WALPOLE, MASSACHUSETTS

'Walpole' is a town in Norfolk County, Massachusetts, United States. It is about located 17.9 miles from Boston and 23.5 miles from Providence, Rhode Island. The population was 22,824 at the 2000 census.
For geographic and demographic information on the census-designated place Walpole, please see the article Walpole (CDP), Massachusetts.

Contents

History

Geography

East Walpole

South Walpole

Demographics

Education

High Schools

Middle Schools

Elementary Schools

Private/Other Schools

Notable people

Sports

NFL

MLB

NHL

NBA

Other

Other Notable people

Sports

See also

External links

History

Walpole was first settled in 1659 and was considered a part of Dedham until officially incorporated in 1724. The town was named after Sir Robert Walpole, ''de facto'' first Prime Minister of Great Britain.
Walpole is known in Massachusetts as the location of MCI - Cedar Junction, a maximum security prison for males in Massachusetts. The prison was originally named MCI - Walpole, until town residents successfully lobbied in the mid-1980s for the change.
During World War II, Walpole had a population of roughly 7,000 citizens. Approximately 1,100 of them served in the war effort.

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 54.4 km² (21.0 mi²). 53.2 km² (20.5 mi²) of it is land and 1.2 km² (0.5 mi²) of it (2.19%) is water.
Walpole is bordered by Dover on the north, Medfield and Norfolk on the west, Foxborough on the south, Sharon and Norwood on the east, and Westwood on the northeast.

East Walpole

East Walpole is an area of Walpole that is neither separately incorporated nor census-designated; however, it has its own ZIP code, 02032. It is adjacent to the area of Norwood known as "South Norwood". Bird Park is located in East Walpole and is also the location of the old Danom Forge Blacksmith's Shop on what is now Washington Street.

South Walpole

South Walpole is an area of Walpole that is neither separately incorporated nor census-designated; however, it has its own ZIP code, 02071. South Walpole contains a town swimming pool(South Pool) and is adjacent to the area of Foxborough which contains Gillette Stadium.

Demographics

As of the census² of 2000, there were 22,824 people, 8,060 households, and 5,972 families residing in the town. The population density was 429.0/km² (1,111.2/mi²). There were 8,229 housing units at an average density of 154.7/km² (400.7/mi²). The racial makeup of the town was 95.41% White, 1.59% Black or African American, 0.11% Native American, 1.13% Asian, 0.01% Pacific Islander, 1.12% from other races, and 0.64% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 2.02% of the population.
There were 8,060 households out of which 35.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 63.2% were married couples living together, 8.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 25.9% were non-families. 22.5% of all households were made up of individuals and 11.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.72 and the average family size was 3.23.
In the town the population was spread out with 25.8% under the age of 18, 5.2% from 18 to 24, 30.6% from 25 to 44, 23.9% from 45 to 64, and 14.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females there were 100.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 98.5 males.
The median income for a household in the town was $74,757, and the median income for a family was $84,458. Males had a median income of $54,243 versus $39,516 for females. The per capita income for the town was $32,117. About 1.5% of families and 2.2% of the population were below the poverty line, including 1.8% of those under age 18 and 4.7% of those age 65 or over.

Education

There are seven schools in the Walpole Public School system:

High Schools

★ Walpole High School

Middle Schools

★ Bird Middle School

★ Johnson Middle School

Elementary Schools

★ Boyden School

★ Fisher School

★ Old Post Road School

★ Elm Street School

Private/Other Schools

★ Blessed Sacrament School (PreK-8)

★ Norfolk County Agricultural High School

Notable people

Sports

Walpole is home to more than a dozen people who went on to fame and fortune in various areas.

★ The following athletes and coaches once lived, or now live, in Walpole:

NFL

★ Todd Collins, NFL Quarterback

★ Tom Coughlin, NFL Head Coach

★ Butch Songin, retired NFL Quarterback

★ Danny Villa, NFL player, current Walpole High School athletic director

MLB

★ Joe Morgan, Major League Baseball Manager

NHL

★ Mike Milbury, NHL Hockey player, coach and executive

NBA

★ Jimmy Rodgers, NBA Coach

Other

★ Dina Rizzo, Member of Women's National Field Hockey team

★ Len Ceglarski, Long time hockey coach at Boston College
Also of note is the fact that the Walpole Americans, made up of all-stars from the town's individual little league teams, managed to play their way to the 2007 Little League World Series in Williamsport, Pennsylvania. This was the first time that Walpole had ever been represented in the LLWS, and several members of the team got their photos on the front pages of various major newspapers.

Other Notable people

★ Charles Farrell, the film actor and mayor of Palm Springs, California for seven years, was born in South Walpole and grew up in East Walpole.

★ The Walpole Historical Society reports that Joseph Nye Welch, the US Army Counsel who, in 1954, asked Senator Joe McCarthy during the Army-McCarthy hearings: “...have you no sense of decency, sir?” was a Walpole resident.

★ Charles S. Bird, who lived in East Walpole and built a multi-million dollar paper mill in the late 1800s and early 1900s, ran for Massachusetts governor several times and won the nomination as a Progressive candidate, but never won the general election.

★ Elsie Taylor, of South Walpole, was chosen as Miss Massachusetts in 1933 when she was 23 years old.

★ Gene Lavanchy, Walpole native, is a local broacaster on WFXT, hosting its popular morning news show. Formerly, he was an award winning sportcaster on WHDH (NBC), Boston.

Sports

★ Walpole High School teams have two nicknames. All teams are considered the 'Rebels', except for the girls field hockey team, who are called the 'Porkers.'
Some residents in Walpole wish to eradicate the "Rebel" mascot, due to its connections to its origins in the town in the 1960s, when symbols of the Confederacy (the Confederate Battle Flag) were used at sporting events. Some residents are offended by this association and its link, no matter how innocently, to America's racist past. They feel that using rebel symbols, logos, etc., trivializes the contribution made by numerous Walpole men during the Civil War.

★ In 2004, the Walpole Boys and Girls high school basketball teams captured the Massachusetts State Titles on the same day in the Fleet Center in Boston, MA.

★ Walpole Little League has won the state championship twice: 1991, and 2007. They went to the Little League World Series in 2007 with a record of 19-1. They defeated Shelton, CT 14-4 in five inning mercy rule to advance to the LLWS. In round robin play, Walpole was eliminated with a 1-2 record, after losing to Oregon and Georgia, 1-0 and 8-1 respectively, and finished 21-3.

See also

Norfolk County, MA

Walpole (CDP), MA

MCI Cedar Junction

External links

★ Town of Walpole

★ MCI - Cedar Junction

★ Town of Walpole News Site

★ Walpole Public School District site