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A−History
History · Mansfield

Mansfield dates to 1658, and 16% of its homes were built before 1940

More historic than 79% of U.S. towns · #229 of 283 in Massachusetts. What drives it

4 places in town are on the National Register. Below: 3 old photos and papers, maps from 1886 on, and the census since 1790.

1658founded
4on the National Register
16%homes built before 1940
3old photos & papers
12famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
From Mansfield’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

How Mansfield began, and where its name came from

When was Mansfield founded?

1658

Mansfield dates its founding to 1658 (Wikidata). It appears in the first U.S. census, 1790.

First census: 983 in 17902020 census: 23,860368 years

How did Mansfield get its name?

Mansfield was named for William Murray, 1st Earl of Mansfield, a pro-colonial member of the House of Lords.

How historic is Mansfield?

A−

More historic than 79% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓
Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1815. Name: Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.The full story ↓
History grade

What drives Mansfield’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Mansfield is more historic than 79% of U.S. towns, #229 of 283 in Massachusetts. Its age holds the grade up; its National Register listings pull it down.

A−
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Mansfield’s overall grade.
Founding era1658, from Wikidata: founded before 1776, an older era than 96% of U.S. townsA+Homes built before 194015.8% of homes (±3.2) · typical MA town 21.1% · U.S. 8.4%BNational Register4 listings, 7 historic buildings, 2.9 per 10,000 residents · typical MA town 46.0 · U.S. 2.4C+
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 79%
NewerOlder
Massachusetts towns of 2,500+ (283)Ahead of 19%

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 Mansfield’s 2.9 sits below most of its state (16% of Massachusetts towns have fewer) while its 7 historic buildings outnumber those of 73% of U.S. towns.

NoteThe founding year comes from Wikidata alone; no second source gives 1658.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from B to A. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±3.2 points).

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 Mansfield’s past

Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.

A history waiting to be writtenOnly 3 old photos are in the public archives. The rest are in attics and albums.Older than the countryEstablished in 1658, 118 years before the Declaration of Independence.On the map since 18868 editions of the USGS map, 1886 to 1987. Watch Mansfield change.Then and nowOne place photographed years apart. Drag to compare.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Mansfield’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Mansfield’s history is told.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
2 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Retake an old view1877 ad Chilson Poors Manual of Railroa…: stand where they stood+15Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
Timeline

Mansfield, 1658 to 1974

Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.

  1. 17th century
  2. 1658
    FoundingMansfield is established
  3. 18th century
  4. 1754Born hereLaban Wheaton is born here
  5. 1759Born hereJames Witherell is born here
  6. 19th century
  7. 1815Post officeThe Mansfield post office opens
  8. 1856Post officeThe West Mansfield post office opens
  9. 1877In the archive1877 ad Chilson Poors Manual of Railroads
  10. 1886Post officeThe East Mansfield post office opens
  11. 1886On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  12. 20th century
  13. 1903BuiltLowney Chocolate Factory is built
  14. 1903In the archivePanoramic photo of Walter Lowney's factory
  15. 1904Born hereFrank Jerome Murray is born here
  16. 1917In the archiveSeal of
  17. 1972Post officeThe West Mansfield post office closes
  18. 1974Born hereJen Royle is born here
On the map

Mansfield on the map, 1886 to 1987

Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Mansfield. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.

Mansfield on the 1886 USGS mapMansfield on the 1894 USGS mapMansfield on the 1919 USGS mapMansfield on the 1936 USGS mapMansfield on the 1946 USGS mapMansfield on the 1964 USGS mapMansfield on the 1977 USGS mapMansfield on the 1987 USGS map1886Dedham sheet · 1:62,500

U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Mansfield.

The story

How Mansfield came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Mansfield.

Read it all →

The area to become Mansfield was first scouted in 1640 by Captain Miles Standish, settled in 1658 and was officially incorporated in 1775. It was named for William Murray, 1st Earl of Mansfield, a pro-colonial member of the House of Lords. Mansfield is the home of the Xfinity Center (formerly known as Great Woods, Tweeter Center and Comcast Center) concert venue, one of the most popular in New England.

One of the oldest buildings in Mansfield is the Fisher–Richardson House, built between 1743 and 1751, registered in the National Register of Historic Places. It was restored in 1930 and is a local history museum.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

By decade

Mansfield, decade by decade

3 decades in the archive, from the 1870s to the 1910s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1870s–1910s3 items
1877 ad Chilson Poors Manual of Railroads18771877 ad Chilson Poors Manual of RailroadsPanoramic photo of Walter Lowney's factory1903Panoramic photo of Walter Lowney's factorySeal of1917Seal of
1920s–1990snothing yet
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.
Add from your album
Today1 recent
Mansfield MA Town Hall2005Mansfield MA Town Hall
Every building

Mansfield, building by building, 1887–1916

Fire insurance maps drew every building, what it was made of and what it was used for, so insurers could price the risk of fire. Pick a year, then a sheet.

Mansfield fire insurance map, 1887, sheet 11887Sheet 1 of 2
Edition
BrickWoodStone

Sanborn Map Company, via the Library of Congress. Editions published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.

Then & now

The same spot, years apart

Drag across each photo to compare.

Lowney Chocolate FactoryPanoramic photo of Walter Lowney's factory1903Today
Panoramic photo of Walter Lowney's factoryMatched from the two captions
On the National Register

4 historic places in Mansfield

The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving.

places listed
4
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
7
each building in a district counts
first listed
1995
Soldiers' Memorial Library
Soldiers' Memorial LibraryFisher-Richardson HouseSpring Brook CemeteryLowney Chocolate Factory, built 1903
BuildingsSites

Architectural styles listings

Late Victorian1
Shingle1
Gothic Revival1
Colonial1
Colonial Revival1
Romanesque Revival1
Soldiers' Memorial LibraryLate Victorian
Fisher-Richardson HouseColonial
Spring Brook CemeteryRomanesque Revival
Lowney Chocolate FactoryBuilt 1903

National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.

People over time

Mansfield, census by census

05,00010,00015,00020,00025,0001800185019001950200023,860

Grew from 983 people in 1790 to 23,860 in 2020, more than tenfold.

19 censuses, 1790–2020.

U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Mansfield’s Wikipedia page.

Famous people

12 famous people were born in Mansfield

Writers, athletes, leaders and more, ranked by how widely they’re known.

See all →
Laban WheatonAmerican politician · b. 1754
Frank Jerome MurrayUnited States federal judge · b. 1904
James WitherellAmerican politician · b. 1759
Jen RoyleJournalist at yes network. · b. 1974
Benjamin E. BatesAmerican businessman · b. 1808
J
Jane BarnesAmerican actress · b. 1910
Places that used to be

Lost post offices, old corners, places now gone and burying grounds

Mansfield’s post office has been open since 1815. Another post office, West Mansfield, opened and closed inside today’s town.

Mansfield
1815–today
West Mansfield
1856–1972
East Mansfield
1886–today
18101920today
Hamlets and corners on the map
East MansfieldGinty CornerPurdy CornerRobinsonvilleWest MansfieldWhiteville
Gone or out of use
Hall SchoolschoolHartwell SchoolschoolWhiteville Schoolschool
3cemeteries and burying grounds inside Mansfield
QuakerSaint MarysSpring Brook

US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).

Stories next door

History across the town line

Each neighbor’s History grade, on the same three inputs.

Norton3 historic placesA−

Questions about Mansfield’s history

What year was Mansfield founded?

In 1658, according to Wikidata. Mansfield’s post office opened in 1815, and the first U.S. census counted 983 people here in 1790.

How does Mansfield rank for history?

Mansfield is more historic than 79% of U.S. towns, #229 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 Mansfield?

4 listings: 3 buildings, among them the Soldiers' Memorial Library (listed 1995, the first), and 1 site. 7 historic buildings in all.

How old are the homes in Mansfield?

16% of Mansfield’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±3.2 points), against a typical 21% for a Massachusetts town; the median home was built in 1980.

Memory lane

What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.

Town Square →
Start a conversation
Sources

Where this page comes from

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 (3), the Library of Congress (1), Wikidata (1), the National Register of Historic Places (4), 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), the USGS Geographic Names Information System and Sanborn fire insurance maps (Library of Congress). Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.