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Kingston is a coastal town in Plymouth County, Massachusetts, United States. As of 2000 it had a population of 11,780.
History Before European settlers arrived in Kingston it was within the tribal home to the Wampanoag people. Even before the Mayflower had landed in Plymouth the Wampanoag's were severely damaged from rapidly spreading pandemics from earlier French settlements. Several ancient Native American burial sites have even been located within the borders of Kingston. Originally the north precinct of the town of Plymouth, Kingston was first settled by Europeans in 1620, shortly after the landing of the Pilgrims at Plymouth Rock. Modern day Kingston is believed to be the site of several bloody battles during King Phillip's War from 1675-1676. It is public record that the residence of Governor Bradford was even raided by the Natives before the Wampanoags were completely decimated. 50 years later, Kingston was incorporated as a distinct town in 1726 following a tax dispute between the residents of north and south Plymouth. Kingston is home of the longest continuously run boat yard in North America. The Revolutionary War era brig, the USS Independence was built by Kingston ship builders and has emerged as a town icon adorning the Kingston town seal as well as the subject of the town song "Independence". The tenure of the USS Independence in the Continental Navy was short however when the ship was captured in battle off the coast of Nova Scotia by the HMS Hope and the HMS Nancy. In the early to middle 1800's, Kingston flourished as not only a center for ship building, but ice harvesting as well. Jones River Pond, the largest body of freshwater in town, was used to harvest ice during the long New England winters which would then be shipped all throughout the world. Jones River Pond was even renamed to Silver Lake for marketing purposes during the height of the ice harvesting export industry and retains the name today. Kingston is also home to the first co-op store in North America which was closed when the Silver Lake Post Office shut down operations in 1954. In the 1950s Kingston was transformed from a small rural town into an extension of the Boston metropolitan area when Massachusetts Route 3 was constructed which connects Boston to Cape Cod and has 3 exits in Kingston. Kingston, however, saw its largest population boom in the early 1990's when the Old Colony Railroad was reopened as a commuter rail which connected once rural Kingston with Boston making it an even more viable place for commuters to Boston to live. Geography According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 52.8 km² (20.4 mi²). 48.0 km² (18.5 mi²) of it is land and 4.8 km² (1.9 mi²) of it (9.12%) is water. To the North, Kingston shares a common border with the towns of Duxbury, Massachusetts and Pembroke, Massachusetts. To the West, Kingston borders Plympton, Massachusetts, and to the South, Kingston borders Carver, Massachusetts and Plymouth, Massachusetts. East of Kingston lies the Plymouth Bay, which is an inlet of the much larger Cape Cod Bay. The source and mouth of the Jones River are both in Kingston. Demographics As of the census2 of 2000, there were 11,780 people, 4,248 households, and 3,139 families residing in the town. The population density was 245.5/km² (635.7/mi²). There were 4,525 housing units at an average density of 94.3/km² (244.2/mi²). The racial makeup of the town was 97.00% White, 0.96% Black or African American, 0.12% Native American, 0.43% Asian, 0.01% Pacific Islander, 0.50% from other races, and 0.98% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.75% of the population. There were 4,248 households out of which 38.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 62.6% were married couples living together, 8.9% had a female householder with no husband present, and 26.1% were non-families. 21.8% of all households were made up of individuals and 11.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.71 and the average family size was 3.19. In the town the population was spread out with 27.5% under the age of 18, 5.1% from 18 to 24, 31.6% from 25 to 44, 22.2% from 45 to 64, and 13.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females there were 92.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 87.1 males. The median income for a household in the town was $53,780, and the median income for a family was $65,101. Males had a median income of $48,423 versus $29,516 for females. The per capita income for the town was $23,370. About 4.0% of families and 5.8% of the population were below the poverty line, including 6.9% of those under age 18 and 8.6% of those age 65 or over. Politics The Town of Kingston claims 7,631 registered voters with 1,935 Democrats, 1,415 Republicans, 4,234 unenrolled, and 46 voters of other political affiliations. Representing Kingston in the Massachusetts State Legislature are State Representative (D) Tom O'Brien, and State Senator (D) Therese Murray. Representing Kingston in the United States Congress is Representative (D) William Delahunt, and Senators (D) Edward Kennedy, and (D) John Kerry. Government Kingston's town government is a town meeting format where all registered voters may gather to pass town ordinances and approve the town budget. The elected government, however, is split up into five member boards which all control different aspects of the town government. Board of Selectmen The Board of Selectmen are responisble for calling town meeting, calling elections, appointing employees, setting certain fees, employing town counsel, granting permits, overseeing certain volunteer and appointed bodies, and creating basic regulations. In Kingston, most of the selectmen's traditional powers are entrusted to a full-time town administrator. Members of the Board of Selectmen include: Board of Health The Board of Health has the purpose of enacting health codes, enforcing existing health codes in Kingston and imposing punishments upon violators. They also have the power to appoint a health agent and to condemn buildings that don't meet health regulation standards. Members of the Board of Health include: Planning Board Often seen as one of the most powerful boards in town, the Planning Board serves the purpose of reviewing and approving site plans and subdivisions and acts as the Special Permit Granting Authority for particular uses in the Town of Kingston Zoning Bylaws. Planning Board is also responsible for reporting to Town Meeting annually and appointing the Town Planner. Members of the Planning Board include: Education Kingston is a member of the Silver Lake Regional School District along with Plympton, Massachusetts and Halifax, Massachusetts. Although the towns in the Silver Lake School District share a middle school and a high school, Kingston has its own public grammar schools which include Kingston Elementary School and Kingston Indermediate School. Once students reach 7th Grade they are sent to Silver Lake Regional Middle School and then Silver Lake Regional High School. A brand new Silver Lake High School has recently finished construction in January 2006. The official school website can be found at the Silver Lake Regional School District Website. Kingston is home to one parochial school, Sacred Heart, which is subdivided into an Elementary School, a Junior High School and a High School and has only several hundred students. Notable Kingstonians | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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