Wakefield, Massachusetts

Town

Town of Wakefield

Each row, from left to right:
Softball at Veterans Field, July 17, 2012
Wakefield Common, Park Avenue,
Saint Joseph School, Upper Depot,
Col. James Hartshorne House, Elizabeth Boit House,
Lake Quannapowitt, 1 Morrison Avenue,
Lower Common Bandstand in Winter, Greenwood Union Church

Seal

Location in Middlesex County in Massachusetts

Coordinates: 42°30′23″N 71°04′24″W / 42.50639°N 71.07333°WCoordinates: 42°30′23″N 71°04′24″W / 42.50639°N 71.07333°W

Settled

1638

Incorporated

1812

Renamed "Wakefield"

1868
(more...)

Named for

Cyrus Wakefield

Government

• Type

Open town meeting

• Administrator

Stephen P. Maio (through 2018)
(more info...)

• Board of Selectmen

Patrick S. Glynn (through 2017)
Phyllis J. Hull (through 2017)
Paul R. DiNocco (through 2018)
Ann Santos (through 2019)
Brian E. Falvey (through 2018)
Anthony Longo (through 2019)
Peter J. May (through 2019)
(more info...)

• Town Clerk

Betsy Sheeran

• Clerk to the Board of Selectmen

Sherri Dalton

• Counsel

Thomas A. Mullen

Area

• Total

7.9 sq mi (20.5 km²)

• Land

7.5 sq mi (19.3 km²)

• Water

0.4 sq mi (1.1 km²)

Elevation

100 ft (30 m)

Population (2010)

• Total

24,932

• Rank

73rd in Massachusetts

• Demonym

Wakefieldian
(more...)
(more...)

Time zone

Eastern (UTC-5)

• Summer (DST)

Eastern (UTC-4)

ZIP code

01880

Area code(s)

339 / 781

FIPS code

25-72215

GNIS feature ID

0619410

Website

http://www.wakefield
.ma.us/

(more articles on Wakefield...)
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Wakefield is a town in Middlesex County, Massachusetts in the Greater Boston metropolitan area,incorporated in 1812 and located about 12.5 mi (20.1 km) north-northwest of Downtown Boston. The 73rd most populous municipality in Massachusetts, Wakefield's population was 24,932 at the 2010 census.

Wakefield was first settled in 1638 and was originally known as Lynn Village. It officially separated from Lynn and incorporated as Reading in 1644 when the first church (First Parish Congregational Church) and the first mill were established. This first corn mill was built on the Mill River on Water Street, and later small saw mills were built on the Mill River and the Saugus River.

The old parish church became known as the Old or South Parish when in 1713 the North Parish was established. This North Parish later became the town of North Reading. In 1769 the West Parish was established. In 1812 the Old or South Parish of Reading separated from Reading and was officially incorporated as South Reading. At the time it was spelled South Redding, not South Reading.

The railroad was chartered and built in 1844 between Wilmington and Boston. This later became the main line of the Boston and Maine Railroad. The Boston and Maine Foundry was built in 1854 and was later reincorporated as the Smith and Anthony Stove Company. The Boston Ice Company cut and shipped ice from Lake Quannapowitt starting in 1851.

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Wikipedia