Chelmsford Fun Facts
Outrageous early laws and entertainment, surprising facts about Chelmsford, an illegal distillery, natural disasters.

1538
Chelmsford, how it got its name

1604
Indian History from Wilson Waters History

1641
Slavery became legal in Massachusetts

1655
Establishment of a church was required

1660
Assanunnickcommisick Pond history

1677
Railroad House withstood 270 years

1678
Mills on Beaver Brook by David Brown

1755
Nova Scotia families ended up in town

1773
The Boston Tea Party and the Rest of the Story

1780
Slavery in Revolutionary Massachusetts

1783
Mass. included parts of four other states

1793
Middlesex Canal, some interesting Facts

1798
Baldwin apples, the Chelmsford connection

1826
Canal survey Boston to the Hudson River

1832
Middlesex Canal Toll House photos

1835
The Lucifer match - Ezekiel Byam factory

1840
Byam matches link to presidential election

1872
Teachers follow rules, get a raise in 5 years

1881
Center Common bandstands 1881-1914

1890
Lawrence tornado, Arthur Emerson photos

1891
The Purple Beech Tree on the Common

Salem Willows, Arthur Emerson photos

1894
The Chelmsford Coons, live entertainment

1896
Harry M. Woods songwriter, born here

Westlands plan, Henry S. Perham

1901
Chelmsford Ginger Ale on Littleton Road

1903
Early Telephone System in Chelmsford

1908
Balloon aviation and Charles J. Glidden

1913
Legal Impediments to Marriage, Read on

1918
The Flu Epidemic in Chelmsford

World War I, Six Chelmsford war deaths

1923
The Blacksmith Shop in Central Square

The Saw and Grist Mill in Central Square

Henry S. Perham land in the Westlands

1926
Diamond Match Co., Romance of the Match

1927
A major bootleg distillery gets busted

1928
Chelmsford Grange Cookbook

1930
Historical Society, how it started

1931
Chevrolet dealerships in Chelmsford

1935
Last trolley trip to the Center

1945
Telephone service, party line to dialing

1947
Studebaker sales in Central Square

1949
Mystery Sound Clip you may remember

North Chelmsford from the air

1950
Television may never again cost so little

1954
Hurricane Carol, Her Wrath and Wreckage

1955
Industrial History, Chelmsford and Lowell

1956
Godin 5 & 10 Cent Store, Central Square

First Transistor Communication, Atlantic

1958
Chelmsford Government, Citizen's Guide

Routes 3 & 495 planned through town

1959
Robert Hall Clothing, 300th Store

1964
The Route 3 Cinema, its rise and fall

1966
A new town history book was rejected

1970
Guarding your Life and Property, police

Crystal Lake flows away for the 3d time

1971
Big Joe's opened in Central Square

1972
A violent twister rips through Chelmsford

1975
Center Historic District created

1977
Framingham & Lowell Railroad, last gasp

1978
The Bizzard of 1978, Boston Sunday Globe

Teachers demonstrate, no contract

1980
Roby swords West Chelmsford

1984
Alpine Lanes closed, bowlers surprised

Becky Warren, walking in their footsteps ...

1985
Chicken Corner becomes Eriksen's Corner

1986
Chelmsford Land Trust milestones

1989
Bandstand proposed, on Wilson Street

1993
Ethel Wilder honored for her volunteer work

1995
Dick and Mary Lahue help bring history alive

Watering troughs in Central Square

1996
Early Chelmsford taverns by Becky Warren

1999
Skip's Ice Cream and Diner, history

2003
Fletcher granite, where has it all gone?

Chelmsford, Essex, England A photo tour

2004
Bridges through time, Merrimac River

2007
Chelmsford ranked #21 in the US

2008
Middlesex Canal, Chelmsford to Boston

Kydd's Diner and Skip's Restaurant

2010
Triumph Over Truancy by George Cormier

2012
The Town of Chelmsford becomes a city

2014
A massive sinkhole in Boston Road

Homes at 24 and 28 North Road morphed

Andiamo Restaurant from Stop and Shop

When your street was accepted

2016
The Chelmsford Public Garden was created

2020
Chelmsford ranked #14 in the US

Stedman Street Spelling finally corrected


   

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