Plympton, Massachusetts
Encyclopedia
Plympton is a town in Plymouth County
, Massachusetts
, United States. The population was 2,820 at the 2010 census. The United States senator William Bradford
was born here.
and Middleboro, Massachusetts. The town was officially incorporated in 1707 and named for Plympton
, Devon
, England. In 1734, the town of Halifax separated and incorporated, and Carver did the same in 1790. The current boundaries of the town were set in 1862.
Early residents of Plympton were mostly farmers, living off of the land. The Industrial Revolution
brought about factories, which made shoes and shovels, as well as lumber and cotton mills. Today, the town is mostly rural and residential, with very little industry (although an industrial park is in the works). It is easily one of the least developed towns in the southeastern part of the state.
The town's most famous resident was Deborah Sampson
, born in the town in 1760. She is best known for pretending to be a man to fight in the American Revolution
.
, the town has a total area of 15.1 square miles (39.1 km²), of which 14.8 square miles (38.3 km²) are land and 0.3 square mile (0.776996433 km²) (2.31%) is water. Plympton is bordered by Halifax
to the northwest, Pembroke
to the north, Kingston
to the northeast, Carver
to the southeast, and Middleborough
to the southwest. Plympton is approximately 35 mi (56.3 km) south of Boston and east of Providence, Rhode Island
.
Plympton is mostly rural, with much of the land covered by forests. The northern tip of town lies along Silver Lake
, which also extends into Kingston, Pembroke and along the Halifax border. The Winnetuxet River
and many other brooks, as well as several smaller ponds, lie within the town. Plympton also has its own town forest and conservation area.
.
clips the southeastern corner of the town. Routes 58
and 106
pass through the town, Route 106 passing across the northern portion of town, and Route 58 passing from southeast to northwest. Just south of Silver Lake
, the Kingston/Plymouth Line of the MBTA's
Commuter Rail service to Boston passes through the town, with the nearest stop being in Halifax
. The nearest regional airport is Plymouth Municipal Airport
; the nearest national and international airport is Logan International Airport
in Boston.
of 2000, there were 2,637 people, 854 households, and 737 families residing in the town. The population density
was 178.3 people per square mile (68.8/km²). There were 872 housing units at an average density of 59.0 per square mile (22.8/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 96.85% White, 0.99% African American, 0.61% Native American, 0.34% Asian, 0.53% from other races
, and 0.68% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.42% of the population.
There were 854 households out of which 43.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 76.5% were married couples
living together, 7.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 13.7% were non-families. 10.5% of all households were made up of individuals and 3.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.09 and the average family size was 3.32.
In the town the population was spread out with 28.6% under the age of 18, 6.4% from 18 to 24, 29.5% from 25 to 44, 28.9% from 45 to 64, and 6.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females there were 96.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 91.3 males.
The median income for a household in the town was $70,045, and the median income for a family was $75,000. Males had a median income of $45,531 versus $34,000 for females. The per capita income
for the town was $24,344. About 0.8% of families and 2.1% of the population were below the poverty line, including 1.7% of those under age 18 and 3.4% of those age 65 or over.
as a part of the Twelfth Plymouth District, which includes Kingston and portions of Duxbury, Halifax, Middleborough and Plymouth. The town is represented in the Massachusetts Senate
as a part of the Plymouth and Barnstable District, which includes Bourne, Falmouth, Kingston, Pembroke, Plymouth, Sandwich and portions of Barnstable. The town is patrolled by its own full service Police department.
On the national level, Plympton is a part of Massachusetts's 10th congressional district
, and is currently represented by William R. Keating
. The state's senior (Class II) member of the United States Senate
, re-elected in 2008, is John Kerry
. The junior (Class I) senator, elected in 2010, is Scott Brown
.
Plympton is governed by the open town meeting
form of government, led by a board of selectmen
. The Town has its own police and fire departments, both of which are headquartered next to the town hall at the center of town. The town's post office is just south of the center of town along Route 58. Adjacent to the town hall on its southern side is the Plympton Public Library, a member of the SAILS library network.
through sixth grade. Both the Silver Lake Regional Middle School and the Silver Lake Regional High School
are located in neighboring Kingston. The school's athletics teams are nicknamed the Lakers, and their colors are red and silver. There are no private schools in Plympton.
Plymouth County, Massachusetts
Plymouth County is a county located in the U.S. state of Massachusetts. As of 2010, the population was 494,919. Its county seats are Plymouth and Brockton...
, Massachusetts
Massachusetts
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...
, United States. The population was 2,820 at the 2010 census. The United States senator William Bradford
William Bradford (1729-1808)
William Bradford was a physician, lawyer, and United States Senator from Rhode Island. He was born at Plympton, Massachusetts to Lt. Samuel Bradford and Sarah Gray, and was the great-great-grandson of the William Bradford who had been Governor of the Plymouth Colony...
was born here.
History
Plympton was first settled in 1662 as the western parish of Plymouth. Lands of the original town included all of Carver and Halifax, as well as small portions of Kingston, MassachusettsKingston, Massachusetts
Kingston is a coastal town in Plymouth County, Massachusetts, United States. According to the 2010 Census, it had a population of 12,629.-History:Before European settlers arrived in Kingston it was within the tribal home to the Wampanoag people...
and Middleboro, Massachusetts. The town was officially incorporated in 1707 and named for Plympton
Plympton
Plympton, or Plympton Maurice or Plympton St Maurice or Plympton St Mary or Plympton Erle, in south-western Devon, England is an ancient stannary town: an important trading centre in the past for locally mined tin, and a former seaport...
, Devon
Devon
Devon is a large county in southwestern England. The county is sometimes referred to as Devonshire, although the term is rarely used inside the county itself as the county has never been officially "shired", it often indicates a traditional or historical context.The county shares borders with...
, England. In 1734, the town of Halifax separated and incorporated, and Carver did the same in 1790. The current boundaries of the town were set in 1862.
Early residents of Plympton were mostly farmers, living off of the land. The Industrial Revolution
Industrial Revolution
The Industrial Revolution was a period from the 18th to the 19th century where major changes in agriculture, manufacturing, mining, transportation, and technology had a profound effect on the social, economic and cultural conditions of the times...
brought about factories, which made shoes and shovels, as well as lumber and cotton mills. Today, the town is mostly rural and residential, with very little industry (although an industrial park is in the works). It is easily one of the least developed towns in the southeastern part of the state.
The town's most famous resident was Deborah Sampson
Deborah Sampson
Deborah Samson Gannett , better known as Deborah Sampson, was an American woman who impersonated a man in order to serve in the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War. She is one of a small number of women with a documented record of military combat experience in that war...
, born in the town in 1760. She is best known for pretending to be a man to fight in the American Revolution
American Revolution
The American Revolution was the political upheaval during the last half of the 18th century in which thirteen colonies in North America joined together to break free from the British Empire, combining to become the United States of America...
.
Geography
According to the United States Census BureauUnited States Census Bureau
The United States Census Bureau is the government agency that is responsible for the United States Census. It also gathers other national demographic and economic data...
, the town has a total area of 15.1 square miles (39.1 km²), of which 14.8 square miles (38.3 km²) are land and 0.3 square mile (0.776996433 km²) (2.31%) is water. Plympton is bordered by Halifax
Halifax, Massachusetts
Halifax is a town in Plymouth County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 7,500 at the 2000 census.- History :Halifax was first settled by Europeans, most notably the Bosworth family from Bosworth Fields in England, in 1669, growing with lumbering and agriculture...
to the northwest, Pembroke
Pembroke, Massachusetts
Pembroke is a town in Plymouth County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 16,927 at the 2000 census.The southwestern section of Pembroke is also known as Bryantville...
to the north, Kingston
Kingston, Massachusetts
Kingston is a coastal town in Plymouth County, Massachusetts, United States. According to the 2010 Census, it had a population of 12,629.-History:Before European settlers arrived in Kingston it was within the tribal home to the Wampanoag people...
to the northeast, Carver
Carver, Massachusetts
Carver is a town in Plymouth County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 11,163 at the 2000 census, with an estimated 2008 population of 11,574. It is named for John Carver, the first governor of the Plymouth Colony.- Demographics :...
to the southeast, and Middleborough
Middleborough, Massachusetts
Middleborough is a town in Plymouth County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 21,117 as of 2008.For geographic and demographic information on the village of Middleborough Center, please see the article Middleborough Center, Massachusetts....
to the southwest. Plympton is approximately 35 mi (56.3 km) south of Boston and east of Providence, Rhode Island
Providence, Rhode Island
Providence is the capital and most populous city of Rhode Island and was one of the first cities established in the United States. Located in Providence County, it is the third largest city in the New England region...
.
Plympton is mostly rural, with much of the land covered by forests. The northern tip of town lies along Silver Lake
Silver Lake (Plymouth County, Massachusetts)
Silver Lake is a lake in Pembroke, Kingston, and Plympton, Massachusetts, south of Route 27 and east of Route 36. The Pembroke/Plympton town line is entirely within the lake, and a portion of the western shoreline of the lake is the town line with Halifax. The lake is the principal water supply...
, which also extends into Kingston, Pembroke and along the Halifax border. The Winnetuxet River
Winnetuxet River
The Winnetuxet River is a river in southeastern Massachusetts. It flows west from an unnamed pond near Cole Mill in Carver, through Plympton and Halifax, to the Taunton River.-External links:*...
and many other brooks, as well as several smaller ponds, lie within the town. Plympton also has its own town forest and conservation area.
.
Transportation
The new highway portion of U.S. Route 44U.S. Route 44
U.S. Route 44 is an east–west United States highway that runs for 237 miles through four states in the Northeastern region of the United States. The western terminus is at U.S. Route 209 and New York State Route 55 in Kerhonkson, a hamlet in the Hudson Valley region of New York...
clips the southeastern corner of the town. Routes 58
Massachusetts Route 58
Route 58 is a south–north highway in southeastern Massachusetts. For all but its final , the route lies within Plymouth County.-Route description:...
and 106
Massachusetts Route 106
-Route description:Route 106 begins in Plainville at Route 1A. The route heads east, intersecting U.S. Route 1 and Route 152 in quick succession, with Turnpike Lake between the three routes. As Route 106 passes south of Lake Mirimichi it enters the town of Foxborough...
pass through the town, Route 106 passing across the northern portion of town, and Route 58 passing from southeast to northwest. Just south of Silver Lake
Silver Lake (Plymouth County, Massachusetts)
Silver Lake is a lake in Pembroke, Kingston, and Plympton, Massachusetts, south of Route 27 and east of Route 36. The Pembroke/Plympton town line is entirely within the lake, and a portion of the western shoreline of the lake is the town line with Halifax. The lake is the principal water supply...
, the Kingston/Plymouth Line of the MBTA's
Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority
The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority, often referred to as the MBTA or simply The T, is the public operator of most bus, subway, commuter rail and ferry systems in the greater Boston, Massachusetts, area. Officially a "body politic and corporate, and a political subdivision" of the...
Commuter Rail service to Boston passes through the town, with the nearest stop being in Halifax
Halifax (MBTA station)
Halifax is a passenger rail station on MBTA Commuter Rail's Plymouth/Kingston Line. It is the station where the line splits for either Plymouth or Kingston, and is the penultimate station of the entire line....
. The nearest regional airport is Plymouth Municipal Airport
Plymouth Municipal Airport (Massachusetts)
Plymouth Municipal Airport is a town-owned, public-use airport located four nautical miles southwest of the central business district of Plymouth, a town in Plymouth County, Massachusetts, United States...
; the nearest national and international airport is Logan International Airport
Logan International Airport
General Edward Lawrence Logan International Airport is located in the East Boston neighborhood of Boston, Massachusetts . It covers , has six runways, and employs an estimated 16,000 people. It is the 19th busiest airport in the United States.Boston serves as a focus city for JetBlue Airways...
in Boston.
Demographics
As of the censusCensus
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population. The term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common...
of 2000, there were 2,637 people, 854 households, and 737 families residing in the town. The population density
Population density
Population density is a measurement of population per unit area or unit volume. It is frequently applied to living organisms, and particularly to humans...
was 178.3 people per square mile (68.8/km²). There were 872 housing units at an average density of 59.0 per square mile (22.8/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 96.85% White, 0.99% African American, 0.61% Native American, 0.34% Asian, 0.53% from other races
Race (United States Census)
Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the Federal Office of Management and Budget and the United States Census Bureau, are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...
, and 0.68% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.42% of the population.
There were 854 households out of which 43.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 76.5% were married couples
Marriage
Marriage is a social union or legal contract between people that creates kinship. It is an institution in which interpersonal relationships, usually intimate and sexual, are acknowledged in a variety of ways, depending on the culture or subculture in which it is found...
living together, 7.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 13.7% were non-families. 10.5% of all households were made up of individuals and 3.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.09 and the average family size was 3.32.
In the town the population was spread out with 28.6% under the age of 18, 6.4% from 18 to 24, 29.5% from 25 to 44, 28.9% from 45 to 64, and 6.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females there were 96.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 91.3 males.
The median income for a household in the town was $70,045, and the median income for a family was $75,000. Males had a median income of $45,531 versus $34,000 for females. The per capita income
Per capita income
Per capita income or income per person is a measure of mean income within an economic aggregate, such as a country or city. It is calculated by taking a measure of all sources of income in the aggregate and dividing it by the total population...
for the town was $24,344. About 0.8% of families and 2.1% of the population were below the poverty line, including 1.7% of those under age 18 and 3.4% of those age 65 or over.
Government
Plympton is represented in the Massachusetts House of RepresentativesMassachusetts House of Representatives
The Massachusetts House of Representatives is the lower house of the Massachusetts General Court, the state legislature of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. It is composed of 160 members elected from single-member electoral districts across the Commonwealth. Representatives serve two-year terms...
as a part of the Twelfth Plymouth District, which includes Kingston and portions of Duxbury, Halifax, Middleborough and Plymouth. The town is represented in the Massachusetts Senate
Massachusetts Senate
The Massachusetts Senate is the upper house of the Massachusetts General Court, the bicameral state legislature of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. The Senate comprises 40 elected members from 40 single-member senatorial districts in the state...
as a part of the Plymouth and Barnstable District, which includes Bourne, Falmouth, Kingston, Pembroke, Plymouth, Sandwich and portions of Barnstable. The town is patrolled by its own full service Police department.
On the national level, Plympton is a part of Massachusetts's 10th congressional district
Massachusetts's 10th congressional district
Massachusetts's 10th congressional district is a political constituency that includes parts of the South Shore of Massachusetts, and all of Cape Cod and the islands. With a population of 635,901 and a land area of , it is the most populous of Massachusetts's ten congressional districts and the...
, and is currently represented by William R. Keating
William R. Keating
William Richard "Bill" Keating is the U.S. Representative for . From 1999 to 2011 he was District Attorney of Norfolk County. He is a member of the Democratic Party and a former Massachusetts state representative and state senator....
. The state's senior (Class II) member of the United States Senate
United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...
, re-elected in 2008, is John Kerry
John Kerry
John Forbes Kerry is the senior United States Senator from Massachusetts, the 10th most senior U.S. Senator and chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. He was the presidential nominee of the Democratic Party in the 2004 presidential election, but lost to former President George W...
. The junior (Class I) senator, elected in 2010, is Scott Brown
Scott Brown
Scott Brown is a United States senator.Scott Brown may also refer to:-Sportsmen:*Scott Brown , American college football coach of Kentucky State...
.
Plympton is governed by the open town meeting
Open town meeting
An open town meeting is a form of town meeting in which all registered voters of a town may vote . This form of government is typical of smaller municipalities in the New England region of the United States....
form of government, led by a board of selectmen
Board of selectmen
The board of selectmen is commonly the executive arm of the government of New England towns in the United States. The board typically consists of three or five members, with or without staggered terms.-History:...
. The Town has its own police and fire departments, both of which are headquartered next to the town hall at the center of town. The town's post office is just south of the center of town along Route 58. Adjacent to the town hall on its southern side is the Plympton Public Library, a member of the SAILS library network.
Education
Plympton is a member of the Silver Lake Regional School District, which also includes the towns of Kingston and Halifax. Each town is responsible for its own elementary school, with a middle and high school shared between all three towns. Plympton operates the Dennett Elementary School for students from kindergartenKindergarten
A kindergarten is a preschool educational institution for children. The term was created by Friedrich Fröbel for the play and activity institute that he created in 1837 in Bad Blankenburg as a social experience for children for their transition from home to school...
through sixth grade. Both the Silver Lake Regional Middle School and the Silver Lake Regional High School
Silver Lake Regional High School
Silver Lake Regional High School is a public, regional high school in Massachusetts' South Shore region. It serves as the secondary school for the Silver Lake Regional School District, comprising the towns of Kingston, Plympton and Halifax, Massachusetts...
are located in neighboring Kingston. The school's athletics teams are nicknamed the Lakers, and their colors are red and silver. There are no private schools in Plympton.
External links
- Plympton on South Shore Network
- Plympton Public Library
- Answer Book/Plympton: "Everything you need to know"