WEST NEWBURY, MASSACHUSETTS

'West Newbury' is a town located in Essex County, Massachusetts. It is situated on the Merrimac River and is an old-fashioned, sleepy New England town with a deep history and exciting current events. Along with neighboring Merrimac, Massachusetts and Groveland, Massachusetts, it is part of the Pentucket Regional School District.

Contents

History

Geography

Demographics

Notable residents

Trivia

Bibliography

External links

History

West Newbury was first settled in 1635 as part of neighboring Newbury. On February 18, 1819, the General Court of Massachusetts passed an act "to incorporate the town of Parsons."^[1] The initial proposals had been made in the late 18th century, but determined resistance from the town of Newbury, which had already lost Newburyport, blocked the measure for decades. On June 14, 1820, the court passed another act to change the name to West Newbury.

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 37.8 km² (14.6 mi²). 35.0 km² (13.5 mi²) of it is land and 2.8 km² (1.1 mi²) of it is water. The total area is 7.40% water. The town is 40 miles north of Boston.

Demographics

As of the census² of 2005, the town had a total population of 4,306.
There are 1,392 households, and 1,183 families residing in the town. The population density is 118.5/km² (306.9/mi²). There are 1,423 housing units at an average density of 40.6/km² (105.3/mi²).
Of the 1,392 households, 46.6% have children under the age of 18 living with them, 76.8% are married couples living together, 6.2% have a female householder with no husband present, and 15.0% are non-families. 11.9% of all households are made up of individuals and 5.2% have someone living alone who is 65 years of age or older. The average household size is 2.98 and the average family size is 3.25.
The racial makeup of the town is 98.48% White, 0.19% African American, 0.02% Native American, 0.53% Asian, 0.00% Pacific Islander, 0.36% from other races, and 0.41% from two or more races. 0.65% of the population are Hispanic or Latino of any race.
In the town, the population is spread out with 30.0% under the age of 18, 4.3% from 18 to 24, 27.0% from 25 to 44, 29.9% from 45 to 64, and 8.8% who are 65 years of age or older. The median age is 40 years. For every 100 females there are 99.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there are 93.9 males.
The median income for a household in the town is $92,828, and the median income for a family is $99,050. Males have a median income of $80,670 versus $40,189 for females. The per capita income for the town is $35,323. 3.8% of the population and 2.8% of families are below the poverty line. Out of the total population, 3.8% of those under the age of 18 and 9.8% of those 65 and older are living below the poverty line.

Notable residents

★ Professional wrestler John Cena of World Wrestling Entertainment current WWE Champion -- as well as his father, John Cena Sr.; commissioner of East Coast Championship Wrestling.

★ Rawly Eastwick- Former professional baseball player.

Trivia

★ West Newbury provided the geographical inspiration for the ''Mad Scientists' Club'' series of stories by Bertrand R. Brinley.

★ John Cena's music video, 'Right Now' was shot entirely in West Newbury, Massachusetts.

Bibliography

★ History of Newbury, Mass. 1635-1902, Currier, John James, , , Damrell & Upham, 1902, Covers the early history of West Newbury before separation from Newbury. Downloadable from Google Books.

External links