Everything about Saugus Massachusetts totally explained
Saugus is a
town in
Essex County,
Massachusetts,
United States. The population was 26,078 at the 2000 census.
History
Saugus was first settled in
1629. Saugus is an Indian name believed to mean "great" or "extended". In 1637, the territory known as Saugus (which also contained the present day cities and towns of
Swampscott,
Nahant,
Lynn,
Lynnfield,
Reading, and
Wakefield) was renamed Lin or Lynn, after
King's Lynn in
Norfolk,
England.
The
Saugus Iron Works National Historic Site, in operation from 1646-1668, was the first integrated iron works in North America. It is now a
National Historic Site.
The Lynn territory was shortened beginning in
1814 with the incorporation of
Lynnfield. On
February 17,
1815, present day Saugus was officially incorporated as a town. The first town meeting was held on
March 13,
1815 in the parish church. At the time of its incorporation, Saugus' populations was 784. Its main industry was agriculture. During the
Industrial Revolution, many new industries moved to Saugus. Shoes and woolen goods were made in Saugus Center and tobacco was manufactured in Cliftondale and East Saugus.
The first town hall was built in
1837. It was built with $2,000 of the
United States revenue surplus distributed by President
Andrew Jackson. It is currently an
American Legion hall. In
1875 the town built its second and current town hall on Central Street. The construction of the town hall put the city in a $50,000 debt. For this and other reasons the neighborhood of East Saugus sought to be set of from Saugus and annexed to the city of Lynn. East Saugus was unable to get a bill in both houses of state legislature and the issue was dropped after the town appropriated $5,000 for the laying of water pipes through East Saugus.
Saugus' first post office was established in 1932 in East Saugus. In 1858 two more were established - one in Saugus Center and one in Cliftondale. There is now only one post office remaining in Saugus.
In 1805 the
Newburyport Turnpike (now
U.S. Route 1) was built. About four miles of this road was built in Saugus.
William Tudor built a summer estate on the turnpike. At first it was considered a mistake, as it was built over hills and swamps. Grass soon grew over the road bed of the turnpike. In 1840 the tolls were discontinued and it became a public highway. The toll house, located at what is now the junction of Routes 1 and 99, was tended by the Felton family, whose son
Cornelius became president of
Harvard University.
The invention of the
automobile brought new life to the Turnpike and in 1933 the road was widened and an overpass was added to separate the traffic on Route 1 and Main Street. In the 1950s new businesses began moving to Route 1. Today the businesses along Route 1 generate millions in dollars for Saugus.
Passenger trains rain through Saugus from
1854 until the mid-1950's. The
Eastern Railroad,
Boston and Maine Railroad, and
Grand Junction Railroad all ran on the
Saugus Branch Railroad at some point. The Saugus Branch included three stations, one in Saugus Center, one in Cliftondale, and one in Pleasant Hills.
Saugus was also home to a
harness racing track known as the Franklin Trotting Park, Atwood Racetrack, and the Old Saugus Race Course. This racetrack and adjacent hotel opened in
1870. The half-mile oval track and the four story hotel and grandstand was a big attraction. It closed in
1905 after local citizens complained about the questionable patrons that the racetrack attracted.
In
1911 the racetrack became an airfield. The airfield saw the first airmail delivery in New England on
May 30,
1912.
(External Link
) It was later named Atwood Aviation Park after
Harry Atwood the pilot of the historic delivery. Pioneer aviators
Ruth Bancroft Law and
Lincoln J. Beachey flew at Saugus.
Laurence G. Hanscom a pilot, aviation enthusiast, State House reporter for the
Worcester Telegram Gazette, and namesake of
Hanscom Air Force Base and
Hanscom Field was killed in a plane crash while performing stunt maneuvers over marshland in Saugus on
February 9,
1941.
Saugus is home to the oldest barber shop in the United States. The over 100 year old George's Barber Shop is located in the Cliftondale section of Saugus.
In recent years the town has suffered financial trouble as a result of political corruption and is in danger of needing state intervention to solve its fiscal problems. A vote on
April 24,
2007, in which less than 40% of the town's voting population participated, defeated the Proposition 2 1/2 Override, which would have gained the town an extra $5.2 million in the next year through increased property taxes, by more than a 2-1 margin (4,572 voted "no" and 2180 voted "yes"). Saugus has had such problems with its money consumption that it has cut out services like street plowing in the winter, leaving independent companies to do it. They have recently cut funding on the library. Teachers have threatened strike several times, and the crisis got to the point where the government nearly cut all the school sports for lack of money.
(External Link)
Geography
According to the
United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 11.8
square miles (30.4
km²), of which, 11.0 square miles (28.5 km²) of it's land and 0.8 square miles (2.0 km²) of it (6.55%) is water. While the town has a shoreline, it doesn't have a beach.
Demographics
As of the
census of 2000, there were 26,078 people, 9,975 households, and 7,142 families residing in the town. The
population density was 2,373.7 people per square mile (916.2/km²). There were 10,122 housing units at an average density of 921.3/sq mi (355.6/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 97.32%
White, 0.44%
Black or
African American, 0.05%
Native American, 1.20%
Asian, 0.04%
Pacific Islander, 0.27% from
other races, and 0.68% from two or more races.
Hispanic or
Latino of any race were 0.97% of the population. Known as the new Massachusetts "Little Italy", since the movement of Italian-Americans from Revere, and the North end, the U.S. Census shows that 39.6% is of
Italian descent, and 24% is of
Irish descent dominating the town. The Italian population mostly migrated over the years from
East Boston or
Revere, the Irish from
South Boston or
Somerville.
There were 9,975 households out of which 27.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 57.0% were
married couples living together, 10.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 28.4% were non-families. 24.3% of all households were made up of individuals and 12.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.59 and the average family size was 3.11.
In the town the population was spread out with 20.5% under the age of 18, 6.5% from 18 to 24, 29.3% from 25 to 44, 26.1% from 45 to 64, and 17.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 41 years. For every 100 females there were 91.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 88.1 males.
The median income for a household in the town was $55,301, and the median income for a family was $65,782. Males had a median income of $43,219 versus $32,783 for females. The
per capita income for the town was $25,524. About 3.1% of families and 4.2% of the population were below the
poverty line, including 4.5% of those under age 18 and 7.2% of those age 65 or over.
Local organizations
There is an abundance of local organizations based within Saugus.
The Saugus Historical Society works to cultivate an interest in the history of the town of Saugus, and to collect and preserve all matter pertaining to the town's history and citizenry. The organization was begun in
1928.
The
Saugus Chamber of Commerce started in
1971 under the name of the Route One Businessmen's Association. It changed its name in
1988 to the Route One Area Business Association; it became the Saugus Chamber of Commerce in
1991. The
Saugus Business Partnership is sometimes confused with the Chamber, but is a distinct organization formed in
2003.
The Saugus Action Volunteers for the Environment (
SAVE) incorporated in
1973 and works toward a "better quality of life through environmental concern and action". It serves at once both as a volunteer organization (performing many duties including helping maintain the local tree farm) and a political organization (staging protests and taking public stands on local laws).
Saugus.net was founded in
1998 and exists independently of (but cooperatively with) the town government and other local organizations.
Other local organizations worthy of mention include the Friends of Saugus Town Hall, the Friends of Breakheart Reservation, the Saugus High School Alumni Association, Boy Scout Troops 61, 62 and 66, the Essex UFOlogists, and the Hammersmith Quilters' Guild.
There is also an association to renovate the track behind their middle school, for future use by their high school and middle school track and field teams. Currently, they've acquired the money they need to draw up the plans for the rebuilding, and are collecting money to go through the operation.
Saugus also has local chapters of the Veterans of Foreign Wars, American Legion, Masons, Rotary Club, Lions, Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks, the Knights of Columbus, the Kiwanis Club, and the Rotary Club. (More information on these clubs can be found on their respective websites)
Saugus is also home to a community theatre group,
the Theatre Company of Saugus. The company is noted for attracting celebrities to both directorial responsibilities and stage.
Media
Local newspapers include
The Saugus Advertiser,
The Saugonian,
The Saugus View, and
The Saugus Advocate.
Online is a site called
Saugus.net.
Saugus also has a local cable station.
Neighborhoods
Although politically Saugus consists of ten precincts, traditionally it tends be loosely divided into eight major neighborhoods: Saugus Center, East Saugus, Cliftondale, Lynnhurst, North Saugus, the Golden Hills, Oaklandvale, and Kenwood. Some of these have their own organizations that focus on regional affairs, promote local business, or are simply social in nature.
The three oldest are Saugus Center, Cliftondale, and East Saugus. Each has its own square and they've all been (incorrectly) represented at one time or another as independent towns on maps of lesser accuracy.
Points of interest
Notable residents
Ross Alameddine Student killed during the Virginia Tech massacre
Joseph Alexander Ames A famous portrait artist
Nathan Ames Credited with patenting the first escalator in 1859.
Stephen Bachiler An English clergyman who was an early proponent of the separation of church and state
Belden Bly Member of the Massachusetts House of Representatives from 1948 to 1979
Wayne Budd Former U.S. Attorney for Massachusetts and Associate Attorney General of the United States
John Curry was the former president of Northeastern University.
Arthur F. DeFranzo, U.S. Army soldier and Medal of Honor recipient in World War II
Cornelius Conway Felton Regent of the Smithsonian Institution, as well as president of Harvard University.
Fanny Fern A popular columnist, humorist, novelist, and author of children's stories
Gustavus Fox A U.S. Navy officer who served during the Civil War.
Edmund Freeman One of the founders of Sandwich, Massachusetts and the Deputy Governor of Plymouth Colony under Governor William Bradford.
John Geoghan Priest who was a key figure in the Roman Catholic sex abuse cases.
Horace Hillis Socialist Labor politician in the state of Massachusetts from 1936-1950.
Garrett Lucash An American figure skater.
Darrell Martinie National radio personality and official state astrologer for Massachusetts.
William Moulton Marston Psychologist, feminist theorist, and comic book writer who created the "Wonder Woman". His wife, Elizabeth Holloway Marston, was also involved in her creation.
Bob Montgomery Former Major League Baseball catcher who played for the Boston Red Sox from 1970 to 1979.
Henry Newhall An American businessman whose land holdings eventually formed the city of Saugus, California
Eddie Palladino Public address announcer for the Boston Celtics
Lydia Pinkham A patent medicine manufacturer and businesswoman
Arlie Pond Former Major League Pitcher for the Baltimore Orioles
Tom Sheehan American nonfiction, poetry, and short story writer
Art Spinney Guard who played 9 seasons with the Baltimore Colts
Marion L. Starkey Author of numerous books including The Devil in Massachusetts
William Tudor A wealthy lawyer and leading citizen of Boston.
Frederick Willis Speaker of the Massachusetts House of Representatives from 1944-1948
Donald Wong is the co-chair of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts' Asian American CommissionFurther Information
Get more info on 'Saugus Massachusetts'.
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