Shirley, Massachusetts

Shirley, Massachusetts
Old Shirley Municipal Building in 2008.
Old Shirley Municipal Building in 2008.
Official seal of Shirley, Massachusetts
Location in Middlesex County in Massachusetts
Location in Middlesex County in Massachusetts
Coordinates: 42°33′31″N 71°38′47″W / 42.55861°N 71.64639°W / 42.55861; -71.64639
CountryUnited States
StateMassachusetts
CountyMiddlesex
Settled1720
Incorporated1753
Government
 • TypeOpen town meeting
Area
 • Total15.9 sq mi (41.2 km2)
 • Land15.8 sq mi (41.0 km2)
 • Water0.1 sq mi (0.2 km2)
Elevation
279 ft (85 m)
Population
 (2020)
 • Total7,431[1]
Time zoneUTC-5 (Eastern)
 • Summer (DST)UTC-4 (Eastern)
ZIP code
01464
Area code351 / 978
FIPS code25-61590
GNIS feature ID0618234
Websiteshirley-ma.gov

Shirley is a town in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. It is approximately thirty miles west-northwest of Boston. The population was 7,431 at the 2020 census. The town has a well-preserved historic New England town center.

It is home to the Massachusetts Correctional Institution – Shirley, a medium-security state prison. (The neighboring maximum-security Souza-Baranowski Correctional Center lies just outside the town limits in the town of Lancaster.) The remains of a Shaker village have been preserved within the grounds of the prison.

  1. ^ "Census - Geography Profile: Shirley town, Middlesex County, Massachusetts". Retrieved November 7, 2021.