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The Town of Tewksbury is a
suburban community located on the uplands between the Concord and
Merrimack Rivers. It is located on slightly rolling lowland terrain
with large areas of bog and swamp throughout town. Tewksbury was
gradually settled from Billerica during the early decades of the 18th
century. The original economic base depended on farming and grazing
with lumbering as a secondary activity, and a saw mill was established
on Trull Brook about 1736. By the early 19th century the Lee family
tannery had been built and continued in operation throughout the
century. The primarily agricultural economy of the town shifted in the
direction of commercial businesses because of its proximity to Lowell.
In 1854, the state opened an almshouse in Tewksbury, one of three
established by the General Court. The complex of buildings generally
held an average of 1000 inmates, and even more after the financial
panic of 1857. Residents of Tewksbury developed greenhouses and market
gardens between 1890 and 1915 as the town's dominant business, while
many hothouses raised carnations and other flowers commercially for
city markets. So many were raised that Tewksbury held the name of the
carnation town for years. In 1930, New England Power built the
Tewksbury substation, bringing power from Vermont over a 230 kv line,
the highest voltage line in New England at the time. (Seal supplied by
community. Narrative based on information provided by the Massachusetts
Historical Commission) |
