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History · Montgomery

Montgomery dates to 1767

Most of Montgomery was built recently: 9% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1978. Below: 1 old photo or paper, maps from 1887 on, and the census since 1790.

1767founded
0on the National Register
9%homes built before 1940
1old photo or paper
Add an old photoShare a memory
Photo: John Phelan · CC BY 3.0
Quick answers

How Montgomery began

When was Montgomery founded?

1767

Montgomery dates its founding to 1767 (Wikipedia’s history). It appears in the first U.S. census, 1790.

First census: 449 in 17902020 census: 819259 years
Founding year: Wikipedia. First post office: 1839.The full story ↓

What stands out about Montgomery’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 1 old photo is in the public archives. The rest are in attics and albums.On the map since 18878 editions of the USGS map, 1887 to 1998. Watch Montgomery change.Shrank, then grewLost two-thirds of its people between 1790 and 1930, then grew 5-fold.Older than the countryEstablished in 1767, 9 years before the Declaration of Independence.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Montgomery’s collection

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

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Date a photo1 archive item has no date. Guess the decade.+2Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
On the map

Montgomery on the map, 1887 to 1998

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

Montgomery on the 1887 USGS mapMontgomery on the 1893 USGS mapMontgomery on the 1937 USGS mapMontgomery on the 1942 USGS mapMontgomery on the 1967 USGS mapMontgomery on the 1975 USGS mapMontgomery on the 1987 USGS mapMontgomery on the 1998 USGS map1887Granville 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 Montgomery.

People over time

Montgomery, census by census

020040060080018001850190019502000449 in 1790Low: 141

Lost two-thirds of its people between 1790 and 1930, then grew 5-fold.

19 censuses, 1790–2020.

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

The story

How Montgomery came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Montgomery.

Read it all →

Montgomery was first settled in 1767 and was officially incorporated in 1780 during the American Revolutionary War. The town was named after General Richard Montgomery, who died in the Battle of Quebec, part of an American attempt to capture Quebec City and gain Canadien support for the Patriot movement. The town took land from Westfield, Southampton, and unincorporated land that is now Huntington. For two centuries a farming community with a small town center, its population began to increase when Interstate 90 was built in 1957. Montgomery serves as an outer commuter town to Springfield.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

From the old history books

What they wrote about Montgomery in 1902

Passages that mention Montgomery, cut from the printed page as they were published.

In a preceding paragraph the act ci'eating the town is referred to at some length. On February 25, 1792, Montgomery surrendered a small portion of its territory to the town of Russell, and on IMarch 6 of the same year parts of Norwich and Southampton were annexed to Montgomery. The organization was…
"Our county and its people"1902Read the page →
Read the text

In a preceding paragraph the act ci'eating the town is referred to at some length. On February 25, 1792, Montgomery surrendered a small portion of its territory to the town of Russell, and on IMarch 6 of the same year parts of Norwich and Southampton were annexed to Montgomery. The organization was accomplished with little ceremony, and the first meeting for the election of officers was held at the house of Zadock Bosworth on December 14, 1780. At that time all the offices were filled

Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.

Scans and text from the Internet Archive. Books published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.

Timeline

Montgomery, 1767 to 2010

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

  1. 18th century
  2. 1767
    FoundingMontgomery is established
  3. 19th century
  4. 1839Post officeThe Montgomery post office opens
  5. 1887On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  6. 20th century
  7. 1938Post officeThe Montgomery post office closes
  8. 21st century
  9. 2010CensusPopulation peaks at 838
By decade

Montgomery, decade by decade

Date unknown1 to date
A history of the town of Murrayfield - earlier known as Township No. 9, and comprising the present towns of Chester and…Date?A history of the town of Murrayfield - earlier known …Book
Today18 recent
Main Road entering2013Main Road enteringMassachusetts Hilltowns2010Massachusetts HilltownsMassachusetts Hilltowns2010Massachusetts HilltownsMassachusetts Hilltowns2010Massachusetts HilltownsMassachusetts Hilltowns2010Massachusetts HilltownsMassachusetts Hilltowns2010Massachusetts HilltownsMassachusetts Hilltowns2010Massachusetts HilltownsMassachusetts Hilltowns2010Massachusetts HilltownsMassachusetts Hilltowns2010Massachusetts HilltownsMassachusetts Hilltowns2010Massachusetts HilltownsMassachusetts Hilltowns2010Massachusetts HilltownsMassachusetts Hilltowns2010Massachusetts HilltownsMassachusetts Hilltowns2010Massachusetts HilltownsMassachusetts Hilltowns2010Massachusetts HilltownsMassachusetts Hilltowns2010Massachusetts HilltownsMontgomery Town Offices, MA2009Montgomery Town Offices, MACorner School2009Corner SchoolMontgomery ma highlight2007Montgomery ma highlight
Famous people

Famous people close to Montgomery

Nobody well known was born in Montgomery itself, so here are the best known from just nearby.

See all →
Dr. SeussAmerican children's author and cartoonist · b. 1904
Kurt RussellAmerican actor · b. 1951
Edward ThorndikeAmerican psychologist · b. 1874
Timothy LearyAmerican psychologist · b. 1920
Richard F. HeckAmerican chemist · b. 1931
C
Chloë SevignyAmerican actress · b. 1974
Places that used to be

Lost post offices and burying grounds

Montgomery had its own post office from 1839 to 1938.

Montgomery
1839–1938
18301930today
2cemeteries and burying grounds inside Montgomery
ClarksMontgomery Center

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.

Russell1 historic placeAWestfield14 historic placesA+Huntington1 historic placeA+Southampton3 historic placesA

Questions about Montgomery’s history

What year was Montgomery founded?

In 1767, according to Wikipedia’s history of the town. Montgomery’s post office opened in 1839, and the first U.S. census counted 449 people here in 1790.

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). How TownRatings grades history →

From Wikimedia Commons (19), Wikipedia, 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 old county and town histories (Internet Archive). Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.