Blandford, Massachusetts

Blandford, Massachusetts
—  Town  —
Watson Park
Location in Hampden County in Massachusetts
Coordinates: 42°10′50″N 72°55′40″W
Country	United States
State	Massachusetts
County	Hampden
Settled	1735
Incorporated	1741
Government
• Type	Open town meeting
Area
• Total	53.6 sq mi (138.7 km2)
• Land	51.7 sq mi (134.0 km2)
• Water	1.8 sq mi (4.7 km2)
Elevation	1,452 ft (443 m)
Population (2010)
• Total	1,233
• Density	23.8/sq mi (9.2/km2)
Time zone	Eastern (UTC-5)
• Summer (DST)	Eastern (UTC-4)
ZIP code	01008
Area code(s)	413
FIPS code	25-06085
GNIS feature ID	0619383

Blandford is a town in Hampden County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 1,233 at the 2010 census. It is part of the Springfield, Massachusetts Metropolitan Statistical Area. It is the home of the Blandford Ski Area.

History

Blandford was first settled in 1735 by Scots-Irish settlers and was officially incorporated in 1741. Settlement came to Blandford and other "hilltowns" some 75 years after more fertile alluvial lowlands along the Connecticut River where tobacco and other commodity crops were cultivated. In contrast farming in the hilltowns was of a hardscrabble subsistence nature due to thin, rocky soil following Pleistocene glaciation and a slightly cooler climate, although upland fields were sometimes less subject to unseasonal frosts. Initial settlement in the nearby Pioneer Valley was by English Puritans whereas Blandford's Scots-Irish settlers were Presbyterian and their English was still somewhat influenced by Gaelic. Thus there were significant ethnic, religious, economic, and linguistic differences between these adjacent regions of settlement.

During the American Revolutionary War, General Henry Knox led a detachment of troops that hauled cannon from Fort Ticonderoga on Lake Champlain over the Berkshires and through Blandford, eventually on to Boston to bombard the British, forcing their withdrawal from the city. His route is now called the Henry Knox Trail.

Population density in Blandford and other hilltowns was limited by outmigration by about 1800 as more productive land in Western New York and the Northwest Territories became available, however emigrants were typically young men and women, while the older generation and usually one or two children usually remained in place and farms were not yet abandoned. Then the Industrial Revolution drew additional manpower away from hilltown farms, especially after 1850 when steam engines fueled by local wood or by coal began to replace water power. Hilltown farms began to be abandoned about this time and slowly reverted to forest, leaving stone walls and cellar holes behind as farm buildings rotted away. In other cases farming became a part-time way of life and industrial wages enabled buying manufactured goods, whereas previously virtually everything used on subsistence farms was homemade or bartered for.

Geography

Route 23 westbound through the center of town.

The town is located near the eastern edge of the Berkshire Hills, above an ancient rift zone where the Connecticut River Valley is downfaulted about one thousand feet (300 m). The town's elevations range from about 400 feet (120 m) along streams approaching the Westfield River (a major tributary of the Connecticut) to hilltops as high as 1700 feet (500 m). Elevations increase to the west with expansive views eastward across the Connecticut River Valley as far as Mount Monadnock in southern New Hampshire. Local relief is as high as 500 feet (150 m) near streams flowing into the Westfield River, but away from these streams the town is characterised by rolling uplands.

Abandoned fields and pastures have reverted to forests of beech, birch, maple, hemlock, pine and oak. Land reserved for woodlots and never cleared was repeatedly logged, however logging has fallen off in recent decades so forests are reclaiming some old growth qualities and animal species that have been absent or rare for some 200 years are returning.

Blandford has significant water resources in its streams and ponds. The city of Springfield has reserved the upper watershed of the Little River, a tributary of the Westfield as the city's main water supply, Cobble Mountain Reservoir.

Demographics

Historical populations
Year	Pop.	±%
1850	1,418	—
1860	1,256	−11.4%
1870	1,026	−18.3%
1880	979	−4.6%
1890	871	−11.0%
1900	836	−4.0%
1910	717	−14.2%
1920	479	−33.2%
1930	545	+13.8%
1940	479	−12.1%
1950	597	+24.6%
1960	636	+6.5%
1970	863	+35.7%
1980	1,038	+20.3%
1990	1,187	+14.4%
2000	1,214	+2.3%
2001*	1,227	+1.1%
2002*	1,246	+1.5%
2003*	1,262	+1.3%
2004*	1,280	+1.4%
2005*	1,282	+0.2%
2006*	1,294	+0.9%
2007*	1,310	+1.2%
2008*	1,277	−2.5%
2009*	1,298	+1.6%
2010	1,233	−5.0%
* = population estimate. Source: United States Census records and Population Estimates Program data.

As of the census of 2000, there were 1,214 people, 456 households, and 350 families residing in the town. The population density was 23.5 people per square mile (9.1/km²). There were 526 housing units at an average density of 10.2 per square mile (3.9/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 98.76% White, 0.49% African American, 0.16% Native American, 0.25% Asian, and 0.33% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.33% of the population.

There were 456 households out of which 33.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 65.4% were married couples living together, 6.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 23.2% were non-families. 19.5% of all households were made up of individuals and 6.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.66 and the average family size was 3.03.

In the town the population was spread out with 24.1% under the age of 18, 6.6% from 18 to 24, 27.8% from 25 to 44, 31.8% from 45 to 64, and 9.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40 years. For every 100 females there were 100.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 98.1 males.

The median income for a household in the town was $52,935, and the median income for a family was $59,375. Males had a median income of $37,708 versus $32,917 for females. The per capita income for the town was $24,285. About 1.7% of families and 3.4% of the population were below the poverty line, including 2.0% of those under age 18 and 5.9% of those age 65 or over.

Points of interest

• Blandford is home to the Blandford Ski Area, a small ski mountain owned by the Springfield Ski Club and open to the public. 2008–2009 marks its 73rd year of operation.
• The Blandford Fairgrounds plays host to the annual Labor Day weekend Blandford Fair. Home to old fashioned agricultural exhibits and competitions, a fun filled midway, and many musical acts each year. This fair is made possible by the hard work of many volunteers each year.
• South of the fairgrounds is an historic white church building, that has just recently began to host services. [2]
• The oldest cemetery adjacent to Route 23 includes gravesites for original settlers, some born in Ireland.
• The Porter Memorial Library at 87 Main St. is built of fine yellow bricks made of local kaolin clay, also used in part of the State House in Boston [3].

Notable residents

• George Ashmun (1804–1870), born in Blandford, United States Congressman from Massachusetts
• Winifred E. Lefferts (1903–1995; also known as Winifred Lefferts Arms), painter, designer and philanthropist

External links

• MHC Reconnaissance Town Survey Report: Blandford Massachusetts Historical Commission, 1982.