Westport, Massachusetts Westport, Massachusetts Stone wall and field scene, Westport Stone wall and field scene, Westport Official seal of Westport, Massachusetts Westport is a town in Bristol County, Massachusetts, United States.
The village of North Westport lies in the town.
Other titled areas of the town are "Westport Point" with the dock on the Westport River where Main Road meets the river, "Central Village" with town offices, retail stores and businesses, "Head of Westport" at the head of the east branch of the river and the region referred to either as "Acoaxet" or "Westport Harbor," which is between the west branch of the river and Rhode Island.
Westport, so titled because it was the westernmost port in the Massachusetts Bay Colony, was first settled in 1670 as a part of the town of Dartmouth by members of the Sisson family.
The river, and the territory around it, was called "Coaksett" in the initial deed; the name, now spelled "Acoaxet," lives on in the southwestern improve along the branch of the Westport River.
Like many areas in the region, Westport was affected by King Philip's War, when the native Wampanoag populace rebelled against the oppression of the English settlers.
Several small mills were assembled along the Westport River, and in 1787, the town, along with the town of New Bedford, seceded from Dartmouth.
During the late 18th century, into the early 19th century, a Quaker businessman, sea captain, patriot, and abolitionist titled Paul Cuffee and his wife settled in the town, on the banks of the Westport River where he launched a shipyard.
There were a several cotton mills along the river, the biggest of which was at the junction of the river with Lake Noquochoke on the Dartmouth town line.
The Macomber turnip traces its lineage to turnips sowed in Westport shortly after 1876.
Westport River According to the United States Enumeration Bureau, the town has a total region of 64.4 square miles (167 km2), of which 50.1 square miles (130 km2) is territory and 14.3 square miles (37 km2), or 22.27%, is water.
The majority of that water region is from the Watuppa Ponds along the border with Fall River, as well as Westport Harbor, where the two chapters of the Westport River meet before emptying into Buzzards Bay.
Westport is bordered by Fall River to the northwest and west, Dartmouth to the east, Buzzards Bay to the south, and Little Compton and Tiverton, Rhode Island, to the west.
Westport is approximately 30 miles (48 km) southeast of Providence, Rhode Island, and approximately 60 miles (97 km) south of Boston.
There are a several unofficial localities inside town: Head of Westport, South Westport, Westport Point, Central Village, North Westport (known in former times as Westport Factory) and Westport Harbor which is often also called Acoaxet, an early name.
Because of the west branch of the Westport River, Acoaxet is inaccessible by territory except by passing through Little Compton, Rhode Island.
The coldest time of the year in Westport occurs amid January, in which inhabitants can see temperature plummet into the teens and single digits.
Hurricanes/tropical storms usually hit or come close to Westport amid late August and September.
The hottest time of the year in Westport occurs in mid-July where temperatures can climb to highs in the 90s.
Hurricanes: Tropical systems occasionally hit Westport or come close to Westport.
The most favorable reconstructionfor tropical systems in Westport are in mid to late August and amid the month of September.
The last tropical fitness to hit Westport was Hurricane Sandy on October 29, 2012, which hit the town at about 70 miles per hour (110 km/h) and brought powerful gusts and periods of heavy precipitation to the area.
The storm disrupted power for many athwart the town, however, much of Westport's service was restored inside a day.
Climate data for Westport, Massachusetts The Fontaine Bridge carries Route 88 over the Westport River.
Route 6, and Massachusetts Route 177, which has its easterly end at its intersection at Route 6, on the easterly edge of Westport.
Massachusetts Route 88, the longest state highway in Massachusetts to be entirely positioned inside one town, serves as an access from I-195 (at exit 10) to Horseneck Beach State Reservation.
Regional bus service can be reached in Fall River, and county-wide rail service can be reached in Middleborough/ Lakeville, and in Providence.
Westport Town Hall, I.
On the state level, Westport is positioned in the Eighth Bristol state representative district, which includes parts of Fall River.
The town is represented by Senator Michael Rodrigues (D-Fall River), Assistant Majority Leader in the state senate in the First Bristol and Plymouth district, which also includes Fall River, Freetown, Rochester, Somerset and Swansea.
Westport is patrolled by the Westport Police Department along with the 3rd (Dartmouth) Barracks of Troop D of the Massachusetts State Police.
In the November United States Election of 2012, 59% voted for Barack Obama, and 39% voted for Mitt Romney, with the new Massachusetts state senator, Elizabeth Warren edging out former Senator Scott Brown in the election.
Westport is governed by an open town meeting, led by a five-member board of selectmen.
Westport has a full-time fire department, (which also has on-call firefighters).
There are four postal services for the town's two ZIP codes; The chief postal service on Route 6, a lesser branch (on Old County Rd.) at the Head of Westport, and the branch (on Adamsville Rd.) in Central Village serve the ZIP code 02790, while the 02791 ZIP code (Westport Point) is served by the Central Village station and at the point itself, on Main Rd.
The town's library, the Westport Free Public Library, is positioned next to Westport Middle School, directly west of the Head of Westport.
Westport High School Westport has its own school system.
Macomber School, which provides pre-school (pre-kindergarten), kindergarten, first grade, and second grade; Westport Elementary School, near the Head of Westport, which serves grades 3-6; and Westport High School, which serves grades 7-12.
Students who graduate from Westport High School with enough credits in certain fields of study will earn special academy certificates, in addition to their high school diplomas.
Their team name is the Westport Wildcats who have won multiple championships in the Mayflower League.
Their mascot is the Wildcat, and their colors are brown, white and yellow (a impact of when Westport was in a different league that used Ivy League colors Westport using brown and white after Brown University).
Westport High School graduated 94% of its class in 2013.
In addition to their schools, incoming high school students may choose to attend Diman Regional Vocational Technical High School in Fall River or Bristol County Agricultural High School in Dighton, no-charge of charge.
Juniors and Seniors may opt to take college classes at UMass Dartmouth in Dartmouth or Bristol Community College in Fall River to earn both high school and college credits.
There is one private school in the town, Montessori School of the Angels, which serves grades 1-8, positioned in the Westport Factory neighborhood.
It was formerly known as Saint Joseph's Montessori, and was positioned in Fall River; the school building itself was formerly Saint George's School, which closed due to lack of funding and declining attendance.
Many students also attend private and charter schools in Fall River and Dartmouth, including Bishop Connolly High School in Fall River and Bishop Stang High School in North Dartmouth.
Source: United States Enumeration records and Population Estimates Program data. There were 5,386 homeholds in Westport, of which 29.0% had kids under the age of 18 living with them, 62.9% were married couples living together, 9.0% had a female homeholder with no husband present, and 24.2% were non-families.
In the town, the populace was spread out with 21.6% under the age of 18, 6.7% from 18 to 24, 28.0% from 25 to 44, 29.0% from 45 to 64, and 14.6% who were 65 years of age or older.
"Profile of General Population and Housing Characteristics: 2010 Demographic Profile Data (DP-1): Westport town, Massachusetts".
Westport Historical Society - Timeline "1990 Enumeration of Population, General Population Characteristics: Massachusetts" (PDF).
"1980 Enumeration of the Population, Number of Inhabitants: Massachusetts" (PDF).
"1950 Enumeration of Population" (PDF).
"1920 Enumeration of Population" (PDF).
"1890 Enumeration of the Population" (PDF).
"1870 Enumeration of the Population" (PDF).
Populations of Cities, Towns, &c.
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Town of Westport official website Westport School Department Westport Historical Society Municipalities and communities of Bristol County, Massachusetts, United States
Categories:
Westport, Massachusetts - Towns in Bristol County, Massachusetts - Populated coastal places in Massachusetts - Populated places established in 1670 - 1670 establishments in Massachusetts - Providence urbane region - Towns in Massachusetts
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