BlockPaxton, Massachusetts
42 topographic sheets cover this place, the earliest surveyed in 1885 and the latest in 1989. It stands in Paxton town. It lies in ZIP code area 01612. It lies near Crocker Hill. The Survey maps it on the Paxton quadrangle.
Then and now
1885 to 1989The same ground, surveyed 104 years apart. Drag the handle to wipe between them. Both sheets are United States Geological Survey originals; neither has been altered.
Topographic sheets covering this place
18 surveys from 42 printed sheetsMatched by testing this settlement's coordinate against the published boundary of every sheet in the United States Geological Survey's historical collection. Each opens the scanned sheet at the Survey.
- 1885 USGS Worcester quadrangle1:62500
- 1886 USGS Worcester quadrangle1:62500
- 1892 USGS Worcester quadrangle1:62500, 10 printings
- 1908 USGS Quinsigamond quadrangle1:125000, 3 printings
- 1937 USGS Paxton quadrangle1:24000
- 1941 USGS Paxton quadrangle1:31680, 3 printings
- 1943 USGS Quinsigamond quadrangle1:125000
- 1948 USGS Boston quadrangle1:250000, 2 printings
- 1950 USGS Paxton quadrangle1:24000, 2 printings
- 1956 USGS Boston quadrangle1:250000, 6 printings
- 1958 USGS Boston quadrangle1:250000, 2 printings
- 1961 USGS Boston quadrangle1:250000, 2 printings
- 1965 USGS Paxton quadrangle1:24000
- 1965 USGS Paxton quadrangle1:25000
- 1975 USGS Paxton quadrangle1:25000
- 1983 USGS Worcester North quadrangle1:25000, 2 printings
- 1985 USGS Boston quadrangle1:100000
- 1989 USGS Boston quadrangle1:100000, 2 printings
In the county-history sources
10,174 words on this townshipHistory of Worcester County, Massachusetts, published 1889 names this settlement in its chapter on Paxton Town. These are the passages that mention it, exactly as the scans read.
If lines were drawn diagonally across the Commonwealth, from and to each of its four corners, the point of crossing would be within, or nearly so, the borders of the little town of Paxton ; hence it might be truly said, speaking geographically, that this town is the " axis " of the State, and that the high point of land known as Asnebumskit Mountain is the " hub " itself; thus may the least of towns aspire to rival, in some senses, the greatest !
Passage source: History of Worcester County, Massachusetts, published 1889.
This committee held several meetings, at which there were hearings of all the parties interested, and at the succeeding session of the General Court reported, on June 23, 1765, a bill entitled, " An Act for Incorporating the Southerly part of Rutland and the Northerly part of Leicester, in the county of Worcester, into a District by the name of Paxton." This bill, after brief reference to the appropriate committee, was reported back to the full house and speedily passed both branches of the General Court, and received Governor Francis Bernard's signature on the 12th of February, Anno Domini 1765. Thus was the frail bark of Paxton duly launched, possessing all the rights, privileges and immunities of any other town, except the right to send a representative on its sole account, but gave the right to "join with the town of Leicester and the precinct of Spencer" in choosing a representative to the Legislature.
Passage source: History of Worcester County, Massachusetts, published 1889.
It is proper to make some reference to the name given the town by the ait of incorporation, and perhaps no better account can be given than the following, which has come under our observation, viz.: " When the. bill for incorporating this town passed the House of Representatives no name was inserted ; the blank was filled in the Council by the word Paxton, in honor of Charles Paxton, who at that time was marshal of the Admiralty Court and a friend and favorite of Francis Bernard, the Governor, and of Thomas Hutchison, the Deputy-Governor. It is said that Paxton promised the town a church-bell if it was named for him; this promise was never fulfilled. (Charles Paxton, although poli.shed in manners and of pleasing address, was an intriguing politician and a despicable sycophant ; ' every man's humble servant, but no man's friend,' as his paper figure was labeled, when, on Pope's day, as the anniversary of the gunpowder plot was called, it was paraded through the streets of Boston standing between the effigies of the Pope and the devil. He was the tool of Charles Townsend, the Chancellor of the English
Passage source: History of Worcester County, Massachusetts, published 1889.
Machine-read from a century-old scan, so expect the errors a machine makes: misspelled names, dropped words, stray characters.
Read the whole chapter on Paxton Town - it names this place 16 more 16 times.
Fires near this place
30 since 2015Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 30 fires within 5 miles of Paxton between 2015 and 2020, burning about 28 acres in total. None started naturally. None was recorded as arson. Distance is straight-line from the map coordinates, so a fire counted here may appear on a neighbouring settlement's page as well.
| Reported cause | Fires |
|---|---|
| Debris and open burning | 17 |
| Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 7 |
| Recreation and ceremony | 4 |
| Smoking | 2 |
The most recent of them, most recent first, with the day each was reported and the service that recorded it.
| Date | Cause | Size | Reported by | Name on the report |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 14 September 2016 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | under an acre | Massachusetts Bureau of Forest Fire Control | not named |
| 1 September 2020 | Smoking | under an acre | Massachusetts Bureau of Forest Fire Control | not named |
| 1 September 2017 | Debris and open burning | under an acre | Massachusetts Bureau of Forest Fire Control | not named |
| 4 August 2016 | Recreation and ceremony | under an acre | Massachusetts Bureau of Forest Fire Control | not named |
| 24 August 2018 | Debris and open burning | under an acre | Massachusetts Bureau of Forest Fire Control | not named |
| 4 June 2020 | Debris and open burning | 1.5 acres | Massachusetts Bureau of Forest Fire Control | not named |
| 30 June 2018 | Debris and open burning | under an acre | Massachusetts Bureau of Forest Fire Control | not named |
| 2 June 2020 | Debris and open burning | under an acre | Massachusetts Bureau of Forest Fire Control | not named |
Settlements close enough to share some of these fires:
Specimens collected near this place
12 of 1,610 shownRegional context, not property-specific evidence. Museums hold 1,610 specimens collected within 10 miles of Paxton between 1839 and 1974: 988 Plantae, 318 Animalia, 282 Fungi, 16 Unrecorded, 4 Protozoa, 2 Chromista. 12 distinct Species records are shown. Collected by A E WOODHEAD, A. A. Eaton, A. B. Seymour and others. Each is a physical object with a catalogue number, and each entry opens the museum's record. This is what was collected and kept, not a survey of what lives here - nothing can be concluded from a species being absent.
| Image | Species | Year | Collected by | Where, as recorded |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | Pooecetes gramineus gramineus (J.F.Gmelin, 1789) | 1900 | Roscoe I. Giles | |
 | Ochrolechia tartarea (L.) A.Massal. | 1839 | E. Tuckerman | |
 | Carex laxiflora Lam. | 1840 | Thomas Nuttall | Cambridge. |
 | Carex vestita Willd. | 1840 | Thomas Nuttall | Cambridge. |
 | Mycobilimbia hypnorum (Lib.) Kalb & Hafellner | 1848 | E. Tuckerman | |
 | Tamias striatus lysteri (Richardson, 1829) | 1848 | L Agassiz | PARSONS ISLAND |
 | Cladonia cornucopioides F.Wilson | 1850 | J. L. Russell | Leicester |
 | Geranium maculatum L. | 1850 | not recorded | |
 | Packera aurea (L.) Á.Löve & D.Löve | 1850 | not recorded | |
| Elymus repens (L.) Gould | 1892 | Arthur B. Seymour | Cambridge. | |
| Festuca pratensis Huds. | 1892 | Arthur B. Seymour | Cambridge. | |
| Hepatica americana (DC.) Ker Gawl. | 1892 | Clarence Kinney |
All 1,610 specimens within 10 miles, at the Global Biodiversity Information Facility.
Mines and quarries near this place
6 within 5 milesRegional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal mineral resources record lists 6 workings within 5 miles of Paxton: 4 past producers, 1 unknown, 1 producer. 1 still produces. What was taken out: Sand and Gravel, Construction, Stone, Crushed/Broken. Distance is straight-line from the map coordinates, so a quarry counted here may appear on a neighbouring settlement's page as well.
| Where | Site | Commodity | Status | Recorded |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Holden Trap Rock | Stone, Crushed/Broken | Unknown | ||
| Elmwood Street Pit | Sand and Gravel, Construction | Past Producer | ||
| Highway Pit | Sand and Gravel, Construction | Past Producer | ||
| Intervale Pit | Sand and Gravel, Construction | Past Producer | ||
| Trulson Pit | Sand and Gravel, Construction | Past Producer | ||
| Wachusetts Pit | Sand and Gravel, Construction | Producer |
Storms near this place
4 since 2010Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Paxton in 4 storm reports between 2010 and 2025: 2 hail, 2 tornado. No death or injury is recorded in these reports. Each account below is quoted exactly as the forecast office filed it, from the NOAA Storm Events Database, and each date opens the federal record of that event.
| When | Event | Place named | Harm | What the report says |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| September 2025 | Tornado (EF0) | Paxton | $10,000 | A tornado briefly touched down near Arrowhead drive in Paxton, crossing Richards Ave and likely lifting after causing significant tree damage in its path. Several softwood trees|snapped at the trunk or uprooted. |
| September 2025 | Tornado (EF0) | Paxton | $4,000 | A tornado briefly touched down near a section of South Rd in Holden, MA. Damage was limited to several softwood trees being uprooted. |
| September 2010 | Hail | Paxton | - | Quarter size hail fell on South Road. |
| May 2014 | Hail | Paxton | - | no account filed |
Nearest settlements
The eight closest, with where each one stands in the county. Distances are straight-line, computed from the Geographic Names Information System coordinates.
| Map | Place | Distance | Sheets |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sandy Beach | 2.1 miles | 42 | |
| Turkey Hill Shores | 2.3 miles | 42 | |
| North Spencer | 3.1 miles | 42 | |
| Lambs Grove | 3.3 miles | 42 | |
| West Tatnuck | 3.6 miles | 45 | |
| Camp Kinneywood | 3.6 miles | 45 | |
| Upper Wire Village | 3.7 miles | 42 | |
| Tafts Corner | 4.1 miles | 42 |
Provenance
This settlement is recorded in the Geographic Names Information System as feature 610250. The sheet list is computed by point-in-boundary test against the United States Geological Survey's historical topographic inventory. Both are works of the United States government and carry no copyright under 17 U.S.C. 105.
Wildfire. Short, Karen C. 2022. Spatial wildfire occurrence data for the United States, 1992-2020 [FPA_FOD_20221014]. 6th Edition. Fort Collins, CO: Forest Service Research Data Archive. https://doi.org/10.2737/RDS-2013-0009.6 Collected with United States Government funding and usable without additional permissions or fees.
Specimens. Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF), https://www.gbif.org/. Only records licensed CC0 or CC BY are used. Records licensed CC BY-NC are excluded because this site carries advertising. Images are checked individually and any whose licence is non-commercial, no-derivatives or unreadable is refused.
Mines and quarries. USGS Mineral Resources Data System (MRDS) https://mrdata.usgs.gov/mrds/ A work of the United States government, no copyright under 17 U.S.C. 105.
Storms. NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/stormevents/ A work of the United States government, no copyright under 17 U.S.C. 105. Narratives are quoted verbatim from the National Weather Service report and are not edited or summarised.