Dana is a former town located in Worcester County, Massachusetts

Worcester County, Massachusetts

-Demographics:In 1990 Worcester County had a population of 709,705.As of the census of 2000, there were 750,963 people, 283,927 households, and 192,502 families residing in the county. The population density was 496 people per square mile . There were 298,159 housing units at an average density...

. Formed from parts of Petersham

Petersham, Massachusetts

Petersham is a town in Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 1,234 at the 2010 census. Petersham is home to a considerable amount of conservation land, including the Quabbin Reservation, Harvard Forest, the Swift River Reservation, and Federated Women's Club State...

, Greenwich

Greenwich, Massachusetts

Greenwich was a town in Hampshire County, Massachusetts.It was established in 1739 as Quabbin, incorporated as Quabbin Parish in 1754 and became the town of Greenwich in 1754. It was located along the East and Middle branches of the Swift River...

, and Hardwick

Hardwick, Massachusetts

Hardwick is a town in Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States, about west of the city of Worcester. It had a population of 2,990 at the 2010 census. It includes the villages of Hardwick, Gilbertville, Wheelwright and Old Furnace.- History :...

, it was incorporated in 1801, and was disincorporated on April 28, 1938, as part of the creation of the Quabbin Reservoir

Quabbin Reservoir

The Quabbin Reservoir is the largest inland body of water in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts and was built between 1930 and 1939. Today along with the Wachusett Reservoir, it is the primary water supply for Boston, some to the east, as well as 40 other communities in Greater Boston...

. Upon disincorporation, most of the town was returned to the adjacent town of Petersham. The majority of the land of the former town is still above water.

As with the nearby town of Prescott

Prescott, Massachusetts

Prescott is a former town in Hampshire County, Massachusetts. It was incorporated in 1822 from portions of Pelham and New Salem. It was named in honor of Colonel William Prescott, who commanded the American forces at the Battle of Bunker Hill. It was disincorporated on April 28, 1938 as part of...

, after the disincorporation, houses were moved or razed, but cellar holes remained. Unlike Prescott, the public is allowed to visit the former town of Dana by foot, as the old narrow road is blocked off to cars. In the town center (which is still somewhat maintained by the Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation

Department of Conservation and Recreation (Massachusetts)

The Department of Conservation and Recreation is a state agency of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, situated in the Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs. It is best known for its parks and parkways. As of May 24, 2011 the Commissioner of the DCR is Edward M. Lambert, Jr...

), a stone marker has been installed, which reads: SITE OF DANA COMMON 1801-1938 To all those who sacrificed their homes and way of life (Erected by Dana Reunion, 1996)".

Quabbin towns

• Greenwich
  Greenwich, Massachusetts
  Greenwich was a town in Hampshire County, Massachusetts.It was established in 1739 as Quabbin, incorporated as Quabbin Parish in 1754 and became the town of Greenwich in 1754. It was located along the East and Middle branches of the Swift River...
  
  
• Enfield
  Enfield, Massachusetts
  Enfield was formerly a town in Hampshire County, Massachusetts, incorporated in 1816 from portions of Greenwich and Belchertown. It was named in honor of one of its early settlers, Robert Field...
  
  
• Prescott
  Prescott, Massachusetts
  Prescott is a former town in Hampshire County, Massachusetts. It was incorporated in 1822 from portions of Pelham and New Salem. It was named in honor of Colonel William Prescott, who commanded the American forces at the Battle of Bunker Hill. It was disincorporated on April 28, 1938 as part of...
  
  
• Millington

External links

• http://menotomymaps.com/quab_1.html. Map showing the towns buried under Quabbin as they looked in 1912 with original house locations and current reservoir water level.