Middleborough, Massachusetts facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Middleborough, Massachusetts Middleboro
Town
Town Hall
Seal
Motto(s):  Cranberry Capital of the World
Location in Plymouth County in Massachusetts
Country	United States
State	Massachusetts
County	Plymouth
Settled	1660
Incorporated	1669
Government
• Type	Open town meeting
Area
• Total	72.2 sq mi (186.9 km2)
• Land	69.1 sq mi (178.9 km2)
• Water	3.1 sq mi (8.0 km2)
Elevation	141 ft (43 m)
Population  (2020)
• Total	24,245
• Density	335.98/sq mi (129.72/km2)
Time zone	UTC−5 (Eastern)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−4 (Eastern)
ZIP Codes	02344, 02346, 02349
Area code(s)	508/774
FIPS code	25-40850
GNIS feature ID	0618346
Website	www.middleboroughma.gov

Middleborough is a town in Plymouth County, Massachusetts. About 24,245 people lived there in 2020. The main part of town, called Middleborough Center, is where most of the shops and businesses are. Middleborough is the second largest town in Massachusetts by land area.

Middleborough calls itself the "Cranberry Capital of the World." Growing cranberries is still a very important part of the town's economy. In 2015, about 1,400 acres of land in Middleborough were used to grow cranberries. This was 3% of all the land used for cranberries in the United States.

History of Middleborough

The town was first settled by Europeans in 1661. It was called Nemasket back then. Later, its name was changed to Middlebury, and it officially became Middleborough in 1669. The name Nemasket came from a Native American settlement along the river that has the same name today. Nemasket might have meant "place of fish." This is because many herring fish swim up the river every spring.

The names Middlebury and Middleborough actually came from the city of Middelburg in the Zeeland province of the Netherlands. Middelburg was a very important center for ideas and business. English religious groups, called Brownists, developed their ways of governing there. They later moved to America on the Mayflower and were some of the first settlers in Middleborough.

King Philip's War and Rebuilding

During King Philip's War (1675–1676), everyone in Middleborough had to hide inside a fort. This fort was built along the Nemasket River. You can find the spot behind the old Memorial High School, which is now a kindergarten. A historical marker shows where it was on Route 105.

Later, the fort was left empty, and the people moved to the safer Plymouth Colony. While they were gone, the whole village was burned down. It took several years for the town to be rebuilt.

Changes and Growth

On May 13, 1853, the western part of Middleborough became its own town, called Lakeville. This new town took with it the main access to the big freshwater lakes, like Assawompset Pond.

Middleborough used to make a lot of shoes. The Alden Shoe Company, one of the few shoe makers left in America, is still here. A company called Maxim Motors also made fire engines in Middleborough from 1914 to 1989. Today, Middleborough is home to the main office of Ocean Spray Cranberries.

You can see some interesting old buildings in town. These include the 1870s Victorian-style town hall and the beautiful Beaux Arts-style town library from 1903. In the spring, you can watch alewife and blueback herring fish swim upstream in the Nemasket River to lay their eggs in the Assawompset Ponds.

Little League World Series Success

Middleborough has had Little League baseball teams reach the Little League World Series (LLWS) twice. This is the only Little League in Massachusetts to do it more than once since 1958.

In 1994, Middleborough won the East Region title. They played in South Williamsport, Pennsylvania, winning one game and losing two. In 2022, Middleborough made it to the LLWS again by beating Maine 10–1. They were the first Massachusetts team to get there since 2009. In 2022, Middleborough lost both of its games.

Geography and Nature

Middleborough covers about 186.9 square kilometers (72.2 square miles). Most of this is land, with about 8.0 square kilometers (3.1 square miles) being water. It is the second largest town in Massachusetts by land area, right after Plymouth.

Middleborough is on the western edge of Plymouth County. It shares borders with several other towns. These include Bridgewater and Halifax to the north, Plympton and Carver to the east, Wareham and Rochester to the south, and Lakeville, Taunton and Raynham to the west.

The town is about 15 miles (24 km) west of Plymouth. It is also about 30 miles (48 km) east of Providence, Rhode Island and 40 miles (64 km) south of Boston.

Rivers and Ponds

Middleborough's rivers and brooks flow in two main directions. The Taunton River, Nemasket River, and their smaller streams flow southwest. They are part of the Taunton River Watershed, which eventually empties into Narragansett Bay. Other waterways in town, like the Weweantic River, flow south into Buzzards Bay.

Along the border with Lakeville, you'll find large ponds such as Assawompset, Pocksha, and Great Quittacas. Other ponds in Middleborough include Tispaquin Pond and Woods Pond. The town also has four wildlife management areas and several swamps. Many cranberry bogs are found in the southeastern part of town, near the Carver border. The headquarters for Ocean Spray are just over the town line in Lakeville.

Climate

Middleborough has a humid subtropical climate. This means it has hot, humid summers and mild winters. The hottest temperature ever recorded in Middleborough was 99°F (37.2°C) on July 10, 1911, and July 23, 2011. The coldest temperature ever recorded was -26°F (-32.2°C) on January 5, 1904.

Getting Around Middleborough

Roads

Interstate 495 goes through Middleborough on its way to Cape Cod. Other major roads include U.S. Route 44, and Massachusetts routes 18, 28, and 105. Routes 18, 28, and 44 meet at a traffic circle near I-495, just west of the town center.

Public bus services are offered by the Greater Attleboro Taunton Regional Transit Authority. These buses connect Middleborough to towns like Wareham, Raynham, Taunton, and Lakeville.

Trains

Railroad station circa 1908

Since the 1840s, Middleborough has been a big center for train travel in southeastern Massachusetts. At one time, five train lines started from the town. Today, three train lines still go from Middleborough towards Boston, Taunton, and Cape Cod.

The nearby Middleborough/Lakeville station offers frequent train service to Boston's South Station. During certain seasons, you can also take the CapeFLYER train to Cape Cod.

A new train station in downtown Middleborough was finished in 2024. This is part of the South Coast Rail project. This project will connect Middleborough to New Bedford and Fall River through Taunton.

Airports

The closest local airports are Taunton Municipal Airport and Plymouth Municipal Airport. For bigger flights, the nearest commercial airport is New Bedford Regional Airport. For national and international flights, you can go to T. F. Green Airport in Warwick, Rhode Island, or Logan International Airport in Boston.

Population of Middleborough

In 2000, there were 19,941 people living in Middleborough. There were 6,981 households, and 5,117 families. The average household had 2.78 people, and the average family had 3.23 people.

About 27.7% of the people were under 18 years old. The median age was 36 years. This means half the people were younger than 36 and half were older.

Education in Middleborough

Middleborough has its own school system. It is managed by a school committee and a superintendent.

• Memorial Early Childhood Center: This school is for kindergarten children. It opened in 2007 after being renovated.
• Mary K. Goode Elementary and Henry B. Burkland Elementary Schools: These schools serve students from first to fifth grade.
• John T. "Tiger" Nichols, Jr. Middle School: This school, built in 1999, is for grades 6 through 8.
• Middleborough High School: This school is for grades 9 through 12. The high school mascot is the "Sachem", and their colors are black and orange.

There is also the Frederick L. Chamberlain School in Middleborough. This is a private school that helps students from all over the world who have learning disabilities.

In 1856, a businessman named Enoch Pratt from Middleborough started The Pratt Free School. This school later became a grammar school, preparing students for Middleborough High School.

The Middleborough campus of Massasoit Community College is also located here.

In 2017, voters in Middleborough approved a plan to build a new high school. The project started in 2019 and was finished in the spring of 2021.

Famous People from Middleborough

General Tom Thumb House in 1914

Many interesting people have come from Middleborough:

• Isaac Backus: A Baptist pastor and an important figure during the American Revolution.
• Wayne Maurice Caron: A sailor who received the Medal of Honor.
• Corey Carrier: A child actor.
• Rick Fuller: A professional wrestler.
• Sean Newcomb: A professional baseball player for the Atlanta Braves.
• Enoch Pratt: A businessman who founded the Pratt Free School in Middleborough and the Enoch Pratt Free Library in Baltimore.
• Deborah Sampson: A female soldier in the American Revolution who dressed as a man to fight.
• General Tom Thumb: The stage name of Charles Sherwood Stratton, a famous dwarf who performed with P. T. Barnum.
• Lavinia Warren: A dwarf who performed with P. T. Barnum and married General Tom Thumb.

Places to Visit in Middleborough

• Tom Thumb House: This was the home of General Tom Thumb and Lavinia Warren.
• Middleborough Historical Museum: This museum has a large collection of items related to Tom Thumb and Lavinia Warren.
• Robbins Museum of Archaeology: This museum focuses on the history of New England's Native Americans before Europeans arrived.

Images for kids

• 

  South Main Street in 1912

• 

  Webster Street c. 1910

• 

  Nemasket Mill in 1914

• 

  Bank building in 1910

See also

In Spanish: Middleborough (Massachusetts) para niños