Bridgewater, Massachusetts facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Bridgewater, Massachusetts
City
Town of Bridgewater
Bridgewater Central Square
Flag Seal
Location in Plymouth County in Massachusetts
Bridgewater, Massachusetts Location in the United States
Country	United States
State	Massachusetts
County	Plymouth
Settled	1650
Incorporated	1656
Government
• Type	Town Council
Area
• Total	28.2 sq mi (73.1 km2)
• Land	27.5 sq mi (71.2 km2)
• Water	0.7 sq mi (1.9 km2)
Elevation	104 ft (32 m)
Population  (2020)
• Total	28,633
• Density	1,015.4/sq mi (391.70/km2)
Time zone	UTC-5 (Eastern)
• Summer (DST)	UTC-4 (Eastern)
ZIP code	02324, 02325
Area code(s)	508 / 774
FIPS code	25-08085
GNIS feature ID	0619466
Website	www.bridgewaterma.org

Bridgewater is a town located in Plymouth County, in the state of Massachusetts, United States. As of the 2020 U.S. Census, the town’s population was 28,633. Bridgewater is located approximately 25 miles (40 km) south of Boston and approximately 35 miles east of Providence, Rhode Island.

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 28.2 square miles (73 km²), of which 27.5 square miles (71 km²) is land and 0.7 square miles (1.8 km²) (2.62%) is water. Bridgewater is 99th out of the 351 communities in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, and eighth out of the twenty-seven municipalities in Plymouth County in terms of land area. The town is bordered by West Bridgewater to the northwest, East Bridgewater to the northeast, Halifax to the east, Middleborough to the south, and Raynham to the west. Bridgewater is approximately 5 miles south of Brockton, 10 miles northeast of Taunton, and 25 miles south of Boston, of which it is a suburb.

Neighborhoods in Bridgewater include Stanley, Scotland Park, Pratt Town, Paper Mill Village, and South Bridgewater.

Bridgewater lies along the Taunton River, which has several other rivers and brooks which branch off the main waterway. There are also several ponds, the largest of which is Lake Nippenicket along the western edge of the town. There is a state forest, a town forest, several conservation areas and a large portion of the Hockomock Swamp Wildlife Management Area, in the western part of town. Parts of this swamp give rise to the so-called Bridgewater Triangle, a small area of concentrated reports of strange Fortean phenomena, colonial "dark days", Bigfoot and mysterious black panthers, UFO sightings, and other weird encounters, a phrase coined by Loren Coleman, author of Mysterious America, often compared to the Bermuda Triangle.

Demographics

As of the census of 2000, there were 25,185 people, 7,526 households, and 5,584 families residing in the town. The population density was 916.2 people per square mile (353.7/km²). There were 7,652 housing units at an average density of 278.4 per square mile (107.5/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 87.28% White, 17.47% People of Color.

There were 7,526 households, out of which 38.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 61.5% were married couples living together, 9.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 25.8% were non-families. 19.6% of all households were made up of individuals, and 7.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.81 and the average family size was 3.27.

In the town, the population was spread out, with 22.9% under the age of 18, 14.7% from 18 to 24, 32.9% from 25 to 44, 20.9% from 45 to 64, and 8.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 34 years. For every 100 females, there were 110.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 111.9 males.

The median income for a household in the town was $65,318, and the median income for a family was $73,953. Males had a median income of $48,438 versus $32,383 for females. The per capita income for the town was $23,105. About 1.9% of families and 3.5% of the population were below the poverty line, including 2.6% of those under age 18 and 6.1% of those age 65 or over.

Statistically, Bridgewater is the 71st largest municipality in the Commonwealth by population, and 110th by population density. In the county, Bridgewater ranks third in population and seventh in density.

Early demographics

Populations from 1765 through 1840, and 1855 are from a non-government source. From 1820 forward, the population excludes North, West and East Bridgewater.

Transportation

Bridgewater is the site of the intersection of Interstate 495 and Mass. Route 24, with only a one-mile stretch of the interstate highway running through the southwestern corner of the town. Just north of this intersection along Mass. Route 24 are two large service areas, both of which have restaurants and a gas station. They are the only two such full service areas along Mass. Route 24, or, for that matter, anywhere along the highways of Southeastern Massachusetts (aside from a stop along U.S. Route 6 in Barnstable; that stop, however, is considered to be off the highway). At the center of town, Mass. Route 18, Mass. Route 28 and Mass. Route 104 meet at the Town Common. Mass. Routes 18 and 28, both north–south routes, are coextensive from this point south to the road's intersection with U.S. Route 44 in Middleborough. Mass. Route 104 passes from east to west, with ramp access to Mass. Route 24 in the west. A short portion of Mass. Route 106 passes along the town line in the northeast of town; Mass. Route 104 's eastern terminus is at that route, just along the East Bridgewater line.

The Middleborough-Lakeville line of the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) commuter rail passes through the town, with a stop at the southern end of Bridgewater State University's campus. The stop is just south of the university's main parking lots at the Southern Campus. There is a small air strip in nearby Taunton, and the nearest national air service can be found at T. F. Green Airport outside Providence and at Logan International Airport in Boston.

Economy

In the late 1960s, the economy of Bridgewater was dependent upon the Old Colony Correctional Center and other Massachusetts Correctional Institutions of the MCD in Bridgewater, Bridgewater State Hospital and the Bridgewater Teacher's College (now the Bridgewater State University). Donald Cabana, who served as a prison guard at the Bridgewater prison and later became the superintendent of the Mississippi State Penitentiary, said that "the community promoted the fact that it was home to the United States's first "normal school" (teachers' college), while the prison was "often mentioned in less glowing terms".

Also, for most of the 1800s and beginning of the 1900s, Bridgewater's economy was largely dependent on the factories located within the town. Bridgewater is renowned and known for its iron works factories, one of which is appropriately named Bridgewater Iron Works, and is a registered historical site in Massachusetts. The majority of the Iron Works factory was torn down in 1994 and turned into a park, which is named Ironworks Park. Still, to this day, Bridgewater has numerous iron works companies still in business, including Ashmont Iron Works, and Superior Nail & Iron. The town also had multiple paper mills, saw mills, and a boot & shoe factory. The old boot & shoe factory still stands today off Broad St. adjacent to the MBTA Commuter Train rail tracks and the Burger King. Although the factory no longer manufactures shoes, it still houses numerous businesses and storage units.

Education

Boyden Hall, on the Bridgewater State University campus

Bridgewater shares its school district with neighboring Raynham, with both towns operating their own elementary and middle schools, and sending their students to a common high school. Bridgewater has one elementary school, George H. Mitchell Elementary School (south and west of the town center - formerly known as Bridgewater Elementary), which serves students from kindergarten through grade three. All the fourth, fifth, and sixth graders attend M.G. Williams Intermediate School, while seventh and eighth graders attend Bridgewater Middle School. The Bridgewater-Raynham Regional High School is located in Bridgewater, west of the town center. B-R's athletics teams are nicknamed the "Trojans", and their colors are red and white. The athletic teams of the Bridgewater Middle School use the "Spartans" nickname.

In 2015, during February vacation, the roof of the Mitchell Elementary school collapsed due to heavy snow. The students at the elementary school were moved to Bridgewater Middle School, and the students at the middle school were split between the Williams Intermediate School and Bridgewater-Raynham Regional High School.

Bridgewater was formerly home to two private schools which served students from preschool (Joyful Learning) and kindergarten through sixth grade (Southbrook Academy) until their closings after the 2012–2013 school year. There are also private schools in nearby Taunton and Brockton.

Bridgewater Academy building. Built 1868.

Bridgewater was formerly the site of the well-known, influential Bridgewater Academy, a private high school formerly located on the "Town Common" (park). It was attended by many leading young men of the area in the early and mid 19th century, including a well-known Massachusetts-born merchant/philanthropist Enoch Pratt (1808–1896), in the late 1830s, who endowed the Public Library in his hometown of North Middleborough and also set up the world-famous Enoch Pratt Free Library, one of the first free public library systems in America.

The town is also home to Bridgewater State University, a public liberal arts university that was founded as a "normal school" (now teachers' school) in 1840. It is the largest of the state's nine state universities outside of the University of Massachusetts system itself. As of 2015, approximately 10,000 undergraduate students and 1,800 postgraduate students were enrolled at the college.

Notable people

• Nathaniel Ames (1708–1764), born in Bridgewater, publisher of first annual almanac
• George Leonard Andrews (1828–1899), born in Bridgewater, noted United States Army officer, engineer, and educator
• Drew Bledsoe, NFL quarterback for New England Patriots, resided in Bridgewater during his time with team
• Love Brewster, passenger on Mayflower and a founder of Bridgewater
• Mickey Cochrane (1903–1962), Baseball Hall of Fame catcher, born in Bridgewater
• Marc Colombo, former NFL player for Dallas Cowboys, Chicago Bears and Miami Dolphins, resided on Highview Terrace
• Bruce Gray, sculptor and artist
• Steven Laffoley (born 1965), author of creative-nonfiction and fiction books, including the award-winning Shadowboxing: the Rise and Fall of George Dixon (2012)
• Joe Lauzon, professional MMA fighter, currently in UFC lightweight division
• Enoch Pratt (1808–1896), merchant, businessman, philanthropist in Baltimore, Maryland (see above)
• Louise Dickinson Rich (1903–1991), author of books for children and adults, wrote of her childhood in Bridgewater in Innocence Under the Elms

See also

In Spanish: Bridgewater (Massachusetts) para niños