Tyngsborough, Massachusetts
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| Settled: 1661 – Incorporated: 1809 | ||
| Zip Code(s): 01879 – Area Code(s): 351 / 978 | ||
| Official website: http://www.tyngsboroughmass.com/ | ||
| Location | ||
|---|---|---|
 Location in Massachusetts |
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| Government | ||
| County | Middlesex County | |
| Form of Government | Open town meeting | |
| Executive office | Town Administrator | |
| Geography | ||
| Area | ||
| Total | 18.1 mi² / 46.7 km² | |
| Land | 16.9 mi² / 43.7 km² | |
| Water | 1.2 mi² / 3.1 km² | |
| Time zone | Eastern (UTC-5) | |
| Summer (DST) | Eastern (UTC-4) | |
| Population | ||
| Total (2000) | 11081 | |
| Density | 657.4/mi² / 253.8/km² | |
Tyngsborough (also spelled Tyngsboro) is a town located in the northwest section of Middlesex County, Massachusetts. Composed of 17.86 square miles of land and surface water, Tyngsborough borders the towns of Dunstable, Groton, Westford, Chelmsford, Dracut, and the City of Lowell, as well as the New Hampshire communities of Hudson, Pelham, and the City of Nashua. Tyngsborough is under 40 miles from Boston along the recently widened Route 3 corridor. The town calls itself 'The Gateway to the White Mountains' of New Hampshire, which is the source of the Merrimack River that bisects the town. As of the 2000 census, the town population was 11,081 but has experienced a tremendous burst in residential construction in the last 20 years as part of Greater Boston.
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[edit] History
Tyngsborough was first settled in 1661 and was officially incorporated on February 23rd, 1809. Tyngsborough was founded by Colonel Jonathan Tyng whose home, the Tyng Mansion House, was one of the oldest north of Boston. The house stood until the 1970s, when it was destroyed by arson. Early on Tyngsborough residents fought a series of small and bloody skirmishes with local Native American tribes. Evidence of this can be found in several old colonial homes in town that still have emergency passages that were used during these attacks. After Tyngsborough was incorporated it became known for its ferries which travelled up and down the Merrimack river, the quarries that produced granite, and several box companies that started in town. As the town developed, Tyngsborough became a vacation community and had a large seasonal resident population even up until the late 1960's. Today, Tyngsborough is primarily a bedroom community, bordering both the cities of Lowell, Massachusetts and Nashua, New Hampshire, as well as being an easy commute to the Boston area. The town is probably best known today for its green painted single-arched iron bridge over the Merrimack. Constructed in the early 1930s as a replacement for an earlier wooden planked structure, this bridge has become the town's emblem, and more practically, a major river crossing for residents of Massachusetts and New Hampshire alike. Having fallen into serious disrepair, the green bridge has been replaced by a temporary structure while work is done to restore the former.
[edit] Geography
According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 46.7 km² (18.0 mi²). 43.7 km² (16.9 mi²) of it is land and 3.1 km² (1.2 mi²) of it (6.65%) is water. Besides a series of lakes and ponds that spot Tyngsborough the town is split in two by the Merrimack River which runs roughly north-south close to the center of town. The land is mostly rolling hills, small cleared fields, and quite a bit of wooded land. Marshlands can also be found in the area although they are not as prevalent as in the surrounding towns.
[edit] Demographics
As of the census2 of 2000, there were 11,081 people, 3,731 households, and 2,947 families residing in the town. The population density was 253.8/km² (657.4/mi²). There were 3,806 housing units at an average density of 87.2/km² (225.8/mi²). The racial makeup of the town was 95.63% White, 0.50% African American, 0.23% Native American, 2.48% Asian, 0.04% Pacific Islander, 0.14% from other races, and 0.99% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.11% of the population.
There were 3,731 households out of which 44.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 67.5% were married couples living together, 8.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 21.0% were non-families. 16.1% of all households were made up of individuals and 4.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.97 and the average family size was 3.37.
In the town the population was spread out with 30.3% under the age of 18, 5.7% from 18 to 24, 35.7% from 25 to 44, 21.6% from 45 to 64, and 6.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 35 years. For every 100 females there were 97.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 94.5 males.
The median income for a household in the town was $69,818, and the median income for a family was $78,680. Males had a median income of $46,942 versus $33,396 for females. The per capita income for the town was $27,249. About 4.0% of families and 4.7% of the population were below the poverty line, including 6.2% of those under age 18 and 5.6% of those age 65 or over.
[edit] Financial
For Fiscal Year 2005, Tyngsborough will operate on a $30 million budget. 88% of the tax base is residential taxes, and the town’s 11,700 residents will be taxed at the rate of $11.85 per thousand. The average residential tax bill is $4,024.
[edit] External links
- Tyngsborough official website
- The Lowell Sun (Newspaper) website
- Massachusetts Municipal Association website
- Tyngsborough community portal
- Tyngsborough Public Schools website
