Boxborough dates to 1680, and 2 of its places are on the National Register
More historic than 67% of U.S. towns · #258 of 283 in Massachusetts. What drives it
Most of Boxborough was built recently: 1% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1989. 2 places in town are on the National Register, among them a historic district with 32 buildings. Below: 2 old photos and papers, maps from 1887 on, and the census since 1790.
Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1828.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Boxborough’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Boxborough is more historic than 67% of U.S. towns, #258 of 283 in Massachusetts. Its age holds the grade up; its share of homes from before 1940 pulls it down.
B+
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Boxborough’s overall grade.
Massachusetts towns list more on the Register than most of the country (a typical Massachusetts town has 46.0 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Boxborough’s 63.7 sits near the middle of its state (55% of Massachusetts towns have fewer) while its 35 historic buildings outnumber those of 83% of U.S. towns.
NoteThe founding year comes from Wikidata alone; no second source gives 1680.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from C+ to A. The pre-1940 share (±1.5 points) is firm at this size.
Founding year: Wikidata (other dates in Quick answers). Homes: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register: National Park Service, May 2026 list; each listing counted once (boundary changes and added documentation belong to their listing), and a historic district counts its contributing buildings. How TownRatings grades history →
What stands out about Boxborough’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
The area which became the town of Boxborough was first inhabited by the Native Americans of the Nipmuc and Pennacook tribes. It was probably visited by colonists as early as the mid seventeenth century, before the neighboring towns of Stow (1683) and Acton (1735) were founded. However, the land in Boxborough was not settled until the beginning of the eighteenth century by farmers looking for fertile land to establish farms. Over the next decades, this area would become one of the most productive agricultural farming areas in the county. Several men from the area served in the Seven Years' War.
Nothing in the archives for these yearsWeddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
Nothing in the archives for these yearsWeddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
In 1680, according to Wikidata. Boxborough’s post office opened in 1828, and the first U.S. census counted 412 people here in 1790.
How does Boxborough rank for history?
Boxborough is more historic than 67% of U.S. towns, #258 of 283 in Massachusetts. The History grade combines the town’s founding era, the share of homes built before 1940 and its National Register listings. It’s a character grade, so it isn’t part of the overall grade. How it works.
What is on the National Register in Boxborough?
Two places: the Boxborough Old Town Center (listed 2006) and the Levi Wetherbee Farm (2006).
How old are the homes in Boxborough?
1% of Boxborough’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±1.5 points), against a typical 21% for a Massachusetts town; the median home was built in 1989.
Founding dates: Wikidata, Wikipedia, the U.S. post office records of Blevins & Helbock (CC0) and the Census. Homes by year built: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register of Historic Places: National Park Service (list of May 22, 2026). Old photos, postcards and papers: Wikimedia Commons, the Library of Congress and other public archives, credited on each item’s page. Maps: U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (via Esri) and Sanborn fire-insurance maps (Library of Congress). History text and census tables: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0). Places that used to be: USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
From Wikimedia Commons (6), the National Register of Historic Places (2), Wikipedia, Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia), the US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock) and the USGS Geographic Names Information System. Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.
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