Acton
The town of Acton was incorporated in 1735, at a time when many Massachusetts communities were being formally established as they grew beyond their original settlements.
Like many New England towns of that era, Acton was named after a place in England: Acton. This practice was common among colonial settlers, who often carried familiar names from their homestead into the new landscape as a way of preserving identity and continuity.
The name Acton can be translated to “oak town” or “town among the oaks”. Early Acton was a rural, wooded area and the image of a “oak town” aligns with the landscape of the first settlers.
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Edward A. Filene Plague
Walking along the fence surrounding the Boston Common, I came across this bronze plaque honoring Edward A. Filene. While many people recognize the Filene name from the famous Boston department store, few realize the tremendous influence he had beyond retail. Filene believed that ordinary working families deserved access to affordable credit and financial opportunity. His […]
Faulkner Homestead
Along a roadside in Acton stands a metal tercentenary marker with the dates 1630 – 1930 at the top. Those dates do not refer to the homestead itself, but to the 300th anniversary of the founding of the Massachusetts Bay Colony in 1630. In 1930, towns across Massachusetts participated in that statewide commemoration by placing […]
Tribute to the Great War
Standing quietly on the Town Common, this granite memorial is one of the many places where Acton’s history is preserved in plain sight. Unlike the famous Revolutionary War landmarks that draw visitors from around the world, this monument speaks of another generation and another conflict. One that took the sons of this small Massachusetts town […]
