Major Bibliographica References (Cite the books, articles, and other sources used in preparing this form on one or more continuation sheets.) Previous documentation on file (NPS): Primary location of additional data: - preliminary determination of individual listing (36 x State Historic Preservation Office CFR 67) has been requested - Other State agency - previously listed in the National Register - Federal agency - previously determined eligible by the National x Local government Register - University - designated a National Historic Landmark - Other - recorded by Historic American Buildings Survey Name of repository: Fletcher Library, Westford - recorded by Historic American Engineering Record #. NPS Form 10-900 (Rev. 10-90) United States Department of the Interior National Park Service National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet Section number 8 Page _1 8.
STATEMENT OF SIGNIFICANCE OMB Approval No. 1024-0018 Westford Town Farm Westford (Middlesex), MA Introduction Westford's Town Farm retains sufficient integrity of setting, location, design, materials (partially), feeling, and association to merit designation in the National Register of Historic Places despite the vinyl siding on a secondary element of the property. The Westford Town Farm was in use until 1959, which is later than most others in the state and is eligible for the National Register under Criteria A and C at the local level as a prime example of the town's social safety net during the 19# and 20* centuries. The end date of 1959 for the period of significance extends beyond the 50-year cut- off due to the much later than average duration of the building's function as a town farm.
American efforts in public health and assistance to the poor were subject to English influence beginning in the Colonial Period. Britain's Queen Elizabeth I established "Poor Laws" in 1601 that provided municipalities and local governments with the power to determine a person's place of residence. This precaution was expressed in America by "warning out" potentially non-productive persons, by accepting responsibility for non-productive but established citizens to oversee treatment of the indigent and mentally ill, and to distinguish between able-bodied, disabled, and incarcerated inmates of almshouses. The poorhouse in Boston, one of the colony's first to be established in 1664, presumably operated under these principles.
Public oversight of the sick and poor increased in larger towns during the period and accelerated statewide after 1821, and following the efforts of Boston Mayor Josiah Quincy to create a system whereby those in need might be housed while simultaneously providing some useful service to themselves and to the community. The poor farms were thought to have the added benefit of reducing the costs to government of caring for the sick under the system involving multiple private homeowners, although this was not necessarily true over the long term. As a result of the combination of the 1821 economic depression and Mayor Quincy's reporting on the subject, the number of poor farms increased in Massachusetts from 83 in 1824 to a high of 223 after the Civil War.
This and other information comes from the work of historian Heli Meltsner who has performed extensive research on the subject at the statewide level. While these facilities were often built away from town centers and villages, possibly to prevent temptation of the intemperant, or perhaps to conceal the sickly from view, they represented the best early thinking on how to deal with some social problems. Indeed, the poor farm, almshouse, or town farm as it was variously known, remained in use across the state until the federally sponsored social programs of the early 20* century. Currently, 42 purpose-built town farms and 50 that were adapted for such use survive in Massachusetts, according to Meltsner.
1729-1837 During the Colonial Period, non-productive citizens in smaller, more remote, communities such as Westford, which lacked public housing for the poor and indigent, were cared for at the expense of the town but in the private homes of those who made the lowest bid for the job of taking in, feeding, and clothing those unable to do so themselves, such as orphans, the mentally ill, physically disabled, debilitated or dissipated. Homeless people may or may not have been included in this category, depending upon whether they appeared to be vagrants, tramps, or wanderers. The Westford Overseers of the Poor, appointed in 1816 and reporting their expenses to the town for the first time in January 1817, would have been responsible for decisions about assigning poor people to the homes of different bidders. (continued) NPS Form 10-900 (Rev.
10-90) United States Department of the Interior National Park Service National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet Section number 8 Page2 OMB Approval No. 1024-0018 Westford Town Farm Westford (Middlesex), MA The expenses of the Poor Farm operation were recorded annually in the town report by the elected or appointed Overseer of the Poor. With the dissemination in 1821 of reporting on the treatment of the poor by Josiah Quincy, made while he served in the Massachusetts House of Representatives, which suggested centralizing the process of relief for the poor in a way that would presage centralization of rural district schools in the late 19h and early 20* centuries, towns began to buy or build farms in order to provide work for, reduce public spending on, and possibly raise the standard of treatment of the poor.
Consequently, according to Westford historian Reverend Edwin Hodgman, writing in 1883, voters of Westford approved on April 5, 1824, the purchase for $2500 of the farm of John Read for use as a poor farm. The amount represents a farm of significant acreage (it comprised 170 acres), and a house of some size and in good condition, compared to valuations of others in the town at the time.
While Westford Museum researcher Marilyn Day indicates the house was a rather large building with two stories and six rooms that slept between two and six people each, an outhouse, chambers, and apartment for "refractory subjects" (people who came for meals only), the "Report of the Committee Appointed by the House of Representatives on the Pauper System," printed in 1833 and quoted by Meltsner, states that "Immoralities have resulted from the impracticability of classifying inmates." Additional information in the report indicates that the house was nearly 100 years old, that some inmates are capable of a day's work, some a partial day, and still others totally incapable, and that in 1832, two inmates were committed for intemperance.
Previously appointed members of the committee to oversee the purchase of the Read farm were Eliakim Hutchins, Samuel Richardson, Zaccheus Read, and John Abbot who were also responsible for stocking the farm, for hiring a master and mistress, creating "Bye Laws[sic], or Orders and Regulations of Westford Workhouse" and for overseeing its operations. Selection of the first overseer was for Jonathan Hosmer who was succeeded by Otis Haywood.
An original copy of the 1824 "Bye Laws" was recovered recently from the cellar of Town Hall by Westford Town Clerk Kaari Tari, they reveal that the overseers sought temperance, providence, and moral character in the residents; met at the workhouse on the first Saturday of every month, took responsibility, in addition to a justice of the peace, for determining who would be sent to the farm, insisted on schooling for children and that inmates keep the Lord's Day, prohibited liquor, determined hours of rising, eating and retiring, determined what appears to be a permanent, detailed, and inflexible weekly menu, and would leave punishment, apparel, labor, and maintenance decisions to the master. The Town Farm was the site of the deaths of 28 people between 1828 and 1838.
The residents of the Town Farm who died here may have been buried in the Westlawn Cemetery (NRIND) on Concord Road, as the sextons there were reported to have buried paupers. The Town Farm was home to between 19 and 23 people at a time between 1828 and1838 and was the birthplace of one person. Work done by inmates in 1820 included farming, repairing shoes, drawing of stone (probably in quarries of nearby Graniteville, NRDIS), and unspecified tasks at a forge, probably in nearby Forge Village (NRDIS). It is assumed the inmates were paid for their work and were encouraged to make their way in the world when possible. Stone walls across the road and no longer part of the property may have been built by inmates, given the description of their work in 1820. (continued) NPS Form 10-900 (Rev.
10-90) United States Department of the Interior National Park Service National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet Section number 8 Page 3 OMB Approval No. 1024-0018 Westford Town Farm Westford (Middlesex), MA 1837-1931 Due to its deteriorated condition, the Read farmhouse was replaced on the same site in 1837 with the current brick bullding, built by Daniel W. Hartwell. The building committee appointed at town meeting recommended a 2-story, 39' x 40' building, with a buttery and well-room in the shed. The total cost of the house and shed was $3002.45, or $600.45 over budget. A wood-framed addition was made in 1839-40, according to entries in town reports concerning a second Town Farm building committee.
Meltsner, who has examined Town Farms across Massachusetts, suggests the placement of the 1840 ell, as well as the existing 1900 addition that replaced it, were oddly placed against the north facing façade, itself an oddity when considering that the southerly orientation was more common. She suggests the domestic form built at relatively large scale in masonry was a reaction to the increasing industrialization in Westford, where wage-earners had no land or other property of their own to rely on for income during instances of prolonged illness and extreme poverty. A purely agricultural town would have been more likely to build a residential-style town farm of smaller scale. Produce and sales at the farm in 1850 consisted of 1,057 pounds of butter, plus pork, lard, cows, calves, potatoes, hay, poultry, cranberries, and more.
A detached gable-roofed barn was built north of the house in 1893 according to town reports. A woodshed and icehouse were built, mainly from lumber from the demolished 1840 ell, in 1900, and in conjunction with the current ell according to town reports (these no longer exist). Town reports also indicate the architect for the 1900 ell was H. M. Francis, architect of the J. V. Fletcher Library in Westford Center (NRDIS) as well as numerous important buildings in the city of Fitchburg, Massachusetts, and elsewhere. While construction on these improvements was done by the master of the Town Farm, Samuel H. Balch, it is not known if he was responsible for construction of the jail cells in the cellar that were installed at the same time. Town reports indicate that running water, steam heat, and a fire escape were added around the turn of the 20th century.
The fire escape mentioned in the town report may be the existing porch based on physical examination and on a 1903 photo depicting it in place. Silos were built in 1913 and 1928, indicating the presence of cows and dairying operations. Poultry is also mentioned in the 1931 town report. The name of the facility was changed by vote at the 1919 town meeting from Town Farm or Poor Farm to Westford Home. This name change reflected not only a change from a mostly agricultural operation to a health-care facility in a semi-industrial town, but it also coincided with a change from a punitive institution to a nursing-based facility to care for the aging population after the Civil War. The 1893 barn burned as a result of arson in 1920 and was replaced in 1922 at a cost of $3000 (this no longer survives). A small toilet was installed near the jail cells in the cellar in 1924.
This appears to be the sole jail cell in town at the time, suggesting that it was used to hold both Town Farm inmates and other lawbreakers. A glass and chrome Dixie Cup holder that remains may date to this time as well, since the cup holders were produced by the Vortex Dixie Cup Company from 1924 to1936. By the late 19th century, increased industrialization led in part to the state's adoption of control over more of the process of caring for the poor, possibly because so many of the factory workers were from distant lands and therefore not the responsibility of the local communities under the old Pauper System. State-run poor farms were built in 1852 in Monson, Bridgewater, and Tewksbury to relieve the pressure on smaller towns. By 1926, there were 126 Town Farms in the state, down from 223 after the Civil War. (continued) NPS Form 10-900 (Rev.
10-90) United States Department of the Interior National Park Service National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet Section number8 Page OMB Approval No. 1024-0018 Westford Town Farm Westford (Middlesex), MA Residents Statistics gathered by Marilyn Day reveal that from 1838 to 1846, there was an average of just over 21 people spending time at the Town Farm each year. An average of approximately 3 people died here each year and there were two births during the period. Numbers of residents decreased between 1846 and 1910 to an average of over seven per year, with just under one death per year. Only a single birth was recorded during this time. Fourteen men served as master of the Town Farm between 1841 and 1883, resulting in an average of three years' tenure per master. This figure rose dramatically ir the 20# century to near ten years per master's tenure in the 1930s-1950s.
While most of the information about the lives of those who spent time at the Town Farm has been lost, it is possible to assemble some scattered details by combining lists of names of some occupants and census data from the period. Since state law prohibited printing names of Town Farm residents after 1910, most information is from the previous period State census records from 1855 and 1865 are readily available and provide a sketch of what might be some typical as well as some unusual people at the Westford Town Farm. The 1855 census, which lists Willis Wilder as a farmer and master of the Town Farm, also indicates he lived here with his wife Laura and two children. F. W.
Howe was an 82-year-old occupant of the Town Farm in 1894 and was listed in the 1855 census as a 44-year-old farmer and head of his household True Bean was a 79-year- old occupant in 1902 and was listed in 1855 as a 33-year-old shoemaker, and in 1865 as a wheelwright living at 14 Depot Street outside Westford Center. A veteran of the Civil War, Mr. Bean also worked as a laborer on the Stony Brook Railroad, a janitor of the town hall, sealer of weights and measures, and librarian. After spending time in the Groton Town Farm in 1900, Mr. Bean died here in 1905. Ellen McCarty was approximately 70 years old while living at the Town Farm in 1903, and was listed in the 1855 census as a 13-year old living in Westford with the Cowcick family but not her parents.
Alice Jackson was 59 years old when she lived at the Town Farm in 1905, and was listed in 1855 as a 10-year-old daughter of the English immigrant and head of household Hannah Jackson in one of Westford's mill villages (the census does not state locations but occupations and nationalities of neighbors suggest the mill village location). Hiram Leland was 62 years old in 1910 when he lived at the farm, and was listed as an eight-year- old son of a farmer near Westford Center. Mr. Leland was also admitted twice to the Town Farm in 1909. The 1865 census lists Tyngsborough native Ward Coburn as the Keeper of the Poor Farm along with his wife Sibyl and nine other people, all of whom were described as paupers, and one of whom was considered to be insane.
(The 1913 Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary definitions of the words "insane"- "Exhibiting unsoundness or disordered of mind", "simple"- "Weak in intellect; not wise or sagacious; of but moderate understanding or attainments; hence, foolish; silly", "pauper" - "A poor person; especially, one dependent on private or public charity" and "idiof"- "A human being destitute of the ordinary intellectual powers" ", appear to coincide largely with our own.) Adults on this list ranged in age from 78 to 33 and were housed with two children of the female 33-year-old occupant, three and four years old. The 1869 list of occupants in the town report includes the brothers Charles F. and Frederick H. Peckins, ages 10 and eight.
Patrick O'Toole, an 87 year old illiterate native of Ireland living in the Town Farm in 1894 was listed in 1865 as a head of household of four farming a piece of land near Texas Road in Westford. Edward E. Holt was an 80-year-old resident of the Town Farm in 1894, who had been working as a farmer and head of his household of three when he was 49 in 1855. Joseph D. Wilkinson lived here in 1900 when he was 81, had previously worked as a shoemaker and a laborer in 1865 and was the head of his household of three in a Westford neighborhood that was home to a number of other laborers at the (continued) NPS Form 10-900 (Rev. 10-90) United States Department of the Interior National Park Service OMB Approval No.
1024-0018 National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet Westford Town Farm Westford (Middlesex), MA Section number 8 Page 5 corner of Main Street and Providence Road near Westford Center. Mr. Wilkinson died at the age of 84 in 1903 as a result of a fall during an altercation with his roommate at the Town Farm, 70-year-old Varnum Fletcher. According to a contemporary newspaper account, "The two men occupied the same room but separate beds. The cause of the trouble was the lighting of a lamp in the night by Wilkinson, a proceeding not agreeable to Fletcher, who was known as mentally unbalanced and of a somewhat violent temper." Investigation into the incident by authorities determined the death was accidental and the funeral was paid for by the town. The above article was researched by Westford Museum employee Marilyn Day. Sarah J.
Ingalls, 43 years old in 1906 when she occupied the Town Farm, had been a 16 year-old in the Westford village of Graniteville in 1865, where she lived in a house with her family headed by her father, a stonecutter, as well as nine other non-family members that included three soldiers. Other peoples' stories have more details and as a result are the more touching. Westford native Louisa Leland was listed in the 1865 census as an illiterate and divorced (one of a very few so described) mother of three living near Westford Center and acting as the head of her household, although no occupation was given in the census. By 1904, she was 83 years old and living with no family members at the Town Farm. It may be that she had family nearby, since she was admitted here three times between 1903 and 1906, and so might have had some other refuge.
Mary Elizabeth Cowdry and her sister Anna, at the ages of four and three, were not only residents of the Town Farm in 1865 along with their mother Elizabeth, a native of Scotland, but were either readmitted or had remained here until 1869, at which time their mother had gone elsewhere. Mary Elizabeth was readmitted in 1900 and remained at least until 1910, when state law prohibited the future printing of names of Town Farm occupants. Her funeral in 1929 was recorded with Town Farm information, suggesting the possibility that she lived here the rest of her life. Patrick O'Toole, mentioned above as an 1894 occupant, had either died or gone elsewhere by 1897, leaving behind his wife Catherine, who was admitted on December 14, 1893 and died here in 1902 at the age of 102. It appears that Mrs.
O'Toole came not only with her husband but with another woman named Margaret O'Brien who was also admitted on December 14, 1893, and, after living with Mrs. O'Toole for 10 years, does not appear on lists of occupants after 1902. A man named Thomas Carney lived here until 1907 when he was 97 years old. He was one of the longest-term residents, having been admitted in 1877. It appears that the longest term of residence at the Westford Town Farm according to town reports (records that vary in detail and content over time) was John P. Green. Although he was listed in the 1855 census as a 31 year old hand at a nearby farm, Town Farm records indicate he was admitted in 1839, and was still living here in 1905 when he was listed as a 77-year-old man.
Perhaps the most notable occupant of the Town Farm was Betsy Hildreth, one of the least manageable residents and probably among those with the worst state of mental health. Miss Hildreth lived here from 1840 until her death in 1858 at the age of 62, but in the early 1840s she was visited by Dorothea L. Dix, the social reformer who focused on improving the treatment and living conditions of the mentally ill being held in public institutions, not only in Westford but across the country and in Europe, Canada, and Asia as well. Miss Dix visited the Westford Town Farm and witnessed the methods of restraint used in regard to Miss Betsy Hildreth.
To quote her 1843 report to the Massachusetts legislature, she saw that in Westford, the keepers of the Town Farm "had 26 paupers, one idiot, one simple and one insane, an incurable case from Worcester Hospital....I was conducted above stairs into an apartment of decent size, pleasant aspect from abroad and tolerable comfortable... but the inmates, grant I never look upon another such scene! A young woman, whose person was partially covered with portions of a blanket, sat upon the floor; her hair disheveled; her naked arms crossed languidly over (continued) NPS Form 10-900 (Rev. 10-90) United States Department of the Interior National Park Service OMB Approval No.
1024-0018 National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet Westford Town Farm Westford (Middlesex), MA Section number 8 Page6 the breast...About the waist was a chain, the extremity of which was fastened into a wall of the house." To quote historian Heli Meltsner's 2004 talk to the Westford Historical Society, "Dix asked her if she wanted clothes and the woman said yes but the attendant retorted that she'd just tear them off. In fact, inmate Betsy Hildreth, held at the time, was insane and I believe you can find an account of the expense for buying calico for Betsy's dress in one of the many accounts retained in the wonderful Historical Society archives.
Chaining her to the wall and letting her go nearly naked must have been the choice of an ignorant but hard pressed matron." Miss Dix, starting in Cambridge in 1841, traversed the Commonwealth taking notes on dozens of similar institutions, eventually compiling her report to the legislature that was presented in 1843 by Dr. Samuel Gridley Howe, director of the Perkins School for the Blind. This method of performing field research and then employing a sympathetic political figure to present it to various state legislatures in order to effect change, obtain funding for hospitals, and enact legislation was successful in engendering much of the public health law and infrastructure we have today.
1931-1960 The Westford Town Farm, as the building is still known today, continued to operate in the 20#* century, even as other towns ceased their operations and sent the sick and poor to state institutions. In order to reflect the social change from an agricultural society to a more industrialized and specialized one, the town voted to change the name from Westford Home, adopted in 1919, to the Westford Infirmary in 1931. At that time, people still worked for their board if they were capable, painted and papered the interior of the house, constructed a new poultry house, and cut brush and firewood, in addition to maintaining dairy operations despite declining milk profits. The name change again reflected a development in services provided by the town farm.
The Westford Home might be characterized as a nursing home, while the Westford Infirmary became more like a hospital with nurses treating cases of illness and administering childbirth assistance to medically indigent residents. During the Great Depression in 1932, more than 80 families were served by the Town Farm and by donations from the Red Cross, according to Marilyn Day's research in the town reports. Regardless of the deteriorating economic circumstances, or perhaps because of them, the keepers of the Town Farm in the early to mid 20# century tended to remain for longer terms than their 19t century predecessors with Edson G. Boynton serving from 1906-1912, Bert G. Brown from 1930-1937, Leo J. Connell from 1938-1948, and Maurice B. Rooks from 1949 to 1959. The superintendents were men in all cases and had significant assistance from their wives in nearly all cases.
One example, Charles S. Ripley,the former master of the Harvard Town Farm, worked at the Westford Town Farm from 1918-1922 with his wife Mary, and while there adopted a son, Edward, who came to the town farm with his mother who gave him up as a way of lessening the burden of her already numerous children. The 1959 town report indicates: "On April 3, 1959, the last patient at the Westford Infirmary was transferred to the Tewksbury Hospital and the home was officially closed. The remaining cattle were disposed of in September. Until other arrangements are made, Mr. and Mrs. Maurice Rooks will remain at the home as Caretakers." The town report from 1960 includes the following entry: "The Town Farm was painted this year and is being kept in good condition" (continued) NPS Form 10-900 (Rev.
10-90) United States Department of the Interior National Park Service National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet Section number 8 Page 7 OMB Approval No. 1024-0018 Westford Town Farm Westford (Middlesex), MA 1960-2007 The 1922 barn was demolished and burned ca. 1970. Subsequent occupants of the Town Farm house included the Police and the Fire Department. The Police Department may have been assigned this building as a base of operations because of the jail cells in the cellar. The Fire Department continues to occupy a modern facility next door to the north. The Town Farm was occupied by administrative staff of the School Department from the 1960s until 2003. This appears to have been the period when most interior modifications and alterations were carried out, including addition of paneling, carpet, removal of historic trim, and covering the fireplaces.
Reductions in acreage of the original 170-acre Town Farm parcel to its present size resulted from divisions in the 1960s for the nearby Norman E. Day School and later for the George Rogers Fire Station. Archaeological Significance Since patterns of ancient Native American settlement in Westford are poorly understood, any surviving sites could be significant. Although numerous ancient sites have been identified for the neighboring Concord, Sudbury, and Assabet River drainages, fewer sites have been recorded in the Stony Brook drainage, possibly reflecting underreporting in this area or environmental differences in the drainages.
Ancient Native American sites on the Town Farm property may contain informationthat identifies the range of functional and temporal variability between sites in the Stony Brook drainage and their relationship to Native settlements along the main corridor of the Merrimack River. Information may alsobe present thatclarifies the relationship and regional importance of sites and resources along the Stony Brook drainage to other tributaries of the Merrimack River such as the Concord, Sudbury, and Assabet River drainages. Ancient sites located on the Town Farm and Stony Brook drainage may represent a seasonal /functional aspect of a settlement system that focuses on larger sites along the Merrimack River drainage and other tributaries listed above.
Sites in this area can also contain evidence of exchange between more interior portions of the Merrimack River drainage and downstream coastal areas. Historic archaeological resources described above may contribute important information related to Westford's early settlement, the agricultural history of the town, and the origins, operation, and social accomplishments of the town's poor farm, almshouse, or town farm over two centuries of use. Structural evidence from the farmhouse, barns, and outbuildings associated with the John Read Farm may contribute important evidence related to the early settlement of the town, the architecture of 18" century residential and agricultural buildings, and building patterns on early farmsteads in eastern Massachusetts.
Detailed analysis of the contents of occupational-related features (trash pits, privies, wells) can also contribute information on the topics listed above in addition to social, cultural, and economic information associated with the farm's inhabitants and agricultural production on the farm. Information may also exist related to adaptive patterns of reuse, as the John Read farm buildings and occupational-related features were adapted from private use to an institutionalized poor farm or almshouse. Additional historical research combined with archaeological survey and testing at the Westford Town Farm may contribute important information that indicated how the town as an institution thought and dealt with many of its social (continued) NPS Form 10-900 (Rev. 10-90) United States Department of the Interior National Park Service OMB Approval No.
1024-0018 National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet Westford Town Farm Westford (Middlesex), MA Section number 8 Page8 problems during the 19" and 20* century. Evidently, the results of this process were satisfactory since the Westford Town Farm was in use until 1959, later than most other town farms in Massachusetts. The late date that the town farm was in use is also given as a reason for its retention of architectural and historical integrity. A similar reason may also exist for the farm's retention of archaeological integrity. The potential for information related to adaptive patterns of reuse of farm buildings is discussed above. The wood- framed Read farmhouse was replaced by the existing brick structure in 1837.
Barns, outbuildings, and possibly occupational-related features were also replaced and added throughout the remainder of the 19" and first half of the 20" century. Identification and carefulmapping of these structures may contribute important information that indicates how these building patterns changed from the private Read occupation to institutionalized use. Information may also exist that indicates the influence that changing public philosophies on the oversight of the sick and poor had on building patterns and the treatment of the farm's inhabitants. Archaeological resources may contribute important information related to the social history of the farm and the daily lives of its inhabitants. Since most of the information about the lives of those who spent time at the Town farm has been lost, any social information derived from archaeological resources can be especially important.
Archaeological evidence related to building function, patterns of distribution, and detailed analysis of the contents of occupational-related features may contribute information related to the division of the farm's inhabitants by sex, medical or social status, and occupation. Analysis of occupational-related features may also contribute social, cultural, and economic information for the inhabitants. Inmates were employed in a wide variety of trades and occupations including farming, shoe repair, quarrying, and unspecified tasks at a local forge. It is assumed the inmates were paid for their work at these occupations. Occupational-related features may contain information that indicates the extent these activities were conducted at the farm, and the types of agricultural products and goods that were exported and imported to the farm.
The information described above may indicate the extent that the farm was self-sufficient. Similar information may also indicate the influence of a cash economy on inmates, the operation of the farm, and the extent that personal items were brought to the farm. Lost or obscured burial grounds including unmarked graves may contribute important information related to the general health, pathologies, and social, cultural, and economic characteristics of inmates. While the operation of the Town Farm exemplifies how the town dealt with social problems of the sick and poor while alive, the methods of burial reflects town philosophies of the same people in death. Historical and archaeological information may indicate whether deceased individuals were buried in a burial ground at the Town Farm or were interred in other local cemeteries.
Similar information may determine whether graves were marked, and the type of marking that was used. Analysis of the entire mortuary context may contribute social, cultural, and economic information of the deceased or possibly the local town population. Osteological analysis of skeletal remains may contribute important information related to the general stature, health, and pathologies that affected individuals, the Town Farm population, and possibly the Westford community. (end) NPS Form 10-900 (Rev. 10-90) United States Department of the Interior National Park Service National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet Section number g Page_1 OMB Approval No. 1024-0018 Westford Town Farm Westford (Middlesex), MA 9. BIBLIOGRAPHY Breton, M. Research on Town Farm conducted as part of Westford Historic District Study Committee, August, 1975 Day, Marilyn.
Research in Town Reports concerning the Town Farm. No date. Day, Marilyn. Westford Days. Boston: New England Historical and Genealogical Society, 1998. Day Marilyn, Interview with former Westford Fire Chief George Rogers, 12/02; Day, Quincy. Collection of Historic Photos of Westford buildings, ca. 1900-1910. Maintained by Marilyn Day. Fletcher, J. V. Library newspaper collection. "ACCIDENTAL. Death of an Old Man at Westford Town Farm. NO MANSLAUGHTER." Untitled newspaper, February, 1903. Hodgman, Rev. Edward R. History of the Town of Westford, in the County of Middlesex, Massachusetts, 1659-1883. Lowell: 1883. Lainhart, Anne Compiler. Massachusetts census, 1855, 1865. McGinnity, Pam. Interview, 5/06. Meltsner, Heli.
Notes from a speech given to the Westford Historical Society, containing information on Town Farms, Poor Houses and Almshouses across Massachusetts as well as information onthelife and workof social reformer Dorothea Dix. March 24, 2004. Meltsner, Heli. Notes from Town Farm By-Laws, dated 1 November 1824, located in Town Hall. Oliphant, Robert. Research concerning Westford Town Farm employees and livestock. No date. Town Records. Annual Town Reports, 1840-1950. Research compiled by Marilyn Day and Bob Oliphant. Westford. Map. Edward Symmes. 1855. Westford. Map. Atlas of Middlesex County, MA. New York: Beers, 1875. Westford. Map. Atlas of Middlesex County, MA. Walker, 1889. (end) Westford Town Farm Name of Property Middlesex,MA County, State 10. Geographical Data Acreage of Property less than one acre UTM References See continuation sheet.
(Place additional UTM references on a continuation sheet) 1. 19 Zone 296580 Easting 4717660 Northing 2. 3. 4. Zone Easting Northing Zone Easting Northing Zone Easting Northing _ See continuation sheet Verbal Boundary Description (Describe the boundaries of the property on a continuation sheet.) Boundary Justification (Explain why the boundaries were selected on a continuation sheet.) 11. Form Prepared By name/title_ Sanford Johnson, consultant, with Betsy Friedberg, NR Director organization Massachusetts Historical Commission _ dateJanuary 2008 street & number. 220 Morrissey Boulevard _ telephone617-727-8470 city or town_ Boston state MA _ zip code 02125 Additional Documentation Submit the following items with the completed form: Continuation Sheets Maps A USGS map (7.5 or 15 minute series) indicating the property's location.
A sketch map for historic districts and properties having large acreage or numerous resources. Photographs Representative black and white photographs of the property. Additional items (Check with the SHPO or FPO for any additional items) Property Owner (Complete this item at the request of the SHPO or FPO.) name Town of Westford, MA street & number _ 55 Main Street telephone 978-692-5515 city or townWestford stateMA _zip code 01886 Paperwork Reduction Act Statement: This information is being collected for applications to the National Register of Historic Places to nominate properties for listing or determine eligibility for listing, to list properties, and to amend existing listings. Response to this request is required to obtain a benefit in accordance with the National Historic Preservation Act, as amended (16 U.S.C. 470 et seq.).
Estimated Burden Statement: Public reporting burden for this form is estimated to average 18.1 hours per response including the time for reviewing instructions, gathering and maintaining data, and completing and reviewing the form. Direct comments regarding this burden estimate or any aspect of this form to the Chief, Administrative Services Division, National Park Service, P.0. Box 37127, Washington, DC 20013-7127; and the Office of Management and Budget, Paperwork Reductions Project (1024-0018), Washington, DC 20503. NPS Form 10-900 (Rev. 10-90) United States Department of the Interior National Park Service National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet Section number 10 Page _1 OMB Approval No. 1024-0018 Westford Town Farm Westford (Middlesex), MA 10.
GEOGRAPHICAL DATA Verbal Boundary Description: The former Westford Town Farm comprises all of the land within the boundaries of assessor parcel 24-23. It is bounded by Town Farm Road on the west and the former Stony Brook - Boston and Maine Railroad on the south. The Town Farm parcel encompasses.9 acres. Boundary Justification: Boundaries of the Town Farm property were determined by the Westford Historical Commission and by the consultant. Boundaries include all land within the specified assessor's parcel. NPS Form 10-900 (Rev. 10-90) United States Department of the Interior National Park Service National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet Section number 10 Page2 OMB Approval No. 1024-0018 Westford Town Farm Westford (Middlesex), MA SKETCH MAP NORTH TOWARD TOP Playgrouec BOSTON B Graniteville Clay Pit Hill USSaCOO St.Catherines Cem.
orge Village: laygroun FORGE Rumping Sta VILLAGE Cem Forge Pond (end) NPS Form 10-900 (Rev. 10-90) United States Department of the Interior National Park Service National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet Section number _photos Page OMB Approval No.
1024-0018 Westford Town Farm Westford (Middlesex), MA PHOTO LOG 1 Exterior, View to southeast 2 Exterior, View to southeast 3 Exterior, View to northeast 4 5 Exterior, View, front entries Exterior, View, rear elevation, southwest view Exterior, View, rear elevation, west view 7 Interior, first floor, brick block, staircase 8 9 Interior, third floor, rear, brick block Interior, first floor, staircase, Victorian wood frame block 10 Interior, basement, jail cell, northeast corner, Victorian wood frame block 11 Interior, first floor, north end 12 Exterior, front door detail UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SERVICE NATIONAL REGISTER OF HISTORIC PLACES EVALUATION/RETURN SHEET REQUESTED ACTION: NOMINATION PROPERTY Westford Town Farm NAME: MULTIPLE NAME : STATE & COUNTY: MASSACHUSETTS, Middlesex DATE RECEIVED: DATE OF 16TH DAY: DATE OF WEEKLY LIST: 2/01/08 3/05/08 DATE OF PENDING LIST: 2/19/08 DATE OF 45TH DAY: 3/16/08 REFERENCE NUMBER: 08000167 REASONS FOR REVIEW: APPEAL: N DATA PROBLEM: N LANDSCAPE: N LESS THAN 50 YEARS: N OTHER: PDIL: N PERIOD: N PROGRAM UNAPPROVED: N REQUEST: N SAMPLE: N SLR DRAFT: Y NATIONAL: N COMMENT WAIVER: N ACCEPT RETURN REJECT 3/14/08 DATE ABSTRACT/ SUMMARY COMMENTS: RECOM.
/CRITERIA Accept H$L Latrick Andrus REVIEWER DISCIPLINE Historian TELEPHONE DATE 3/14/2008 DOCUMENTATION see attached comments Y/N see attached SLR Y/N If a nomination is returned to the nominating authority, the nomination is no longer under consideration by the NPS. MA_ Westford (MiddkeseCouuty)-towafarml.tif Extucoi viiu to SE Saufand Johusou photo PAOTO #1 EPSON MA_ Westford(MiddlesexCouuty)-tounafaros 2.tif Vuw to SE Samfond Johucon ploto PIOTO #Z SON PSON EPSON SON MA_ Westford (Middlesux County) - tounfarur 3. tif Vew o NE Sawuford Lohuçou pluto PAOTO #3 TOWNFARM R0 MA- Westford (MiddLsuxCounty) - toum fasant. tif Foat entices, nou to SE Samfand Johursnu pluto PItOTO # 4 PSON EPSO MA_ westford (Middlesex Guty) - towmfaran 5.
tif Rear elevation, so rrew Saufand Johusna plaoto PItOTO #5 sol MA_westfand(MiddlesexCocuafy)-towrufauanG.fif Reas elevatin, camera facing w Sauford Jolusou pleoto PIOTO #6 EPSON PSON Westford e(MiddlesexComsty) -towafam7, tif luterion, Ist flom, mich hlock, staincase facing 5 Samfund Lohuson phato PHOTO #7 MA_Westfnd (MiddlesexLoauty)- tounufann 8.tif Iuterior, 3nd floos, rear hrich hlock, facing E Sarnfund Johusme pluto PItOTO #8 MA_ Westford (MiddlsexCoauily)-towre farm 9. tik Interior, Ist floon staircase Victorian wood fame bloc Samfond Johuson pluto #9 PSO MA_ Westford (MiddlesuGuuty)-tormefaran10.fl hatercor, basement jail cell NE corner Pioro facing N Saufoud Johusmu phuto PHOTO #10 Mn Westford (Middleser Couuily) - towe faran l.
tig Iuteriur, Ist 6 Cuon, N End, Camcua facing NE Saufond Johusre pluoto PIOTO #" PSON un_Westjnd(MiddlesexCouuty)-towefarm12.fif Exterior, fout doo detail, facing É Saufaed Vohusou ploto PHOTO #12 The Commonwealth of Massachusetts William Francis Galvin, Secretary of the Commonwealth Massachusetts Historical Commission January 24, 2008 Mr. J. Paul Loether National Register of Historic Places Department of the Interior National Park Service 1201 Eye Street, NW, 8t floor Washington, DC 20005 RECEIVED 2280 FEB - 12008 NAT. REGISTER OF HISTORT SIACES Dear Mr. Loether: Enclosed please find the following nomination form: Westford Town Farm, 35 Town Farm Rd., Westford (Middlesex), MA The nomination has been voted eligible by the State Review Board and has been signed by the State Historic Preservation Officer.
The owners of the property were notified of pending State Review Board consideration 30 to 45 days before the meeting and were afforded the opportunity to comment. One letter of support has been received. Sincerely, Betry Fuedhey Betsy Friedberg National Register Director Massachusetts Historical Commission enclosure CC: Sanford Johnson, consultant Roberta McGuire, Westford Historical Commission Valerie Wormell, Westford Board of Selectmen Andrea Peraner-Sweet, Planning Board Chair 220 Morrissey Boulevard, Boston, Massachusetts 02125 (617) 727-8470 - Fax: (617) 727-5128 www.state.ma.us/sec/mhc OF ESTFORD Nep6 Town of Westford BOARD OF SELECTMEN RECEIVED Town Hall 55 Main Street Westford, Massachusetts 01886 TEL (978) 692 5500 AUG 15 2006 MASS. HIST.
COMM Director Betsy Friedberg Massachusetts Historical Commission 220 Morrissey Boulevard Boston, MA 02125 Re: NRHP Application Westford Town Farm Dear Director Friedberg: It is with great pleasure as the Chair of the Board of Selectmen of the Town of Westford that I write to you to today to ask for your affirmative recommendation and consideration of the Westford Town Farm for inclusion in the NRHP in accordance with application. The Board of Selectmen unanimously supports the Town Farm's inclusion. The farm served an important social and economic need during that time in our history prior to the current Social Security system and the state's mental hospitals. This farm provided a safety net for those who were not fortunate enough to have a place to live or a place to work. In more recent years, and, for decades, the farm had served as the headquarters for our School's Administration.
Westford is rich in history and especially proud of our Town Farm. Its physical presence stands as a link to our past. I hope you will agree that the Westford Town Farm is an important historic element in our community. Thank you for your kind consideration. I remain, Very truly foups Christopher A. Romeo Chairman, Westford Board of Selectmen August 14,2006
Block