TEWKSBURY, MASSACHUSETTS

'Tewksbury' (IPA pronunciation: ) is a town in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 28,851 at the 2000 census.

Contents

History

Geography

Demographics

Issues

References

External links

History

Tewksbury was first settled in 1637 and was officially incorporated in 1734 from Billerica. It is named after the town of Tewkesbury, England.

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 54.5 km² (21.1 mi²). 53.7 km² (20.7 mi²) of it is land and 0.9 km² (0.3 mi²) of it (1.61%) is water.
The Merrimack River forms part of the northern boundary of Tewksbury, and the Shawsheen River runs through the southern end of town as well.
Tewksbury is in Greater Lowell - The town is located about 25 miles north of Boston along I-93 and I-495 (Boston's outer beltway). Tewksbury borders the city of Lowell to the northwest, Dracut unreachable to the north across the Merrimack, Andover to the east, Wilmington to the southeast, and Billerica to the southwest. Tewksbury also meets the town of Chelmsford at a point in the middle of the Concord River along with Lowell and Billerica.

Demographics

As of the census² of 2000, there were 28,851 people, 9,964 households, and 7,692 families residing in the town. The population density was 537.6/km² (1,392.3/mi²). There were 10,158 housing units at an average density of 189.3/km² (490.2/mi²). The racial makeup of the town was 96.44% White, 0.67% African American, 0.12% Native American, 1.59% Asian, 0.01% Pacific Islander, 0.41% from other races, and 0.75% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.22% of the population.
There were 9,964 households out of which 35.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 65.1% were married couples living together, 9.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 22.8% were non-families. 18.9% of all households were made up of individuals and 7.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.81 and the average family size was 3.24.
In the town the population was spread out with 25.0% under the age of 18, 6.2% from 18 to 24, 32.8% from 25 to 44, 24.6% from 45 to 64, and 11.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females there were 96.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 93.7 males.
The median income for a household in the town was $68,800, and the median income for a family was $76,443. Males had a median income of $50,296 versus $33,918 for females. The per capita income for the town was $27,031. About 1.9% of families and 3.8% of the population were below the poverty line, including 2.4% of those under age 18 and 5.3% of those age 65 or over.

Issues

The town recently has had fiscal issues, stemming from years of mismanagement by town officials. Recent cuts have put a strain on public safety and schools, with Tewksbury Memorial High School being placed on warning status due to increased class sizes and poor facilities. Several Proposition 2 1/2 Overrides have failed in recent years due to a sense by taxpayers of wasteful projects, such as a recent $5 million expansion of the town senior center.

References

External links

★ Tewksbury Historical Society

★ Tewksbury Citizen's Active Web Forum

★ Tewksbury official website

★ Tewksbury Community Website

★ Tewksbury Pig Farm Odor