Lexington, Massachusetts
Lexington is a town in
Middlesex County,
Massachusetts,
United States. The population was 30,355 at the 2000 census.
The town is famous for being the site of the opening shots ("the
shot heard 'round the world") of the
Battle of Lexington, the first engagement of the
American Revolution.
* Lexington is probably most well-known for its history, and is home to many historical buildings, parks and monuments, most dating from
Colonial and
Revolutionary times.
*One of the most prominent historical landmarks is the
Battle Green on which the skirmish was fought, and the Minute Man Statue in front of it.
*Another important historical monument is the Revolutionary Monument, the nation's oldest war memorial (completed on July 4, 1799) and the
gravesite of those colonists slain in the Battle of Lexington.
*Other landmarks of historical importance include the Old Burying Ground (with gravestones dating back to 1690), the Old
Belfry,
Buckman Tavern (circa 1704-1710),
Munroe Tavern (circa 1690), the
Hancock-Clarke House (circa 1698), the U.S.S. Lexington Memorial, and The Old Depot
train station.
*Lexington is also home to the 900-acre
Minute Man National Historical Park, and the
National Heritage Museum, which showcases exhibits on
American history and
popular culture (although suspiciously founded and supported by 32° degree
Freemasons).
*Central to the town is Lexington's
town center, home to numerous
dining oppurtunities, fine
art galleries, retail
shopping, a small
cinema, the Cary Memorial
Library, the
Minuteman Bikeway, the Depot Square and many of the aforementioned historical landmarks.
*Lexington is also renowned for its
public education system, which includes 6
elementary schools, 2
middle schools, and
Lexington High School, ranked the 304th best high school in the nation
[Best high schools in America, May 23, 2005].
Lexington was first settled in
1642 and was officially incorporated in
1713. [
1]
Every year, on the third Monday of April, the town observes
Patriot's Day. Events begin with
Paul Revere's Ride, with a special re-enactment of the scene on the Battle Green. At 6am, there is a re-enactment of the skirmish on the Battle Green, with shots being fired both from the Battle Green and the nearby Buckman Tavern, to take into account the fact that no one knows where the first shot was actually fired from, or by whom. After the rout, the British march on towards Concord. The battle in Lexington allowed the Concord militia time to organize at the Old North Bridge, where they were able to turn back the British and prevent them from capturing and destroying the militia's arms stores. The actual events occurred on April 19, 1775.
Throughout the rest of the year many tourists enjoy tours of the town's historic landmarks such as Buckman Tavern, Monroe Tavern, and the Hancock-Clarke house, which are kept up by the town's historical society.
Lexington is located at (42.444345, -71.226928).
According to the
United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 42.8
km² (16.5
mi²). 42.5 km² (16.4 mi²) of it is land and 0.4 km² (0.1 mi²) of it (0.85%) is water.
As of the
census of 2000, there were 30,355 people, 11,110 households, and 8,432 families residing in the town. The
population density was 714.6/km² (1,851.0/mi²). There were 11,333 housing units at an average density of 266.8/km² (691.1/mi²). The racial makeup of the town was 86.13%
White, 10.90%
Asian, 1.13%
Black or
African American, 0.08%
Native American, 0.01%
Pacific Islander, 0.34% from
other races, and 1.41% from two or more races.
Hispanic or
Latino of any race were 1.41% of the population.
There were 11,110 households out of which 37.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 66.0% were
married couples living together, 7.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 24.1% were non-families. 20.8% of all households were made up of individuals and 12.3% 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 3.10.
In the town the population was spread out with 26.4% under the age of 18, 3.5% from 18 to 24, 22.7% from 25 to 44, 28.5% from 45 to 64, and 19.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 44 years. For every 100 females there were 88.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 83.5 males.
The median income for a household in the town was $96,825, and the median income for a family was $111,899. Males had a median income of $81,857 versus $50,090 for females. The
per capita income for the town was $46,119. About 1.8% of families and 3.4% of the population were below the
poverty line, including 3.2% of those under age 18 and 3.4% of those age 65 or over.
*Beginning in April of
2005, a controversy erupted over teaching materials at a local elementary school which included portrayals of
same-sex unions. The story received much attention from the local and national media. See
Joseph Estabrook School for more information.
Lexington is a
sister city of
*
Tissa Hami -- comic, graduate of Lexington High School
*
Henry Abraham --
Nobel Peace Prize, current resident
*
Steve Bennett -- Film Producer and pioneer of Digital Cinema, former resident
*
Sir Tim Berners-Lee -- Inventor of the World Wide Web, current resident
*
Noam Chomsky -- world famous professor of
linguistics at
MIT and
left wing author, current resident, wrote the
Letters from Lexington*
Francis Judd Cooke -- composer
*
Rachel Dratch -- member of the cast of
Saturday Night Live, graduate of Lexington High School
*
Carl Everett --
Rightfielder/
Designated Hitter for the
Seattle Mariners, former outfielder for the
Boston Red Sox, former resident
*
Raef LaFrentz -- forward/center for the
Portland Trail Blazers*
Fred Fitzgerald -- Olympic Athlete
*
Nomar Garciaparra -- 1999, 2000 batting title-winning shortstop for the
Boston Red Sox and
Chicago Cubs,and first baseman for the
Los Angeles Dodgers, former resident
*
Mia Hamm -- Member of the
United States women's national soccer team 17 times, former resident
*
Bill Janovitz -- Lead singer and guitarist of the rock and roll band
Buffalo Tom, current resident
*
Salvador Luria --
Nobel Prize in Medicine, former resident
*
Mario Molina --
Nobel Prize in Physics, current resident
*
Eugene Mirman -- comedian, graduate of Lexington High School
*
Joseph Nye -- political analyst, author of
Soft power*
Amanda Palmer -- vocalist and pianist of the band the
Dresden Dolls; grew up in Lexington, Massachusetts, and attended
Lexington High School*
Charles Ponzi -- Infamous con man, former resident
*
Ruth Sawyer -- Author, winner of the
Newbery Medal, former resident
*
Clifford Shull --
Nobel Prize in Physics, former resident
*
Abigail Thernstrom -- Vice Chair of the
U.S. Commission on Civil Rights, current resident
*
Edward Osborne Wilson -- famous
entomologist, former resident
*
Rollie Massimino -- Lead
Villanova Wildcats to an improbable basketball national championship in 1985, former Lexington High School teacher and coach
*
Dennis Johnson -- guard for the
Boston Celtics, former resident
*
Ethan Zohn -- Winner of
Survivor: Africa, graduate of Lexington High School
*
Henry Louis Gates, Jr. -- African-American Studies scholar, co-editor of Encarta Africana encyclopedia, former resident
*
John Rawls -- Famous for his theory of justice, former resident
*
Steve Leech -- former NHL Player
*
Buckman Tavern*
Hancock-Clarke House*
Minute Man National Historical Park*
Monroe Tavern*
Lexington official website*
Lexington Public Schools
