Wellesley_Massachusetts

Wellesley is a town in Norfolk County, Massachusetts, United States. Wellesley is part of Greater Boston. The population was 27,982 at the time of the 2010 census.[3] Wellesley was the 7th wealthiest city in the United States in 2018.[4] Wellesley College, Babson College, and a campus of Massachusetts Bay Community College are located in Wellesley.

History
Wellesley was settled in the 1630s as part of Dedham, Massachusetts. It was subsequently a part of Needham, Massachusetts called West Needham, Massachusetts. On October 23, 1880, West Needham residents voted to secede from Needham, and the town of Wellesley was later christened by the Massachusetts legislature on April 6, 1881. The town was named after the estate of local benefactor Horatio Hollis Hunnewell.[5][6]

Wellesley's population grew by over 80 percent during the 1920s.[7]

Historic district
The town designated Cottage Street and its nearby alleys as the historic district in its zoning plan. Most houses in this district were built around the 1860s and qualify as protected buildings certified by the town's historic commission.

Geography
Wellesley is located in eastern Massachusetts. It is bordered on the east by Newton, on the north by Weston, on the south by Needham and Dover and on the west by Natick. According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 10.49 square miles (27.2 km2), of which 10.18 square miles (26.4 km2) is land and 0.32 square miles (0.83 km2) is water.[2]

Recent construction
The town's historic 19th century inn was demolished to make way for condominiums and mixed-use development in 2006.[8] The Wellesley Country Club clubhouse, which is the building where the town was founded, was demolished in 2008, and a new clubhouse was built.[5] The town's pre-World War II high school building was torn down & replaced, with a brand new high school finished in 2012.[9] The entire 1960s-style Linden Street strip-mall has been replaced by "Linden Square" – a shopping district that includes a flagship Roche Bros. supermarket, restaurants, cafes, clothing stores, along with a mixture of national chains and local shops.[10]

Demographics
The Census Bureau has also defined the town as a census-designated place with an area exactly equivalent to the town.[2]

As of the census of 2000, there were 26,613 people, 8,594 households, and 6,540 families residing in the town. The population density was 2,614.1 people per square mile (1,009.4/km²). There were 8,861 housing units at an average density of 870.4 per square mile (336.1/km²). According to a 2007 Census Bureau estimate, the racial makeup of the town was 84.6% White, 10.0% Asian, 2.2% Black, 0.01% Native American, 0.01% Pacific Islander, 1.4% from other races, and 1.7% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 3.4% of the population.[2]

There were 8,594 households out of which 39.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 67.2% were married couples living together, 7.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 23.9% were non-families. 20.7% of all households were made up of individuals and 10.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.70 and the average family size was 3.14.[2]

In the town, the population was spread out with 25.1% under the age of 18, 13.9% from 18 to 24, 22.9% from 25 to 44, 24.2% from 45 to 64, and 13.9% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females, there were 77.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 71.1 males.[2]

The median income for a household was $159,167, and the median income for a family was $186,518. The per capita income in the town was $72,046.[18] About 2.4% of families and 3.8% of the population were below the poverty line, including 4.0% of those under age 18 and 2.1% of those age 65 or over.[2]

According to Boston Magazine's yearly "Best Places To Live", Wellesley ranks first in the United States in percentage of adults who hold at least one college degree.[citation needed] Over 66% of the households have at least one individual holding an advanced degree beyond a bachelor's degree.[citation needed] In 2009, Wellesley ranked #2 in "America's Most Educated Small Towns" according to Forbes.com.[19]

Wellesley was ranked number 31 on the Bloomberg list of America's 100 Richest Places with an average household income of $264,145 in 2016.[20]

Education
The town is known for possessing the second greatest concentration of residents with advanced degrees in the country. The public education services of the town are very well regarded, especially Wellesley High School; in 2007 it was ranked 70th best public high school in the nation by U.S. News & World Report, earning a Gold Medal.[22]

The following year, the high school's accreditation was placed on warning status by the New England Association of Schools and Colleges Commission on Public Secondary Schools.[23] Wellesley High gained national attention in 2012 when English teacher David McCullough Jr. (son of noted author/historian David McCullough) delivered a widely read and viewed commencement address dubbed "You're Not Special", in which he urged graduates not to take things for granted.

On the Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System test, the district regularly scores higher than the state average.[24][25][26] The school system also contains a middle school and seven elementary schools (Bates, Upham, Schofield, Fiske, Hardy, Hunnewell, and Sprague).[citation needed]

The town contains a private elementary school, Tenacre Country Day School, one private Catholic elementary school (St. John the Evangelist) and a preparatory school for girls, Dana Hall School. Also, the Wellesley A Better Chance outfit started in the early 1970s brings promising young women from underserved areas into town to attend Wellesley High School and live nearby.[citation needed]

Wellesley also contains the main campus of three colleges: Wellesley, a women's liberal arts college, Massachusetts Bay Community College, a two-year public college, and Babson, a business college.[citation needed]

According to Forbes.com, Wellesley College is the sixth best college in the country.[27] According to U.S. News & World Report, Babson College is the number one college in the country for entrepreneurship, receiving this distinction for the past fourteen years.[28]

In addition, The Financial Times ranked Babson College as the 5th best U.S. college for providing custom executive education programs.[29] Part of the main campus of Olin College, a private engineering school, is located in Wellesley, although its main entrance is located in Needham.

Transportation
Wellesley has had rail service to Boston since 1833. Rail service is currently provided through Wellesley's participation in the MBTA, which offers a total of 17 weekdays Commuter Rail trains inbound towards Boston and outbound towards Framingham and Worcester. Wellesley's stations are (east to west) Wellesley Farms, Wellesley Hills, and Wellesley Square. The Wellesley Farms station is listed on the U.S. National Register of Historic Places. MWRTA bus service also runs along Walnut Street, Cedar Street, and Route 9.

The highways Interstate 95/Massachusetts Route 128, Massachusetts Route 9, Massachusetts route 16 and Massachusetts route 135 run through Wellesley.

For elders and people with disabilities there is a specific MBTA-based service, The Ride, which offers free or low-cost door-to-door service by appointment.[30]

From nearby Riverside MBTA Station in Newton, commuter express buses run to downtown Boston, Newton Corner and Central Square, Waltham. This is also a station for Greyhound Lines and Peter Pan Bus Lines with frequent service to Boston, New York City, and other destinations.

Wellesley's Council on Aging contracts out a daily low-cost minibus service offering elderly access to several local medical facilities and the Woodland MBTA station.[31] Further afield is the Springwell Senior Medical Escort Program / Busy Bee Transportation Service for rides to medical & non-medical services in the area. There is also a monthly minibus to the Natick Mall.

For Amtrak service the nearest stations are west in Framingham, east in Boston at Back Bay and South Station, and south in Route 128 Station in Westwood.

Those affiliated with Wellesley College can take advantage of their bus services to Cambridge and Needham.[32] Wellesley College and Babson College also both offer discounted Zipcar service.[33][34]

The nearest international airport is Boston Logan Airport, 18 miles from Wellesley.

Culture
Wellesley's Wonderful Weekend
Each year the weekend before Memorial Day, The Town of Wellesley sponsors the annual Wellesley's Wonderful Weekend which includes the annual Veterans' Parade and Fireworks. The fireworks display is one of the most elaborate and spectacular shows that is done by local or town government in the United States. It is put on by Atlas Fireworks of Jaffrey, New Hampshire who also put on the Jaffrey Festival of Fireworks. On Sunday, May 18, 2008, The Beach Boys performed in a concert on the Wellesley High School athletic fields in front of an estimated 10,000 town residents and fans. The funds for the performance, an estimated 250 thousand dollars, were made as a gift by an anonymous donor and lifelong fan of the band.

Wellesley Symphony Orchestra
The Wellesley Symphony Orchestra presents classical, pops, and family concerts at Mass Bay Community College at its Wellesley Campus.

Religious Institutions
The town of Wellesley is home to several religious institutions. Wellesley contains two Jewish Institutions including Temple Beth Elohim and the Wellesley Chabad Center. Predominantly Christan Wellesley contains many churches including: Wellesley Congregational Church, St. Andrew's Episcopal Church, St. Paul's Catholic Church, Christ Church United Methodist, Wellesley Hills Congregational Church (also known as The Hills Church), First Church of Christ-Scientist, St. John the Evangelist Catholic Church, The Metrowest Baptist Church, Milestone Wellesley, and Unitarian Universalist Society of Wellesley Hills Wellesley Friends Meeting (Quakers).

Horticulture
The Wellesley College campus includes greenhouses and the H. H. Hunnewell Arboretum. This is not to be confused with the neighboring private H. H. Hunnewell estate. The Elm Bank Horticulture Center is home to the Massachusetts Horticultural Society. Although the entrance is in Wellesley, access is over a small private bridge over the Charles River, so Elm Bank is therefore in the neighboring town of Dover.

Media
Events of significance to members of the Wellesley community are recorded in two local news publications: The Wellesley Townsman[36] has been published since 1906, and "The Swellesley Report" since 2005. Both are available online and digitized copies of the paper-based Townsman are available from the Wellesley Free Library.