Leominster, Massachusetts
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
 |
|||
|
|||
| Nickname: "Pioneer Plastics City" | |||
| Settled: 1653 – Incorporated: 1740 | |||
| Zip Code(s): 01453 – Area Code(s): 351 / 978 | |||
| Official website: http://www.leominster-ma.gov | |||
| Location | |||
|---|---|---|---|
 Location in Massachusetts |
|||
| Government | |||
| County | Worcester County | ||
| Form of Government | Mayor-council city | ||
| Mayor | Dean J. Mazzarella | ||
| City Council | Dennis A. Rosa John Dombrowski James Lanciani, Jr Virginia Tocci David E. Rowlands (Ward 1) Wayne A. Nickel (Ward 2) Claire M. Freda (Ward 3) Robert Salvatelli (Ward 4) Richard Marchand (Ward 5) |
||
| Geography | |||
| Area | |||
| Total | 29.8 mi² / 77.1 km² | ||
| Land | 28.9 mi² / 74.8 km² | ||
| Water | 0.9 mi² / 2.3 km² | ||
| Coordinates | |||
| Elevation | 400 ft / 122 m | ||
| Time zone | Eastern (UTC-5) | ||
| Summer (DST) | Eastern (UTC-4) | ||
| Population | |||
| Total (2000) | 41303 | ||
| Density | 1430.3/mi² / 552.2/km² | ||
Leominster is a city in Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 41,303 at the 2000 census. Leominster is located north of Worcester and west of Boston. Both Route 2 and Route 12 pass through Leominster. Interstate 190, Route 13, and Route 117 all have starting/ending points in Leominster. Leominster is bounded by Fitchburg and Lunenburg to the north, Lancaster to the east, Sterling and Princeton to the south, and Westminster to the west.
Contents |
[edit] History
Before European settlement, various divisions of the Pennacook or Nipmuc tribes inhabited the area, with a settlement nearby called Nashua. Leominster was first settled in 1653, was officially incorporated in 1740, and incorporated as a city in 1915. Leominster is now known as "The Pioneer Plastics City" because of its thriving plastics industry from the early part of the twentieth century to present day. Leominster and Fitchburg are commonly known as the twin cities in the area because of their similar populations and shared history of industry, and also because they are on opposite sides of the Nashua River.
Leominster was also a major contributer in the Underground Railroad. The Emory Stearn Schoolhouse and the John Drake home, both on Franklin Street, led anti-slavery campaigns and helped house slaves on their journey to freedom.
[edit] Villages
The city is divided into a few "villages" such as French Hill, a large hill covered in planned blocks of "triple decker" apartment houses located from 1st Street to 12th Street. It is called French Hill because this is where the large immigrant French population took root. In the early 1900's, on Lincoln Terrace, the Italians moved in as a group and built up a semi-closed society which existed for many years. The French had built a new church and moved closer to it. Other areas are Morse Hollow, the Village of North Leominster, Rice Hill, The Flats, The West Side, and The Car Barn area along the Fitchburg border. Also the birth place of Johnny Appleseed.
[edit] Nicknames
Leominster is commonly referred to as "Frenchtown" because of its large French Canadian population. This name was coined by author Robert Cormier (who grew up on French Hill) in his book, Frenchtown Summer. Leominster is also called the "Pioneer Plastics City" because of its early role in plastics manufacturing. It was also called the "Comb City". The National Plastics Center & Museum is located in Leominster. One would be hard pressed to walk through a large department store or supermarket today and not find some plastic product from Leominster.
The city name is not pronounced as spelled, "Leo" followed by "minster"; locals refer to the city as "Lemon-stah" in the Eastern New England dialect. However, it is commonly referred to in standard pronunciation as "Lemon-stir". It is also referred to as the "city of dreams."
[edit] Demographics
As of the censusGR2 of 2000, there were 41,303 people, 16,491 households, and 10,900 families residing in the city. The population density was 552.2/km² (1,430.3/mi²). There were 16,976 housing units at an average density of 227.0/km² (587.9/mi²). The racial makeup of the city was 81.50% White, 3.70% African American, 0.15% Native American, 2.44% Asian, 0.06% Pacific Islander, 4.32% from other races, and 2.21% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 11.00% of the population.
There were 16,491 households out of which 32.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 49.5% were married couples living together, 12.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 33.9% were non-families. 27.9% of all households were made up of individuals and 10.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.48 and the average family size was 3.05.
In the city the population was spread out with 25.5% under the age of 18, 7.2% from 18 to 24, 32.4% from 25 to 44, 21.3% from 45 to 64, and 13.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females there were 92.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 88.1 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $44,893, and the median income for a family was $54,660. Males had a median income of $41,013 versus $30,201 for females. The per capita income for the city was $21,769. About 7.2% of families and 9.5% of the population were below the poverty line, including 12.0% of those under age 18 and 9.4% of those age 65 or over.
[edit] Government
| County government: Worcester County | |
|---|---|
| Clerk of Courts: | Dennis P. McManus (D) |
| County Treasurer: | Position Eliminated |
| District Attorney: | Joseph D. Early, Jr. (D) |
| Registrar of Deeds: | Kathleen R. Daigneault (D) |
| Registrar of Probate: | Stephen Abraham (D) |
| Sheriff: | Guy W. Glodis (D) |
| State government | |
| Representative(s) in General Court: | Jennifer L. Flanagan(D) |
| Senator(s) in General Court: | Robert A. Antonioni (D) |
| Governor's Councilor(s): | Thomas J. Foley (D) |
| Federal government | |
| Member(s) of the U.S. House of Representatives: | John W. Olver (D-1st District), |
| U.S. Senators: | Edward Kennedy (D) John Kerry (D) |
[edit] Points of interest
Kendall Hall (which currently houses a branch of the local fire department) and City Hall are two major landmarks in the city. Others can be seen in this slide show of local places.
[edit] Sholan Farms
Sholan Farms is the latest tourist attraction to the city. This apple orchard offers a large variety of apples, a great view, and a historic and scenic look into the areas agricultural history. This orchard is home to festivals and functions. It is one of the largest sources of local pride. Sholan Farms is 123 years old, purchased from Chief Sholan of the Nashaway (Nashua) tribe in 1701.
[edit] Education
Public Schools:
- Bennett
- Fall Brook
- Johnny Appleseed
- Center for Technical Education
- Leominster Senior High
- Lincoln School
- Northwest
- Priest Street School
- Samoset School
- Sky View Middle School
- Southeast Middle School
Private Schools:
- St Anna School
- St Leo School
Approved Special Education School:
- Lipton Academy
- North Leominster Community College for The Blind and Deaf
[edit] Parks
Other than the triangle-shaped common in downtown, and the various parks like Barett and Carter, Leominster is home to two large forest parks. One, The Doyle Reservation, is home to the local branch of the The Trustees of Reservations.
The other large forest park is the Leominster State Forest. This is a very large state forest and is home to a plethora of paths and trails, some of which eventually hook up to the Mid State Trail. Leominster is a very hilly city and provides plenty of hiking with great views.
The renovations at Doyle Field have given the teams of Leominster High School some of the best playing fields in the area. However, the track is not being resurfaced and will actually be torn up in the next few years. This will leave the Leominster High School track team, which already cannot have home meets because of the poor condition of the track, without a track to practice on. Over the years, Leominster has provided some of the state's best runners.
[edit] Media
Newspapers
- Sentinel & Enterprise
- Telegram & Gazette
- Leominster Champion
Television
- Leominster Access Television
[edit] Trivia
- The plastic flamingo traces its origins to Leominster.
- Leominster High School's football rivalry with Fitchburg High School is the oldest Thanksgiving Day rivalry in the state of Massachusetts (although Boston English and Boston Latin hold the record for most consecutive Thanksgiving Day meetings). The rivalry is a proud member of a list of high school football rivalries in the United States.
- The Leominster High School Blue Devils baseball team is annually one of the best teams in not only the state, but also the country. The program has earned three Division 1 State Championships, most in the state of Massachusetts.
- The Leominster High School Blue Devils football team has earned ten Division 1 Super Bowl Championships, second most in the state behind Brockton High School with eleven.
[edit] Notable residents
- Johnny Appleseed, American pioneer nurseryman
- Mistress Carrie, radio DJ, music director for WAAF-FM
- Robert Cormier, author of The Chocolate War
- Paul DiGiovanni, guitarist for the rock band Boys Like Girls
- Francis Gardner, United States Representative from New Hampshire, 1807-09
- Ralph Kirkpatrick, harpsichordist
- Mark Osowski, former NBA assistant coach for the New Orleans Hornets, the Golden State Warriors, and the Cleveland Cavaliers
- R.A. Salvatore, fantasy/science-fiction author
- Scott Spinelli, former Boston University basketball player, current Wichita State men's basketball assistant coach
- Benjamin LaGuer is a Massachusetts inmate who has been proclaiming his innocence since he was convicted of rape in 1984. His case achieved prominence in the late 1980s when reporting by John King discovered a juror who charged that other members of the all-white-male jury uttered racist slurs before and during deliberations. His case became a flashpoint in the 2006 race for Massachusetts Governor when it was revealed that Deval Patrick, the Democratic candidate, had corresponded with and supported the inmate over a period of several years. He was living in Leominster when the rape happened.
[edit] References
[edit] External links
- Leominster official website
- [1]
- FitchburgLeominster.net
- Blog about Leominster
- The National Plastics Center & Museum
- History and Genealogy of Leominster, MA
- Leominster city profile
- Sentinel & Enterprise
- Maps and aerial photos
- Street map from Google Maps, or Yahoo! Maps, or Windows Live Local
- Satellite image from Google Maps, Windows Live Local, WikiMapia
- Topographic map from TopoZone
- Aerial image or topographic map from TerraServer-USA
