Burlington, Massachusetts

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Burlington, Massachusetts
Location in Middlesex County in Massachusetts
Location in Middlesex County in Massachusetts
Coordinates: 42°30′17″N 71°11′46″W / 42.50472, -71.19611
Country United States
State Massachusetts
County Middlesex
Settled 1641
Incorporated 1799
Government
 - Type Representative town meeting
Area
 - Total 11.9 sq mi (30.8 km²)
 - Land 11.8 sq mi (30.6 km²)
 - Water 0.1 sq mi (0.2 km²)
Elevation 218 ft (66 m)
Population (2000)
 - Total 22,876
 - Density 1,936.4/sq mi (747.6/km²)
Time zone Eastern (UTC-5)
 - Summer (DST) Eastern (UTC-4)
ZIP code 01803
Area code(s) 339 / 781
FIPS code 25-09840
GNIS feature ID 0618219
Website: www.burlington.org

Burlington is a town in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 22,876 at the 2000 census.

Contents

[edit] History

Burlington was first settled in 1641 and was officially incorporated on February 28, 1799. The town is sited on the watersheds of the Ipswich, Mystic, and Shawsheen rivers. It is now a suburban industrial town at the junction of the Boston-Merrimack corridor, but for most of its history it was almost entirely agricultural, selling hops and rye to Boston and supplementing that income with small shoe-making shops. Early railroad expansion passed the town by (although the town was serviced by the Middlesex Turnpike), limiting its early development, and Burlington continued to cure hams for the Boston market and produce milk, fruit, and vegetables.

This picture changed drastically, however, as soon as Route 128 was built. The highway kicked off an enormous expansion, and between 1955 and 1965 Burlington was the fastest growing town in the state. In one five year period, its population tripled as residential and commercial retail development exploded creating the town's present character.

Burlington's public schools have recently graduated many prominent athletes, including four Olympians, and othes who have gone to have successful careers the NHL, NFL, and Major League Baseball.

It is believed that Burlington takes its name from the English town of Bridlington, however this has never been confirmed.

[edit] Geography

Located in northeastern Massachusetts, Burlington is bordered by Bedford on the west, Billerica on the northwest, Wilmington on the northeast, Woburn on the southeast and south, and Lexington on the south. Burlington is 12 miles south of Lowell, 13 miles northwest of Boston, 36 miles southeast of Fitchburg, and 224 miles from New York City. Its highest point is Greenleaf Mountain (290' above sea level), the lowest point is the Great Meadow (150' above sea level). The elevation at Town Hall is 220' above sea level. The largest body of water is the 500 million gallon Mill Pond Reservoir in the eastern part of the town.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 11.9 square miles (30.8 km²), of which, 11.8 square miles (30.6 km²) of it is land and 0.1 square miles (0.2 km²) of it (0.59%) is water.

[edit] Demographics

As of the census[1] of 2000, there were 22,876 people, 8,289 households, and 6,374 families residing in the town. The population density was 1,936.4 people per square mile (747.9/km²). There were 8,445 housing units at an average density of 714.9/sq mi (276.1/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 86.71% White, 1.36% Black or African American, 0.07% Native American, 10.65% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 0.32% from other races, and 0.86% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.29% of the population.

There were 8,289 households out of which 32.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 65.2% were married couples living together, 9.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 23.1% were non-families. 19.1% of all households were made up of individuals and 7.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.76 and the average family size was 3.18.

In the town the population was spread out with 23.6% under the age of 18, 6.3% from 18 to 24, 31.1% from 25 to 44, 25.2% from 45 to 64, and 13.9% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females there were 97.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 93.7 males.

The median income for a household in the town was $75,240, and the median income for a family was $82,072. Males had a median income of $55,635 versus $36,486 for females. The per capita income for the town was $30,732. About 1.3% of families and 1.9% of the population were below the poverty line, including 2.8% of those under age 18 and 1.8% of those age 65 or over.

[edit] Government

Burlington is governed by a 108 member representative Town Meeting (18 representatives elected per precinct) and a five member executive Board of Selectmen. The members of the Board as of early 2008 and the first election dates and terms ends are[2]:

  • Sonia Rollins, Chairman, First elected 4/04, Term ends 2010
  • Gary J. Gianino, Vice Chairman, First elected 4/93, Term ends 2011
  • Albert L. Fay Jr., First elected 4/00, Term ends 2009
  • Ralph C. Patuto, First elected 4/06, Term ends 2009
  • Walter T. Zenkin, First elected 4/07, Term ends 2010

The current Town Administrator is Robert Mercier. Thomas Hickey is the Assistant Town Administrator.

[edit] Education

Burlington has six public schools (four elementary schools, one middle school, and one high school) which comprise the Burlington Public School District. The elementary schools are Fox Hill, Francis Wyman, Memorial, and Pine Glen. Burlington is also served by the Shawsheen Valley Technical High School. In addition it is home to several private schools.

The town operates an Before and After School Program[3] and offers an integrated Preschool Program.[4]

[edit] Commerce

Over the last 15 years, Burlington has experienced a boom in commercial growth with the continuous expansion of the Burlington Mall and the construction of the Wayside Commons, which includes an L.L. Bean and a Capital Grille. Rounder Records also now calls Burlington home. Many new buildings have been built along the town's main road Cambridge St. (Rt. 3A) which have ushered in new technology companies. It is a relatively well positioned town in the state - located at the intersection of Interstate 95 and US 3, Burlington is just 20 minutes from Boston, half an hour from New Hampshire, and an hour from Rhode Island.

Shops and attractions in Burlington include:

AMC Burlington 10 movie theater, Chili's Restaurant, Barnes & Noble, Circuit City, Tweeter, Daddy's Junky Music, The Escadrille Restaurant, Macaroni Grill.

In the Middlesex Mall: Expo Design Center, Old Navy, Market Basket and Joanne Fabrics.

In the Burlington Mall: Hollister, Build-A-Bear Workshop, Lord & Taylor, Victoria's Secret, Aeropostale, Apple Computer, Rainforest Cafe, Aldo Shoes, Caché, Eddie Bauer, Cheesecake Factory, Macy's, American Eagle Outfitters, Abercrombie & Fitch, Johnny Rockets, Sears, Legal Sea Foods, FYE, and more. In 2007/2008 the mall added a new higher end wing including specialty stores such as Nordstrom, J. Crew, bluemercury, Jasmine Sola, RUEHL and Martin + Osa.

At Wayside Commons: L.L. Bean, Bag 'n Baggage, Fresh City, Not Your Average Joe's, The Capital Grille, Cold Stone Creamery and Borders.

[edit] Points of interest

This list is incomplete; you can help by expanding it.
  • The Burlington Town Common and Simonds Park are in the center of town and there are multiple parks and public recreation facilities throughout town which have basketball courts, tennis courts, baseball fields, soccer fields, gymnasia, an indoor skating rink (Burlington Ice Palace) and a skatepark.
  • The Mill Pond Conservation Area[5] is in the eastern part of town bordering Woburn and Wilmington. The largest conservation area in Burlington, the Mill Pond Conservation Area includes over 140 acres of rolling and steep terrain. Numerous marked and unmarked trails cross through the conservation area. These trails allow for long enjoyable hiking or biking experiences. The land has numerous access points, including the corner of Winter and Chestnut Streets, through a gate at the end of Hansen Avenue, and through a gate at the end of the offshoot from Town Line Road.
  • The Mill Pond located within the Mill Pond Conservation Area. Fishing is allowed with special permit. The pond is feeding one of the two water treatment plants in Burlington. The Mill Pond Water Treatment Plant has been upgraded in 2007 and has the capacity to treat up to 6 million gallons of water per day[6].
  • The Mary Cummings Park is envisioned as one of the great public parks of Greater Boston, however it fell into great neglect. This over two hundred acre public park on the Burlington-Woburn border was created by Mary P.C. Cummings 1927 and was entrusted to the City of Boston to be kept forever open as a recreational park. In recent years, the City of Boston has tried to discourage public access and has investigated selling the park to fund the Rose Kennedy Greenway. The Burlington RC Flyers maintain a field[7] in the park.

[edit] Notable residents

[edit] References

  1. ^ American FactFinder. United States Census Bureau. Retrieved on 2008-01-31.
  2. ^ Burlington Selectmen
  3. ^ Burlington Before and After School Programs
  4. ^ Burlington Integrated Preschool
  5. ^ Town Of Burlington Conservation Areas
  6. ^ Burlington Water Department
  7. ^ The Burlington RC Flyers' Airstrip in Mary Cummings Park

[edit] External links

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Municipalities and communities of
Middlesex County, Massachusetts
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