started in 1793 by Samuel Slater with his cotton mill in Pawtucket [Rhode Island]. North Grafton's Upper Mill, now known as the Washington Mills complex, that still produces abrasives, was once known as the New England Manufacturing Company. This was part of the New England Village, as North Grafton was known for generations. This part of the mill was built in 1826 and was part of a much larger complex, but most of that is now gone, mainly due to serious fires. Mill housing was built at 12, 14 and 16 Overlook Street. These central-chimney-style homes were boarding houses with ornate trim that has since been lost.


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