Natick was founded in 1651, though settled many years before that by native Americans. The town was incorporated in 1781, and plenty has happened since.
Natick Historical Society is a great place to start for researching the town’s history, and its museum is a fun an educational destination located in the basement of Bacon Free Library at 58 Eliot St. The Society has assembled a timeline of Natick’s history.
Learn more about Natick’s history via the Praying Indians of Natick and Ponkapoag website.
One of Natick’s historical claims to fame is that it was home to Henry Wilson, U.S. Vice President from 1873-1875.
Natick buildings and districts on the National Register of Historic Places:
Natick’s history also includes prominent cultural figures including former professional football player Doug Flutie ‘ former LPGA champ Meg Mallon, actress and singer Alison Fraser, and proto-punk pioneer Jonathan Richman of “Roadrunner” fame.
We’ve tagged any posts we’ve written that relate to history, and you can browse them here in reverse chronological order.
Other resources:
- History of Natick Center
- Natick section of Wikipedia
- Life in Natick-Then and Now Facebook group
- Natick Veterans Oral History Project
- History of Memorial School
- History of Morse Institute Library
- Digital Commonwealth historical photos
Other resources we should add? Email us at natickreport@gmail.com
