{{For|village of South Lancaster|South Lancaster, Massachusetts}} {{Use American English|date=June 2025}} {{Use mdy dates|date=January 2025}} {{Infobox settlement |official_name = Lancaster, Massachusetts |nickname = Lancaster-on-the-Nashua |motto = |image_skyline = Bullfinch Church Lancaster.jpg |imagesize = |image_caption = First Church of Christ, a National Historic Landmark designed by Charles Bulfinch |image_seal = Seal of Lancaster, Massachusetts.png |image_flag = |image_map = Worcester County Massachusetts incorporated and unincorporated areas Lancaster highlighted.svg |mapsize = 260px |map_caption = Location in Worcester County and the state of Massachusetts. |subdivision_type = Country |subdivision_name = United States |subdivision_type1 = State |subdivision_name1 = Massachusetts |subdivision_type2 = County |subdivision_name2 = Worcester |established_title = Settled |established_date = 1643 |established_title2 = Incorporated |established_date2 = 1653 |established_title3 = |established_date3 = |government_type = Open town meeting |leader_title = Town Administrator |leader_name = Kate Hodges<ref name="ci.lancaster.ma.us">{{cite web | url=https://www.ci.lancaster.ma.us/administration-select-board | title=Administration & Select Board | Lancaster MA }}</ref> |leader_title1 = Board of<br /> Selectmen |leader_name1 = Jason Allison<br />Stephen J. Kerrigan, Chair<br />Alix W Turner<ref name="ci.lancaster.ma.us"/> |area_total_km2 = 73.0 |area_total_sq_mi = 28.2 |area_land_km2 = 71.8 |area_land_sq_mi = 27.7 |area_water_km2 = 1.3 |area_water_sq_mi = 0.5 |population_as_of = 2020 |settlement_type = Town |population_total = 8441 |population_density_km2 = auto |population_density_sq_mi = |elevation_m = 91 |elevation_ft = 300 |timezone = Eastern |utc_offset = −5 |timezone_DST = Eastern |utc_offset_DST = −4 |coordinates = {{coord|42|27|20|N|71|40|25|W|region:US-MA|display=inline,title}} |postal_code_type = ZIP Codes |postal_code = {{ubl|01523 (Lancaster)|01561 (South Lancaster)}} |area_code = 351/978 |blank_name = FIPS code |blank_info = 25-34165 |blank1_name = GNIS feature ID |blank1_info = 0618368 |website = {{URL|www.ci.lancaster.ma.us}} |footnotes = }}
'''Lancaster''' is a town in Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. Incorporated in 1653, Lancaster is the oldest town in Worcester County. As of the 2020 census, the town population was 8,441.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://data.census.gov/cedsci/profile?g=0600000US2502734165|publisher=United States Census Bureau|access-date=2021-11-11|title=Census - Geography Profile: Lancaster town, Worcester County, Massachusetts}}</ref> It contains the village of South Lancaster.
== History == thumb|left|Town Hall In 1643 Lancaster was first settled as "Nashaway" (named after the local Nashaway Native American tribe) by a group of colonists known as the Nashaway Company who may have initially been interested in iron deposits in the area. Several of the company were blacksmiths or gunsmiths, including, Herman Garrett, and as early as 1653 a settler, George Adams, was whipped for selling guns and alcohol to the Indians in the area.<ref>David P. Jaffee, ''People of the Wachusett: Greater New England in History and Memory, 1630–1860,'' p. 56</ref> The town was officially incorporated and renamed "Lancaster on the Nashua" in 1653.<ref>{{Cite web |title=isbn:0738509043 - Google Search |url=https://www.google.com/search?tbo=p&tbm=bks&q=isbn:0738509043 |access-date=2025-02-23 |website=www.google.com |language=en}}</ref> Prominent Massachusetts military leader Simon Willard served as an advisor to the company and eventually settled in Lancaster for a period, and provided guns to the local tribe by order of the Massachusetts General Court.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://yipp.yale.edu/bio/bibliography/willard-simon-1605-1676|title = Willard, Simon, 1605 - 1676 | Native Northeast Portal}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=isbn:0300196733 - Google Search |url=https://www.google.com/search?tbo=p&tbm=bks&q=isbn:0300196733 |access-date=2025-02-23 |website=www.google.com |language=en}}</ref>
Supporters of Lancaster's founder, John Prescott, born in 1604 (great grandfather of Bunker Hill leader William Prescott), wished to name the new settlement Prescott, but the Massachusetts General Court considered such a request from a common freeman presumptuous, given that at that time, not even a governor had held the honor of naming a town after himself. Instead, they decided to use Lancaster, the name of Prescott's home town in England.<ref>"The Lancastrian Towns", p. 11-14, Katherine Knowles, copyright 1967, The Lancaster Historical Commission.</ref>
Until it was cut down in 1989 due to safety concerns, Lancaster boasted the largest oak tree in the state, called the Beaman Oak, named after settler Gamaliel Beaman (1623–1677).
Lancaster boasts being the official "mothertown" to all of Eastern central Massachusetts. Towns such as Harvard, Bolton, Leominster, Clinton, Berlin, Sterling, and part of West Boylston were all formed from territory of the original boundaries of Lancaster.<ref>"The Lancastrian Towns", p. 33, Katherine Knowles, copyright 1967, The Lancaster Historical Commission.</ref>
During Metacom's War, in February 1676 (1675 old style calendar), Mary Rowlandson was taken captive by Native Americans during the Lancaster raid. Rowlandson later wrote a book about her experiences titled ''A Narrative of the Captivity and Restoration of Mrs. Mary Rowlandson.'' In 2000, Lancaster Elementary School changed its name to Mary Rowlandson Elementary School.<ref>{{Cite web |title=History of MRE |url=https://rowlandson.nrsd.net/o/mres/page/history-of-mre |access-date=2025-07-17 |website=rowlandson.nrsd.net}}</ref>
==Geography== According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of {{convert|28.2|sqmi}}, of which {{convert|27.7|sqmi}} is land and {{convert|0.5|sqmi}}, or 1.84%, is water.{{Citation needed|date = March 2017}}
Lancaster is bordered by Lunenburg and Shirley to the north, Harvard to the northeast, Bolton to the southeast, Clinton to the south, Sterling to the southwest, and Leominster to the northwest.{{Citation needed|date = March 2017}}
{{Geographic location |width=auto | Centre = Lancaster | North = Lunenburg & Shirley | Northeast = Harvard | South = Clinton | East = | Southeast = Bolton | Southwest = Sterling | Northwest = Leominster | West = }}
==Demographics== {{Historical populations | type=USA | align=right | 1850|1688 | 1860|1932 | 1870|1845 | 1880|2008 | 1890|2201 | 1900|2478 | 1910|2564 | 1920|2461 | 1930|2897 | 1940|2963 | 1950|3601 | 1960|3958 | 1970|6095 | 1980|6334 | 1990|6661 | 2000|7380 | 2010|8055 | 2020|8441 | 2024*|8993 | footnote=* = population estimate. {{Historical populations/Massachusetts municipalities references}}<ref>{{cite web | title=City and Town Population Totals: 2020−2023| publisher=United States Census Bureau | access-date=May 19, 2024 | url=https://www.census.gov/data/tables/time-series/demo/popest/2020s-total-cities-and-towns.html}}</ref> }} As of the census<ref name="GR2">{{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov|publisher=United States Census Bureau|access-date=2017-06-17|title=U.S. Census website}}</ref> of 2010, there were 8,055 people, 2,409 households, and 1,758 families residing in the town. The population density was {{convert|290.8|PD/sqmi|PD/km2|sp=us|adj=off}}. There were 2,614 housing units at an average density of {{convert|94.4|/sqmi|/km2|sp=us|adj=off}}. The racial makeup of the town was 86.4% White, 7.7% African American, 0.1% Native American, 1.7% Asian, 2.5% from other races, and 1.6% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 8.1% of the population.
There were 2,409 households, out of which 31.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 60.2% were married couples living together, 3.8% had a male householder with no wife present, 9.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 27.0% were non-families. Of all households 21.8% had a householder that lived alone and 8.4% had a householder that lived alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.66 and the average family size was 3.13.
In the town, the population was spread out, with 23.6% at the age of 19 or under, 7.9% from 20 to 24, 27.5% from 25 to 44, 29.1% from 45 to 64, and 11.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38.9 years. For every 100 females, there were 128.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 131.0 males.
As of the 2015 American Community Survey,<ref name="GR2" /> the median income for a household in the town was $96,813, and the median income for a family was $99,207. Males had a median income of $62,500 versus $45,174 for females. The per capita income for the town was $32,899. About 8.3% of families and 9.2% of the population were below the poverty line, including 17.1% of those under age 18 and 1.7% of those age 65 or over.
==Government== {{Worcester County politicians | county = Worcester | state_rep = Meghan Kilcoyne (D) (12th Worcester district)<ref>{{cite web | url=https://malegislature.gov/Legislators/Profile/M_K1 | title=Representative Meghan Kilcoyne }}</ref> | state_sen = John J. Cronin (D) (Worcester and Middlesex district)<ref>{{cite web | url=https://malegislature.gov/Legislators/Profile/JJC0 | title=Senator John J. Cronin }}</ref> | gov_councilors = Paul DePalo (D) (District 7)<ref>{{Cite web | title=Councillors {{!}} Mass.gov | url=https://www.mass.gov/service-details/councillors | access-date=2025-09-01 | website=www.mass.gov}}</ref> | fed_rep = Lori Trahan (D) (3rd district) }}
==Education== Lancaster is served by the Nashoba Regional School District. The town is also served by Minuteman Regional Technical High School It is also the site of the former Atlantic Union College and of South Lancaster Academy, incorporated in 1882–1883. The Dr. Franklin Perkins School is a private special education school located in the town. Trivium School, founded in 1979, is a private Catholic college preparatory school occupying the former estate of E. V. R. Thayer Jr.<ref>[http://www.triviumschool.com Trivium School website]</ref>
==Library==
thumb|Lancaster public library, 1899 Lancaster's public Thayer Memorial Library first opened in 1868.<ref>C.B. Tillinghast. The free public libraries of Massachusetts. 1st Report of the Free Public Library Commission of Massachusetts. Boston: Wright & Potter, 1891. [https://books.google.com/books?id=LusKAAAAYAAJ Google books]</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://thayermemoriallibrary.org/about/history |title=History of the Library – Thayer Memorial Library |website=thayermemoriallibrary.org |access-date=2010-11-08}}</ref> In fiscal year 2008, the town of Lancaster spent 1.74% ($259,465) of its budget on its public library—approximately $36 per person, per year.<ref>July 1, 2007 through June 30, 2008; cf. The FY2008 Municipal Pie: What's Your Share? Commonwealth of Massachusetts, Board of Library Commissioners. Boston: 2009. Available: [http://mblc.state.ma.us/advisory/statistics/public/repmunicpie/index.php Municipal Pie Reports] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120123010127/http://mblc.state.ma.us/advisory/statistics/public/repmunicpie/index.php |date=2012-01-23 }}. Retrieved 2010-08-04</ref>
==Notable people== {{more citations needed section|date=October 2022}}
* Herman Vandenburg Ames, dean of the University of Pennsylvania graduate school * James Atherton, pioneer and the namesake of Atherton Bridge * Frank Bancroft, Baseball manager * Luther Burbank, botanist, horticulturist and a pioneer in agricultural science * Ezra Butler, United States Representative from Vermont * James C. Carter, New York City lawyer * Charles F. Chandler, chemist * Horace Cleveland, landscape architect * Francis B. Fay, merchant and politician * Hannah Flagg Gould, poet * Stephen N. Haskell, clergyman and pioneering leader of the Seventh-day Adventist denomination, founded South Lancaster Academy * Caroline Lee Hentz, novelist * Henrietta Swan Leavitt, astronomer who discovered the relation between the luminosity and the period of Cepheid variable stars * Charles W. Moors, Wisconsin politician *Herbert Parker (Massachusetts politician), Republican politician, Massachusetts Attorney General from 1902–1906 * Mary Rowlandson, colonial Indian captive and author of one of America's first best selling books * Jared Sparks, historian, Harvard University president (taught at a private school in Lancaster 1815–1817) * John Thayer, ornithologist * Nathaniel Thayer, Unitarian congregational minister * Nathaniel Thayer (Jr.), financier and philanthropist * Dr. Samuel Willard, representative to the Massachusetts ratification of the United States Constitution
==References==
{{Reflist}}
==External links== {{Commons category}} {{Americana Poster|Lancaster (Massachusetts)|Lancaster, Massachusetts}} * [http://www.ci.lancaster.ma.us/ Town of Lancaster official website] * [http://www.lancasteronline.org/ Lancaster Online] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20040925074440/http://www.lancasteronline.org/ |date=September 25, 2004 }}, community website * [https://books.google.com/books?id=687odzw5rKYC&dq=Killed+march+26%2C+1676&pg=PA324 ''Annals of Lancaster'': The Massacre of February 10, 1676] * [https://books.google.com/books?id=OCLC01804192&pg=PA119 Information about early education in Lancaster] * [https://web.archive.org/web/20071008101706/http://www.restmap.net/clients/ma_lancaster/ Lancaster 2007 Master Plan maps and tables] * {{Cite NIE|wstitle=Lancaster (Massachusetts)|display=Lancaster. A town, including several villages, in Worcester County, Mass. |year=1905 |short=x}}
{{Massachusetts}} {{Worcester County, Massachusetts}} {{Authority control}}
Category:Lancaster, Massachusetts Category:1653 establishments in the Massachusetts Bay Colony Category:Populated places established in 1653 Category:Towns in Worcester County, Massachusetts Category:Towns in Massachusetts