TOWN OF FOXBOROUGH Whereas a number of inhabitants belonging to the Towns of Wrentham, Walpole, Stoughton, and Stoughtonham, have represented to this Court the inconveniences that they labour under on account of their distance from the places of Public Worship in Several Towns to which they now belong and have earnestly and repeatedly requested that they may be incorporated into a Town, namely Foxborough, Norfolk County. INCORPORATED: June 10, 1778 POPULATION: 17,011 ELEVATION AT CORNER OF SOUTH & SCHOOL STREETS: 300 feet above sea level AREA OF TOWN: Approximately 21 square miles NUMBER OF MILES OF ACCEPTED ROADS WITHIN THE TOWN: 89.9 linear miles NUMBER OF MILES OF STATE HIGHWAYS WITHIN THE TOWN: 15.29 linear miles NUMBER OF MILES OF UNACCEPTED ROADS WITHIN THE TOWN: 5.19 linear miles TOTAL REGISTRATION OF VOTERS: As of December 31, 2017 W/FAMILY PIRATE C/PTY U. CON- GR PIZZA MA INTER W.CIT GRN PTY AMER IND PCT# DEM REP UNENR LIB SERV RAIN PARTY INDEP 3rd PTY SOCIALIST INDEP PTY TOTAL 1 547 269 1368 4 3 2 0 0 1 0 2 0 7 2,203 2 552 334 1519 7 1 1 0 1 1 1 0 1 4 2,422 3 591 326 1537 4 1 4 0 0 1 1 1 0 9 2,475 4 496 350 1592 10 1 4 1 0 4 0 0 1 10 2,469 5 460 322 1453 7 2 4 0 0 1 0 2 1 7 2,259 TOTAL 2646 1601 7469 32 8 15 1 1 8 2 5 3 37 11,828 SENATORS IN CONGRESS Edward J. Markey (D) 255 Dirksen Senate Office Building, Washington, DC 20510 Elizabeth A. Warren (D) 317 Hart Senate Office Building, Washington, DC 20510 CONGRESSMAN, FOURTH CONGRESSIONAL DISTRICT Joseph P. Kennedy, III (D) 306 Cannon House Office Building, Washington, DC 20515 COUNCILLOR, SECOND DISTRICT Robert L. Jubinville (D) 487 Adams Street, Milton, MA 02186 STATE SENATOR IN GENERAL COURT, BRISTOL & NORFOLK DISTRICT Paul R. Feeney (D) State House, Room 507, Boston, MA 02133 STATE REPRESENTATIVE IN GENERAL COURT, FIRST BRISTOL DISTRICT Fred “Jay” Barrows (R) State House, Room 542, Boston, MA 02133 239TH ANNUAL REPORT OF THE TOWN OFFICERS FOXBOROUGH, MASSACHUSETTS TOGETHER WITH THE REPORT OF THE SCHOOL DEPARTMENT AND TOWN ACCOUNTANT / FINANCE DIRECTOR FOR THE YEAR ENDING DECEMBER 31, 2017 Cover Photo: The new Foxborough Town Hall officially opened its doors on June 27, 2017. Town Historian Jack Authelet contributed the story below about the history of government and town hall in Foxborough. Front Cover Photo: Amanda Smith Town Government Photos: The Foxborough Historical Commission and Foxboro Cable Access Front & Back Cover Design: Amanda Smith The Town of Foxborough would like to thank everyone who contributed to the 2017 Annual Town Report. The effort to create the Annual Report is shared by all and is further proof of the supportive and collaborative community of Foxborough. The history of the government here in Town, as you will read in Jack Authelet’s piece, echoes the sentiment that working together toward a common goal really makes Foxborough “the Gem of Norfolk County”. Amanda Smith, Editor The Annual Town Report is also available online at www.foxboroughma.gov. In Memoriam 2017 During the year we were saddened by the deaths of the following former town employees and volunteers. Dorothea “Dot” Allen Retired English Teacher Margery Authelet Former Advisory Committee Member Zerita Burlin Retired Administrative Assistant to Superintendent Bill Chaplin Former Foxborough High School Band Director, Music Director & Soccer Coach Janet Damiani Retired Teacher William Driscoll Former Council on Aging Van Driver Timothy Headd Former Reserve Police Officer Keith Kusch Retired School Custodian Charlie Masison Former Member of the Board of Selectman Ray McKay Retired Teacher Eileen Mullins Retired Foxborough Bus Dispatcher & School Secretary William “Jerry” Norwood Retired Teacher and Special Education Bus Driver Alvin Pearlmutter Retired Foxborough High School History Teacher & Department Head Gerald Allen Roy Retired Foxborough Schools Art Department Director Joan Ryan Retired English Teacher Edgar “Ted” Whitehouse Retired Water Department Employee A TOWN, ITS PEOPLE, THEIR GOVERNMENT By Jack Authelet, Town Historian THE MEETING HOUSE People living in this area had pushed to the outer limits of their respective towns of Wrentham, Walpole, Stoughton and Stoughtonham (now Sharon). They found they had more in common as friends and neighbors than as residents of distant places and agreed to file a petition to become a town of their own. But first, they had to have a Meeting House and a settled minister, which they provided at their own expense. Finally, they were ready and filed a petition in 1763 seeking incorporation. Failure of the Legislature to act forced a repeated resubmission but residents persisted. The Legislature finally approved the petition in 1778 and voted to name the new town Foxborough after British Statesman Charles James Fox for what they believed was his support of freedom for the Colonies. The Act of Incorporation was signed June 10. Two days later, on June 12, Benjamin Guild, Esq. justice of the peace in Wrentham, issued the warrant for the first town meeting to be held in the new town. A copy of the warrant was posted on the door of the Meeting House stating the meeting would be held June 29. The Meeting House speaks to the depth of the desire of the people to become a town, as those living here had to build a They had fought hard for the move, but was a challenging Meeting House and hire a minister before they could even file agenda, setting up an open Town Meeting form of government based on a petition to become a town. Once approved, it also served as that bold experiment of a government of the people, by the people and the first seat of their government. (Foxborough Historical for the people that many had fought and died for in the Revolution. Commission archives) Fortunately, they were up to the challenge. First Town Meeting The first order of business at their first meeting was to fill positions for town offices. A Committee of Correspondence was also named to handle communications for the town. Two tythingmen to be overseers of neighborhoods of 10 or more families were also authorized. They acted as conservators of peace in the neighborhood, monitoring observance of the Sabbath and general neighborliness. Voters had to settle accounts for other towns, including payment for schools that had been erected by the other towns that were now in Foxborough. A committee was named to install doors, lay a floor and provide glazing of as many windows as possible in the Meeting House. Voters also had to hire nine men to serve in the Continental Army and provide a constable to keep the peace. At a subsequent meeting, Foxborough voted to support the new State Constitution proposed for Massachusetts. Wording in the Massachusetts document was represented in the Constitution of the United States of America which spoke well of state leaders and visionaries. The local government was also subject to the higher authority of the state, and early on, officials had to deal with an issue of national importance. The town was required to provide 38 men for service in the War of 1812 as trade issues between America and Great Britain intensified and the British sought to block neutral American trade with France, putting American sailors at risk. The new community continued to advance, with farmers thriving in the outing areas and each waterway inviting a wide range of local industries in need of power to operate their mills. Additional demands of local government use were satisfied with space made available in many offices and commercial buildings throughout the center. Recurring concern There was a growing concern, however, in the recurring need to select a new minister and agree upon terms and conditions. The process often took months of searching and vetting and many residents didn’t feel the municipality should be involved at all. It was agreed that the town should “hire preaching” rather than having a “settled” minister living in the community. The discussion continued, however, about circumstances that many felt were a mix of church and town issues brought before the voters. The generosity of one former “settled” minister brought this to a head when he agreed to return the $500 the town “settled” upon him when he was hired. He offered the money toward the building of a new church and town meeting accepted. A committee was then formed to remove the Meeting House. But the decision was quickly challenged because the town did not own the Meeting House. It was built by private citizens to advance the issue of incorporation. A new meeting would be called for reconsideration and a copy of the warrant was posted on the door of the building. Meanwhile, the committee formed to demolish the Meeting House went to work, carefully removing everything except the door post on which the warrant was posted. When voters arrived for the meeting, all that was standing was the post displaying the warrant. The meeting adjourned to Union Hall with the realization that the separation of church and state had come early in Foxborough. The Congregational Society, which had been holding services in the Meeting House, was allowed to build a brick church on the Meeting House lot. The town paid part of the cost of members erecting a building with an auditorium larger than their projected religious needs to accommodate town meetings. Members of the Baptist Society erected a church on Elm Street and the Meeting House days were over. For the faithful servants in town government, they would find the welcome mat out in many temporary facilities in the coming decades as they continued to meet the needs of the people they were pledged to serve.