| Town | Settled | Incorporated | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Acton | 1680 | 1736 | |
| Arlington | 1630 | 1807 | Inc. as town of West Cambridge. Also locally known as Menotomy. Renamed Arlington in 1867. |
| Ashby | 1676 | 1767 | |
| Ashland | 1750 | 1846 | The name on the original petition for incorporation was Unionville. |
| Ayer | 1668 | 1871 | |
| Bedford | 1640 | 1729 | |
| Belmont | 1636 | 1850 | |
| Billerica | 1637 | 1655 | |
| Boxborough | 1680 | 1835 | |
| Burlington | 1641 | 1799 | |
| Cambridge | 1630 | 1636 | Inc. as New Towne in 1636, inc. as a city in 1846. Renamed Cambridge. |
| Carlisle | 1650 | 1805 | |
| Chelmsford | 1633 | 1655 | |
| Concord | 1635 | 1635 | Was called a plantation at Musketequid before incorporation. |
| Dracut | 1664 | 1702 | |
| Dunstable | 1656 | 1680 | |
| Everett | 1649 | 1870 | Inc. as a town in 1870, as a city in 1892. |
| Framingham | 1650 | 1700 | |
| Groton | 1655 | 1655 | Before incorporation, was known as the plantation of Petepawag. |
| Holliston | 1659 | 1724 | |
| Hopkinton | 1715 | 1715 | Formed from certain common lands and the plantation called Moguncoy. |
| Hudson | 1699 | 1866 | |
| Lexington | 1640 | 1713 | Prior to incorporation, it was called the North Precinct of Cambridge. |
| Lincoln | 1650 | 1754 | |
| Littleton | 1686 | 1715 | Indian name for the town was Nashoba. |
| Lowell | 1653 | 1826 | Inc. as a town in 1826, as a city in 1836. |
| Malden | 1640 | 1649 | Inc. as a town in 1649, as a city in 1881. Prior to 1649, it was part of Charlestown called Mystic Side. |
| Marlborough | 1657 | 1660 | Inc. as a town in 1660 and as city in 1890. |
| Maynard | 1638 | 1871 | |
| Medford | 1630-35 | 1684 | Other possible names: Meadford, Metford. |
| Melrose | 1629 | 1850 | Inc. as town in 1850, as city in 1899. |
| Moguncoy, plantation of | pre 1715 | See Hopkinton. | |
| Musketequid, plantation of | pre 1635 | See Concord | |
| Natick | 1718 | 1781 | Originally an Indian plantation that when it became a town retained the Indian word for "a place of hills." The Indian name meant "end of hill range" or possibly "a clear place" or "the place of search". |
| Newton | 1639 | 1691 | Inc. as a town in 1691, as a city in 1871. Name came from New Towne (original name of Cambridge). In 1691, was also known as Cambridge Village or Little Cambridge. |
| North Reading | 1651 | 1853 | |
| Pepperell | 1720 | 1753 | |
| Petepawag, Plantation of | pre 1655 | See Groton | |
| Pompositticut, plantation of | 1681 | See Stow. | |
| Reading | 1639 | 1644 | |
| Sherborn | 1652 | 1674 | Early spelling was Sherburne. |
| Shirley | 1720 | 1753 | |
| Somerville | 1630 | 1842 | Inc. as town in 1842, as city in 1871. |
| Stoneham | 1645 | 1725 | |
| Stow | 1681 | 1683 | Prior to 1683, known as the plantation of Pompositticut. |
| Sudbury | 1683 | 1639 | |
| Tewksbury | 1660 | 1734 | |
| Townsend | 1676 | 1732 | |
| Wakefield | 1639 | 1812 | Originally inc. as South Reading. |
| Waltham | 1634 | 1738 | Inc. as town in 1738, as city in 1884. |
| Watertown | 1630 | 1630 | |
| Wayland | 1638 | 1780 | Originally inc. as East Sudbury; renamed Wayland in 1835. |
| Westford | 1653 | 1729 | |
| Weston | 1642 | 1713 | Was the West Precinct of Watertown, prior to 1713. |
| Wilmington | 1639 | 1730 | |
| Winchester | 1640 | 1850 | |
| Woburn | 1640 | 1642 | Known as Charlestowne Village prior to 1642. |
Information came from the US Geological Survey. If you're looking for the name of a county that a town is in, this is the place to find it.
USGS National Mapping Information
For further information on boundary changes, county line changes, etc., an excellent source can be found at:
Massachusetts Cities and Towns
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