Fitchburg, Massachusetts

Fitchburg is the third largest city in Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 40,318 at the 2010 census. Fitchburg is home to Fitchburg State University as well as 17 public and private elementary and high schools.

History
Fitchburg was first settled in 1730 as part of Lunenburg, and was officially set apart from that township and incorporated in 1764. It is named for John Fitch, one of the committee that procured the act of incorporation. In July 1748 Fitch and his family, living in this isolated spot, were abducted to Canada by Native Americans, but returned the next year.

Fitchburg is situated on both the Nashua River and a railroad line. The original Fitchburg Railroad ran through the Hoosac Tunnel, linking Boston and Albany, New York. The tunnel was built using the Burleigh Rock Drill, designed and built in Fitchburg. Fitchburg was a 19th-century industrial center. Originally operated by water power, large mills produced machines, tools, clothing, paper, and firearms. The city is noted for its architecture, particularly in the Victorian style, built at the height of its mill town prosperity. A few examples of these 19th century buildings are the Fay Club, the old North Worcester County Courthouse and the Bullock house.

As the city is one of two shire towns, the Northern Worcester County Registry of Deeds, established in 1903, and the county jail on Water Street were two county facilities located in Fitchburg.

The 1961 film Return to Peyton Place was filmed in Fitchburg.

Geography
Fitchburg is located at 42.57861°N, -71.80333°W (42.578689, -71.803383).

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 28.1 sqmi, of which 27.8 sqmi is land and 0.3 sqmi, or 1.07%, is water. The city is drained by the Nashua River. The highest point in Fitchburg is the summit of Brown Hill near the northwestern corner of the city, at 1210 ft above sea level.

Fitchburg is bordered by Ashby to the north, Lunenburg to the east, Leominster to the south, Westminster to the west, and a small portion of Ashburnham to the northwest.

Climate
Fitchburg's climate is humid continental, which is the predominant climate for Massachusetts and New England. Summers are typically warm, rainy, and humid, while winters are cold, windy, and snowy. Spring and fall are usually mild, but conditions are widely varied, depending on wind direction and jet stream positioning. The warmest month is July, with an average high temperature of 79 °F and an average low temperature of 56 °F. The coldest month is January, with an average high temperature of 31 °F and an average low temperature of 12 °F.

Neighborhoods
Fitchburg is divided into multiple different neighborhoods/villages, including: Note: only some of these names show up as neighborhoods on old maps. For example: Rollstone Hill certainly exists, but it is a geographical feature, Wachusett Station was simply a train station. Some of the names, like Crockerville and Tar Hill have fallen into disuse. Other neighborhoods have not been included on this list like Greektown.
 * Cleghorn
 * Crockerville
 * East Fitchburg
 * Rollstone Hill
 * South Fitchburg
 * Tar Hill
 * The Patch
 * Wachusett Station
 * Waite's Corner
 * West Fitchburg

Fitchburg Art Museum
North Central Massachusetts' most treasured cultural institution is a world-class family-friendly museum with a permanent collection spanning 5,000 years. The museum was founded in 1925 through the bequest of artist, collector and Fitchburg native Eleanor Norcross (1854–1923). Her extraordinary talents and educational vision highlights her as an important pioneer in American social history. The museum's four building complex features over 20,000 square feet of gallery and educational workshop space and includes the historic "Cross Barn" built in 1883, and the impressive Simond's building completed in 1989. Visitors can experience masterpieces in 12 beautifully designed galleries that feature American, European, African, Egyptian, Greek, Roman, Asian, and Pre-Columbian art.

Rollstone Boulder


Fitchburg is noted for the "Rollstone Boulder", a 110-ton specimen of porphyritic granite, which is in a small triangular park adjacent to the city green. The boulder was a feature of the summit of Rollstone Hill; it was exploded and reassembled on the green in 1929 and 1930. A plaque attached to the boulder today reads, in part:

Crocker Field
Listed on the National Register of Historic Places, this athletic facility was a gift of Alva Crocker, in 1918, to the City Of Fitchburg’s school children. Alvah Crocker hired the famous Olmsted Brothers Landscaping and Design Firm of Brookline, MA to design his “field of dreams.” Babe Ruth once visited Crocker field and asked Clarence Amiott, then the Fitchburg High School Athletic Director, “What professional team plays here?” to which Mr. Amiott answered “The Fitchburg High School teams.” Crocker Field website

Top Fun Aviation Museum
This is the first—and only—toy museum in the world that’s completely devoted to aviation-related toys. Included in the museum’s collection of over 2000 toys are tin toys from Japan, Hungary, Germany, and the United States. Top Fun Aviation Museum.

Fitchburg Historical Society
The Society houses more than 200,000 items related to the history of Fitchburg. Included in the archives are original Sentinel newspapers from 1838 to 1976, city directories, photographs, scrapbooks, manuscripts, family genealogies, postcards, files on industries in the City, and books and pamphlets on Fitchburg’s history from the 1700s to the present. In addition there is an extensive Civil War collection and a collection on the railroad. The Research Library is open to the public. The Society also has a remarkable collection of artifacts which tell the story of Fitchburg—early iron hearth cooking tools, the first printing press of the Fitchburg Sentinel, machines illustrating the strong industrial heritage of the City, a stellar collection of early paintings, and clothing representing many decades in Fitchburg.

Coggshall Park
Situated in the small North Central Massachusetts city of Fitchburg, MA. sits a Victorian park with miles of wooded trails branching out from around Mirror Lake. Additionally a pleasant and easy walking path circles the lake. Stone steps built into a hillside face a gazebo on the water, making this a popular spot for weddings and photos. A classic stone house on the property overlooks "Mirror Lake". The tables and benches scattered around the park draw picnickers as well as those simply seeking a place to relax. For the children there's a playground that sits adjacent from the pond and a frisbee golf course.

Coggshall Park was a gift to the City from Mr. Henry Coggshall, an executive of The Fitchburg Gas Company, and his wife in 1894. The initial donation included 86 acres, but the couple subsequently purchased and donated additional parcels to create the 212-acre park that exists today. Coggshall Park also abuts a large parcel of conservation land and a bird sanctuary, providing a total of approximately 300 acres for visitors to enjoy.

The Friends of Coggshall Park, an organization that was founded in 1992 when approximately $1 million in state and federal funds were used to renovate the park. The Friends' mission is to support Coggshall Park, with all funds raised by the organization used exclusively for the Park's preservation. Since the group's founding, the Friends have contributed significantly to the upkeep and beautification of Coggshall Park. Annual spring clean-up projects, to which the Friends contribute both volunteer labor and supplies (including more than 60 yards of mulch each year), ensure the park's landcaping remains well-kept. Other investments made by the Friends have been even more significant, such as the purchase of a new fountain for Mirror Lake and a specialized off-road firefighting vehicle for use in Coggshall or elsewhere around the city as needed.Friends of Coggshall Park

Demographics
As of the census of 2010, there were 40,318 people, 15,165 households, and 9,362 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,450.3 people per square mile (560.8/km²). There were 17,117 housing units at an average density of 615.7 per square mile (239.3/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 78.2% White, 5.1% African American, 0.3% Native American, 3.6% Asian, 0.0% Pacific Islander, 9.1% from other races, and 3.7% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 21.6% of the population (14.6% Puerto Rican, 1.8% Dominican, 1.6% Uruguayan, 1.4% Mexican, 0.3% Colombian). 76.9% spoke English, 15.1% Spanish, 4.2% Other Indo-European Language and 2.6% Asian and Pacific Islander Languages as their first language.

There were 15,165 households out of which 29.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 39.3% were married couples living together, 6.1% had a male householder with no wife present, 16.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 38.3% were non-families. 29.8% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.49 and the average family size was 3.10.

In the city the population was spread out with 22.9% under the age of 18, 14.1% from 18 to 24, 25.9% from 25 to 44, 24.7% from 45 to 64, and 12.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 34.7 years. For every 100 females there were 94.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 92.3 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $47,019, and the median income for a family was $57,245. Males had a median income of $47,350 versus $37,921 for females. The per capita income for the city was $22,972. About 14.6% of families and 19.4% of the population were below the poverty line, including 27.3% of those under age 18 and 12.7% of those age 65 or over.

Fire department
Fitchburg is protected year-round by the 98 paid, professional firefighters of the City of Fitchburg Fire Department. The department operates out of 3 fire stations, located throughout the city, under the command of one deputy chief/shift commander per shift. The department operates a fleet of 3 engines, 1 tower ladder, 1 rescue ambulance, 1 special operations unit, 1 brush unit, 1 fireboat, 1 maintenance unit, 1 transport bus, and several other special support and reserve units, including 2 reserve engines, 1 reserve engine/tanker, and 1 reserve tower ladder. The department is commanded by a chief of department, 4 deputy chiefs, 4 captains, and 14 lieutenants. The Fitchburg Fire Department responds to approximately 8,000 emergency calls annually. The current chief of department is Kevin D. Roy.

Below is a complete listing of all fire station locations and apparatus in Fitchburg.
 * Fire Headquarters - 33 North St.
 * Deputy Chief/Shift Commander
 * Engine 3(Reserve)
 * Engine 4
 * Engine 5(Reserve)
 * Engine/Tanker 6(Reserve)
 * Engine 7(Brush Unit)
 * Tower Ladder 2(Reserve)
 * Tower Ladder 3
 * Special Operations Unit
 * Rescue 3(Ambulance)
 * Medic 19 (Ambulance)
 * Summer Street Station - 42 John Fitch Hwy.
 * Engine 1
 * State HazMat 63
 * Oak Hill Road Station - 231 Fairmount St.
 * Engine 2
 * Medic 20 (Ambulance)

Law enforcement
There are four law enforcement agencies that serve Fitchburg, two at the city level, one at the county level, and one at the state level.
 * City level:
 * Fitchburg Police Department - The Fitchburg Police Department is a full-service law enforcement agency with law enforcement responsibilities for 28 sqmi and 192 mi of public road. The department responds to over 40,000 incidents each year, while addressing the needs of a population of approximately 40,000 people in Central Massachusetts.
 * Fitchburg State University Campus Police - The Fitchburg State University Police Department includes a Chief, two Lieutenants, one Sergeant, fourteen full-time Police Officers, three full-time Dispatchers. The police officers are fully trained, licensed, and armed as Special State Police Officers under Massachusetts General Law c.22c, 63 and c.73,18 as well as sworn Worcester County Deputy Sheriffs. In addition, in 2012 Fitchburg Mayor Lisa Wong swore in all FSUPD officers as Fitchburg special officers per request of the municipal police, expanding the campus police's ability to assist the city police. Officers possess full police powers and are responsible for the prevention of crime, the detection and apprehension of offenders, the preservation of public peace, and the enforcement of all criminal laws and state statues as well as compliance with the policies and regulations of the university.
 * County level:
 * Worcester County Sheriff
 * State level:
 * Massachusetts State Police - The Massachusetts State Police (MSP) is an agency of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts' Executive Office of Public Safety and Security responsible for criminal law enforcement and traffic vehicle regulation across the state. At present, it has approximately 2,200 officers and 400 civilian support staff, making it the largest law enforcement agency in New England.

Medical care
There is a medical facility in Fitchburg, Hospital (Burbank Campus). Fitchburg is also served by Hospital HealthAlliance (Leominster Campus), which is located in neighboring Leominster.

Library
The Fitchburg Public Library was established in 1859 after citizens of Fitchburg approve an article on the warrant requesting $1851 and quarters in the Town Hall for the first Fitchburg Public Library.

In 1885 Rodney Wallace builds and furnishes the Wallace Library and Art Gallery at the corner of Main Street and Newton Place as a gift to the people of Fitchburg. Then in 1899 library service for children begins in one of the first Children's rooms in the country. It wasn't unit 1950 that a new separate Fitchburg Youth Library was opened. Service of the library was increased with the purchase of a bookmobile which extended service to outlying areas of the city.

Fitchburg Public Library becomes the first regional library in the Massachusetts Regional Library System in 1962.

The existing Wallace Library is dedicated in 1967. Named for George R. Wallace, Jr. and his wife Alice G. Wallace, who gave a magnificent gift for the library building. The federal Library Services and Construction Act and money from the City of Fitchburg also funded the project. And Helen E. Vickery Fund provided for a new bookmobile.

In fiscal year 2008, the city of Fitchburg spent 1.34% ($1,111,412) of its budget on its public library—some $27 per person. In fiscal year 2009, the city of Fitchburg spent .48% ($388,977) of its budget on its public library -- $9.23 per person. This represented a year over year drop in municipal funding of 65% between FY2008 and FY2009. As a result, the Fitchburg Public Library did not meet Massachusetts minimum standards of public library services and was not certified by the Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners for FY2009. It returned to certification in FY2012.

Furthermore, on going support comes from the Friends of the Fitchburg Public Library. The Friends of FPL establish closer relations between the library and the people it serves, promotes support of services, and funds several important services such purchasing books for the library and the fees for the museum passes. The Friends work with area museums to bring you Museum Passes you can use to visit exhibits for reduced fees.

In 2014 the Fitchburg Law Library opened at the Fitchburg Public Library in response to the closure of the office on Elm Street in Fitchburg. The new library location is fully accessible and open to the public.

Public schools

 * Memorial Middle School
 * Crocker Elementary School
 * McKay Elementary School
 * Reingold Elementary School
 * South Street Elementary School
 * North Central Charter Essential School
 * Fitchburg Arts Academy (FAA)
 * Arthur M. Longsjo Jr. Middle School
 * Fitchburg High School
 * Goodrich Academy
 * Montachusett Regional Vocational Technical School, also called Monty Tech

Private schools

 * Applewild School
 * Notre Dame Preparatory School
 * St. Anthony di Padua Elementary School
 * St. Bernard's Elementary School
 * St. Bernard's Central Catholic High School

Colleges and universities
Established in 1894 by an act of the Massachusetts Legislature, the State Normal School in Fitchburg opened in temporary quarters in the old high school building on Academy Street.For more details of the history of Fitchburg State
 * Fitchburg State University

Transportation
Transportation for Fitchburg is largely supplied by the Montachusett Regional Transit Authority (MART). MART operates fixed-route bus services, shuttle services, as well as paratransit services within the Montachusett Region. It also provides connections to the MBTA Commuter Rail line at Fitchburg Station. The Fitchburg Station is the last stop on the Fitchburg Line from the North Station in Boston.

The Fitchburg Municipal Airport occupies 335 acres off Airport Road in Fitchburg near the Leominster border. In 1940, the airport land was donated to the City of Fitchburg and serves the greater Fitchburg area.

Business
Throughout the early twentieth century, Fitchburg was known for its paper industry, which occupied the banks of the Nashua River and employed a large segment of the European immigrant population. It has been noted by many residents in Fitchburg that the Nashua River would be dyed the color the paper mills had been coloring the paper that day.
 * Founded in 1939, the Wachusett Potato Chip Company purchased the former County Jail buildings and grounds in the 1940s and has operated as a manufacturing and distributing facility for snack products since that time. It was purchased by UTZ in 2011 and still makes chips for local distribution using the Wachusett name.
 * Two truck manufacturing firms, the Wachusett Truck Company and the New England Truck Company, operated in Fitchburg during the early twentieth century.
 * The Iver Johnson Arms and Cycle Works made motorcycles for a short time, in addition to their primary products, firearms and bicycles.
 * Assumption Life, a large financial services company, was founded in Fitchburg in 1903 before moving to Moncton, New Brunswick.
 * When completed in June 2014 Great Wolf Lodge New England will have spent over 70 million dollars in renovations to former Holiday Inn/Coco Key Water Resort There will be over 400 new permanent jobs created from this project.

Fitchburg Central Steam Plant
The Fitchburg Central Steam Plant was built in 1928 to provide steam and electricity to the many local paper mills. As the paper mills were abandoned or improved the Central Steam Plant fell into disuse and was abandoned. In 2008, the EPA designated the Central Steam Plant a brownfield site due to contamination of the site soil and groundwater with metals and inorganic contaminants. The EPA provided the City of Fitchburg $50,500 in grant money to help clean up hazardous substances on the site.

Cleanup of the Central Steam Plant started in 2010 and is ongoing as of July 2011.

Parks
Fitchburg Parks and Recreation Department
 * Bartley-Nolan Salem Street Playground
 * Caldwell Park
 * Coggshall Park
 * Coolidge Park
 * Crocker Playground
 * Gateway Park
 * Goodrich Playground
 * Green Corners Park
 * Howarth Park
 * Litchfield Park
 * Lowe Playground
 * Sadie Quatrale Park
 * Monument Park
 * Moran Field
 * Parkhill Park
 * Phillips Playground
 * Riverfront Park
 * South Fitchburg Playground
 * Upper Common
 * Stanley Park

Conservation Land
Flat Rock Wild Life Sanctuary, a 326 acre wild life sanctuary that is part a network of Mass Aududon land, with 6 miles of trails. It is located within minutes from downtown Fitchburg, the hustling sounds of the city fade into a chorus of songbirds, rustling leaves, and zipping dragonflies. This wooded area provides habitat for species needing relatively large territories such as fisher, coyote, and red fox. Bobcat and black bear occasionally travel through these woods over rocky ledges and through hemlock groves.

West Fitchburg Steam Line Trail
The West Fitchburg Steam Line Trail is a bike and walking path located in Fitchburg on Route 2A. It is 0.6 miles long and runs along the Nashua River and Flag Brook in the Waites Corner neighborhood. The path is gravel and is relatively easy terrain. The trail is the first contracted part of a planned project to build a mixed use bike and walking trail through Fitchburg. This trail will eventually connect with trails in the neighboring towns of Leominster and Westminster. Additional parts of the proposed trail are in the Riverfront and Gateway Parks.

The Fitchburg Steam Line Trail is located near the junction of Route 31 (Princeton Rd) and Route 2A (Westminster St) at 465 Westminster Street. The trail parking lot is marked with signs, and is on the south side of 2A approximately 1/4 mile East of Route 31.

The trail starts to the left of the Fitchburg Central Steam Plant.

Newspapers

 * Raivaaja
 * Sentinel & Enterprise
 * Telegram & Gazette

Television

 * Fitchburg has its own access TV station,Fitchburg Access Television. The station covers various local events, ranging from local school sports to municipal government meetings. FATV operates three Public, Education, and Government (PEG) channels. FATV channels can be viewed on Comcast (channels 8, 9, & 99) and on Verizon (channels 35, 36, & 37). FATV is not available on satellite TV.

Radio

 * WPKZ, AM-1280 FM-105.3
 * WXPL, FM-91.3 Fitchburg State Radio
 * WXLO, FM-104.5

Culture
Fitchburg's cultural highlights include:
 * Fitchburg Art Museum
 * Fitchburg Historical Society
 * Fitchburg Longsjo Classic
 * Wallace Civic Center
 * Boulder Art Gallery
 * Rollstone Studios
 * Design @ 639
 * Hammond Campus Center Art Gallery
 * Stratton Players
 * Riverside Studios
 * New Players Theatre Guild
 * Umbrella Gallery
 * Fitchburg Artistree
 * Top Fun Toy Aviation Museum
 * Riverfront Children's Theater
 * The Boulder Cafe
 * Fitchburg Military Band

In popular culture
In the fictional Harry Potter universe, Fitchburg is the hometown of the professional Quidditch team the Fitchburg Finches.

The opening scene in the popular 1961 movie, By Love Possessed, starring Lana Turner, Ephram Zimbalist Jr., Jason Robards, and George Hamilton, features Fitchburg's Court House and Monument Park.

In the Fringe episode "The Human Kind", Olivia goes to Fitchburg to retrieve an electromagnet.

In 2012, Dark Horse Comics began releasing an eight-issue limited comic book series entitled Falling Skies: The Battle of Fitchburg, with Paul Tobin writing and Juan Ferreyra as artist. The story takes place chronologically between seasons one and two of the Falling Skies television show, and details a costly engagement occurring between the skitters and the 2nd Massachusetts Militia Regiment when the aliens surround the human forces at Fitchburg, Massachusetts.

Notable people

 * Herbert Adams, sculptor of "WWI, Winged Glory" in the Upper Common of Fitchburg
 * Ameriie (Amerie Mi Marie Rogers), singer and actress
 * Mike Barnicle, newspaper writer
 * Michael Beasley, NBA player, high school All-American; attended Notre Dame Preparatory School
 * Ken Bouchard, former NASCAR driver, 1988 NASCAR Winston Cup Rookie of the Year
 * Ron Bouchard, former NASCAR driver, 1981 NASCAR Winston Cup Rookie of the Year
 * Everett Francis Briggs, Catholic priest and miners' activist, born in Fitchburg, his life's mission was dedicated to the victims of the Monongah Mining Disaster
 * Carolyn Brown, dancer, choreographer, and writer, danced with Merce Cunningham Dance Company
 * Henry Sweetser Burrage, clergyman, editor, author, Maine historian
 * James "Nixey" Callahan, Major League Baseball pitcher around the turn of the 20th century, later manager of the Chicago White Sox
 * Marcus A. Coolidge, United States Senator
 * Alvah Crocker, manufacturer and railroad promoter, United States Representative
 * George Crowther, football player
 * Ryan Gomes, NBA player; attended Notre Dame Preparatory School
 * Bruce Gordon, actor (Ishtar, Adam-12, Bonanza, Get Smart, and The Untouchables)
 * Samuel W. Hale, member of the New Hampshire House of Representatives and the 39th Governor of New Hampshire
 * Ripley Hitchcock, prominent editor
 * Lempi Ikävalko, Finnish-born poet, author, journalist; for 30 years, editor at Fitchburg's Raivaaja newspaper
 * Erika Lawler, member of the 2009–10 United States national women's ice hockey team
 * Ray LeBlanc, ice hockey goaltender
 * John Legere, CEO of T-Mobile US
 * Art Longsjo, Winter and Summer Olympian; Fitchburg Longsjo Classic is held in his memory
 * Caroline Atherton Mason, poet
 * Hiram Maxim, inventor of the first self-powered machine gun
 * Pat Moran, catcher and manager in Major League Baseball, managed the Philadelphia Phillies and the 1919 World Series champion Cincinnati Reds
 * George Noory, host of Coast to Coast AM; spent some years in Fitchburg and occasionally mentions the city on his show
 * Eleanor Norcross, founder of the Fitchburg Art Museum, artist, collector, social reformer
 * Marion Rice, Denishawn dancer, teacher, choreographer, producer
 * Charles L. Robinson, physician, journalist and first governor of Kansas
 * Sylvanus Sawyer, inventor and manufacturer
 * Asa Thurston, Hawaiian missionary
 * Calvin M. Woodward, St. Louis educator
 * Samuel Worcester, clergyman noted for his participation in a controversy over Unitarianism

Sister cities

 * 🇩🇪 Kleve, Germany
 * 🇫🇮 Kokkola, Finland
 * Tianjin, China
 * Oni, Georgia