East Longmeadow, Massachusetts

East Longmeadow, Massachusetts
Town
East Longmeadow Town Hall
Seal
Location in Hampden County in Massachusetts
Coordinates: 42°03′52″N 72°30′47″W / 42.06444°N 72.51306°WCoordinates: 42°03′52″N 72°30′47″W / 42.06444°N 72.51306°W
Country	United States
State	Massachusetts
County	Hampden
Settled	1720
Incorporated	1894
Government
• Type	Open town meeting
Area
• Total	13.0 sq mi (33.7 km^2)
• Land	13.0 sq mi (33.6 km^2)
• Water	0.0 sq mi (0.1 km^2)
Elevation	400 ft (69 m)
Population (2010)
• Total	15,720
• Density	1,209.2/sq mi (467.9/km^2)
Time zone	Eastern (UTC-5)
• Summer (DST)	Eastern (UTC-4)
ZIP code	01028
Area code(s)	413
FIPS code	25-19645
GNIS feature ID	0618182
Website	www.eastlongmeadowma.gov

East Longmeadow is a town in Hampden County, Massachusetts, United States situated in the Pioneer Valley region of Western Massachusetts. It has a population of 15,720 at the 2010 census. East Longmeadow is 5 miles southeast of downtown Springfield, 25 miles north of Hartford, 88 miles southwest of Boston, and 142 miles north of New York City.

East Longmeadow is part of the Springfield Metropolitan Statistical Area, directly south of Springfield itself.

East Longmeadow hosts an annual Fourth of July Parade. It is the largest Fourth of July parade in western Massachusetts. East Longmeadow High School also serves as host to an annual Fourth of July fireworks display, traditionally held on July 3.

History

East Longmeadow was first settled in 1720 and was officially incorporated in 1894. East Longmeadow and Longmeadow compete in an annual Thanksgiving Day football game that routinely attracts a few thousand spectators. The town is also the home to the 2007 Western Massachusetts champions in Varsity High School Baseball, along with the Western Mass champions in Girls Indoor Track in 2010, and 2011.

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 13.0 square miles (34 km²), of which 13.0 square miles (34 km²) is land and 0.04 square miles (0.10 km²) (0.31%) is water.

East Longmeadow is bordered by Enfield and Somers, Connecticut to the south; Hampden to the east; Wilbraham on the northeast; Springfield on the north and northwest; and Longmeadow on the west.

Demographics

Historical population
Year	Pop.	±%
1900	1,187	—
1910	1,553	+30.8%
1920	2,352	+51.4%
1930	3,327	+41.5%
1940	3,403	+2.3%
1950	4,881	+43.4%
1960	10,294	+110.9%
1970	13,029	+26.6%
1980	12,905	−1.0%
1990	13,367	+3.6%
2000	14,100	+5.5%
2010	15,720	+11.5%
* = population estimate. Source: United States Census records and Population Estimates Program data.[1][2][3][4][5][6]

As of the census^[7] of 2010, there were 16,187 people, 5,248 households, and 3,988 families residing in the town. The population density was 1,087.1 people per square mile (419.7/km²). There were 5,363 housing units at an average density of 413.5 per square mile (159.7/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 97.52% White, 0.74% African American, 0.04% Native American, 0.88% Asian, 0.05% Pacific Islander, 0.24% from other races, and 0.52% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.92% of the population.

There were 5,248 households out of which 34.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 65.7% were married couples living together, 7.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 24.0% were non-families. 21.6% of all households were made up of individuals and 13.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.65 and the average family size was 3.10.

In the town the population was spread out with 24.8% under the age of 18, 5.5% from 18 to 24, 26.4% from 25 to 44, 24.6% from 45 to 64, and 18.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 41 years. For every 100 females there were 90.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 86.2 males.

The median income for a household in the town was $62,680, and the median income for a family was $70,571. Males had a median income of $51,062 versus $32,267 for females. The per capita income for the town was $27,659. About 2.1% of families and 3.4% of the population were below the poverty line, including 4.7% of those under age 18 and 5.9% of those age 65 or over.

Government

East Longmeadow has an annual open town meeting held on the third Monday in May presided over by a town moderator, who also is responsible for appointing the town's Appropriations Committee. Special town meetings may be held throughout the rest of the year if a minimum of certified signatures are gathered from registered voters (200), one is called for by the town's chief executive board and if no selectmen are in office this duty falls either to the Town Clerk or a Justice of the Peace. (Consult the Massachusetts General Laws for more detailed information.)^[8] The chief executive board in the town is the Board of Selectmen. It consists of three popularly elected members who hold staggered three-year terms.

Current Members of the Board: Paul Federici, Angela Thorpe, Billy Gorman

Besides this board which also serves the role of Fire and Police Commissioners, the town has a series of independent Executive Boards. The Boards of Public Works, Planning, Library Trustees, Assessors, a School Committee and an independent yet elected Housing Authority Board. The town also has numerous advisory boards under these various executive boards.

Library

The East Longmeadow public library began in 1896, but in 2004 a new library was put in and is now very popular.^[9][10] In fiscal year 2008, the town of East Longmeadow spent 1.4% ($584,361) of its budget on its public library—some $38 per person.^[11]

References

• "East Longmeadow Massachusetts, 1894-1994 : Centennial edition", Heather Ewell Huntley. (Editor). [East Longmeadow, Mass. : s.n.] : State College, PA : Jostens Printing & Publishing Division, 1994.

1. "TOTAL POPULATION (P1), 2010 Census Summary File 1, All County Subdivisions within Massachusetts". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved September 13, 2011.
2. "Massachusetts by Place and County Subdivision - GCT-T1. Population Estimates". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved July 12, 2011.
3. "1990 Census of Population, General Population Characteristics: Massachusetts" (PDF). US Census Bureau. December 1990. Table 76: General Characteristics of Persons, Households, and Families: 1990. 1990 CP-1-23. Retrieved July 12, 2011.
4. "1980 Census of the Population, Number of Inhabitants: Massachusetts" (PDF). US Census Bureau. December 1981. Table 4. Populations of County Subdivisions: 1960 to 1980. PC80-1-A23. Retrieved July 12, 2011.
5. "1950 Census of Population" (PDF). 1: Number of Inhabitants. Bureau of the Census. 1952. Section 6, Pages 21-10 and 21-11, Massachusetts Table 6. Population of Counties by Minor Civil Divisions: 1930 to 1950. Retrieved July 12, 2011.
6. "1920 Census of Population" (PDF). Bureau of the Census. Number of Inhabitants, by Counties and Minor Civil Divisions. Pages 21-5 through 21-7. Massachusetts Table 2. Population of Counties by Minor Civil Divisions: 1920, 1910, and 1920. Retrieved July 12, 2011.
7. "American FactFinder". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved January 23, 2016.
8. "Massachusetts General Laws - Chapter 39". Archived from the original on 11 November 2009. Retrieved January 23, 2016.
9. Report of the Free Public Library Commission of Massachusetts. v.9 (1899)
10. "East Longmeadow Public Library". Archived from the original on 14 January 2010. Retrieved January 23, 2016.
11. July 1, 2007 through June 30, 2008; cf. The FY2008 Municipal Pie: What’s Your Share? Commonwealth of Massachusetts, Board of Library Commissioners. Boston: 2009. "Municipal Pie Reports". Retrieved January 23, 2016.

External links

• Official website