Chelmsford, Massachusetts | |
|---|---|
 First Parish Church | |
 Seal | |
| Motto: "Let the children guard what the sires have won." | |
 Location in Middlesex County in Massachusetts | |
| Coordinates: 42°35′59″N 71°22′04″W / 42.59972°N 71.36778°W | |
| Country |  United States |
| State |  Massachusetts |
| County | Middlesex |
| Region | New England |
| English Settlement | 1652 |
| Incorporated | 1655 |
| Named for | Chelmsford, Essex |
| Government | |
| • Type | Representative town meeting |
| • Select board |
|
| • Town manager | Paul E. Cohen |
| Area | |
• Total | 23.1 sq mi (59.8 km2) |
| • Land | 22.4 sq mi (58.0 km2) |
| • Water | 0.7 sq mi (1.8 km2) |
| Elevation | 246 ft (75 m) |
| Population (2020)[2] | |
• Total | 36,392 |
| • Density | 1,625.9/sq mi (627.8/km2) |
| Time zone | UTC−5 (Eastern) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC−4 (Eastern) |
| ZIP Codes | 01824 (Chelmsford) 01863 (North Chelmsford) |
| Area code | 351/978 |
| FIPS code | 25-017-13135 |
| GNIS feature ID | 0618220 |
| Website | www |
Chelmsford (/ˈtʃɛlmsfərd/) is a town in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States.
Chelmsford was incorporated in May 1655 by an act of the Massachusetts General Court. When Chelmsford was incorporated, its local economy was fueled by lumber mills, limestone quarries, kilns. In the 1700s, the Chelmsford militia played a role in the American Revolution at the Battle of Lexington and Concord and the Battle of Bunker Hill. The farming community of East Chelmsford was incorporated as Lowell in the 1820s; over the next decades it would go on to become one of the first large-scale factory towns in the United States because of its early role in the country's Industrial Revolution. Chelmsford experienced a drastic increase in population between 1950 and 1970, coinciding with the connection of U.S. Route 3 in Lowell to Massachusetts Route 128 in the 1950s and the extension of U.S. Route 3 from Chelmsford to New Hampshire in the 1960s.
Chelmsford has a representative town meeting form of government. The town has one public high school—Chelmsford High School, which was ranked[3] among the top 500 schools in the nation in 2015—as well as two middle schools, and four elementary schools. The charter middle school started in Chelmsford became a regional charter school (Innovation Academy Charter School) covering grades 5 through 12, now located in Tyngsborough. Chelmsford high school age students also have the option of attending the Nashoba Valley Technical High School, located in Westford. In 2011, Chelmsford was declared the 28th best place to live in the United States by Money magazine.[4]
- ^ "2022 U.S. Gazetteer Files: Massachusetts: County Subdivisions". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved June 8, 2023.
- ^ "P1. Race – Chelmsford town, Massachusetts: 2020 DEC Redistricting Data (PL 94-171)". U.S. Census Bureau. Retrieved June 8, 2023.
- ^ "America's Top High Schools". Newsweek. Newsweek LLC. September 2, 2015. Archived from the original on October 16, 2016. Retrieved September 15, 2015.
- ^ Ashford, Kate; Bartz, Andrea; Cox, Jeff; Fitch, Asa; Gandel, Stephen; Hyatt, Josh; Kelley, Rob; Knight, Kathleen; et al. (2011). "Best Places to Live: Top 100". CNN Money. Archived from the original on June 14, 2012. Retrieved June 25, 2012.