Ashby

Ashby, Massachusetts
—  Town  —
The Ashby Market
Location in Middlesex County in Massachusetts
Coordinates: 42°40′40″N 71°49′15″W / 42.67778°N 71.82083°W / 42.67778; -71.82083Coordinates: 42°40′40″N 71°49′15″W / 42.67778°N 71.82083°W / 42.67778; -71.82083
Country	United States
State	Massachusetts
County	Middlesex
Settled	1676
Incorporated	1767
Government
• Type	Open town meeting
Area
• Total	24.2 sq mi (62.6 km2)
• Land	23.8 sq mi (61.6 km2)
• Water	0.4 sq mi (1.0 km2)
Elevation	904 ft (276 m)
Population (2010)
• Total	3,074
• Density	130/sq mi (49/km2)
Time zone	Eastern (UTC-5)
• Summer (DST)	Eastern (UTC-4)
ZIP code	01431
Area code(s)	351 / 978
FIPS code	25-01955
GNIS feature ID	0618214
Website	www.ci.ashby.ma.us

Ashby is a town in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 3,074 as of the 2010 census.^[1]

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 24.2 square miles (63 km²), of which 23.8 square miles (62 km²) is land and 0.4 square miles (1.0 km²) (1.53%) is water.

Ashby is bordered by New Ipswich, New Hampshire and Mason, New Hampshire to the north, Townsend to the east, Lunenburg to the southeast, Fitchburg to the south, and Ashburnham to the west.

Public transportation

Public transportation for Ashby is largely supplied by the Montachusett Regional Transit Authority (MART). MART^[2] operates fixed-route bus services, shuttle services, as well as paratransit services within the Montachusett Region.

Demographics

As of the census^[13] of 2000, there were 2,845 people, 978 households, and 783 families residing in the town. The population density was 119.6 people per square mile (46.2/km²). There were 1,011 housing units at an average density of 42.5 per square mile (16.4/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 98.03% White, 0.28% African American, 0.21% Native American, 0.35% Asian, 0.11% from other races, and 1.02% from two or more races. The ethnic makeup was 0.84% Hispanic or Latino. 14.9% were of English, 14.3% Irish, 13.9% French, 13.3% Finnish, 8.2% American, 7.9% French Canadian, 6.3% Italian and 5.4% German ancestry according to Census 2000.

There were 978 households out of which 39.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 68.6% were married couples living together, 7.9% had a female householder with no husband present, and 19.9% were non-families. 15.1% of all households were made up of individuals and 5.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.89 and the average family size was 3.25.

In the town the population was spread out with 28.0% under the age of 18, 6.6% from 18 to 24, 31.0% from 25 to 44, 24.9% from 45 to 64, and 9.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females there were 100.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 99.1 males.

The median income for a household in the town was $61,000, and the median income for a family was $64,900. Males had a median income of $40,781 versus $28,150 for females. The per capita income for the town was $21,648. About 3.7% of families and 5.1% of the population were below the poverty line, including 5.1% of those under age 18 and 3.3% of those age 65 or over.

History

First Parish Church (Unitarian Universalist), built 1809 as the town's meetinghouse to a pattern by architect Asher Benjamin

Ashby was first settled in 1676 and was officially incorporated in 1767.

Notable residents

• Prince Estabrook, enslaved American patriot who fought and was wounded at the battle of Lexington is buried in the graveyard behind the Unitarian-Universalist church. He gained his emancipation following his service to the Continental Army.

See also

• Ashby Free Public Library
• Ashby Police Department (Massachusetts)

References

External links

• Town of Ashby official website

v t e Municipalities and communities of Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States Cities Cambridge Everett Lowell Malden Marlborough Medford Melrose Newton Somerville Waltham Watertown Woburn Towns Acton Arlington Ashby Ashland Ayer Bedford Belmont Billerica Boxborough Burlington Carlisle Chelmsford Concord Dracut Dunstable Framingham Groton Holliston Hopkinton Hudson Lexington Lincoln Littleton Maynard Natick North Reading Pepperell Reading Sherborn Shirley Stoneham Stow Sudbury Tewksbury Townsend Tyngsborough Wakefield Wayland Westford Weston Wilmington Winchester CDPs Ayer Cochituate Devens East Pepperell Groton Hopkinton Hudson Littleton Common Pepperell Pinehurst Shirley Townsend West Concord Other villages Auburndale Chestnut Hill Gleasondale Nabnasset Newton Centre Newton Highlands Newton Lower Falls Newton Upper Falls Newtonville Nonantum North Billerica North Chelmsford Waban West Newton