Acton, Massachusetts

Acton is a suburban town in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, approximately 21 miles west-northwest of Boston along Route 2 west of Concord. Acton was first settled by Native Americans who used the Assabet, Sudbury and Concord rivers for transportation and the fields for farming seasonal crops. There is evidence of Native American settlements in Acton going back some 7,000 years.

While Acton Center has been the civic center of the town since the revolution, the four other villages centers earned their nomenclature from the names of their corresponding railroad stations. Acton Center is the civic center of the town and the site of the town hall, the main public library and an obelisk monument commemorating Acton deaths in the Revolutionary War, as well as various other buildings.

West Acton is an important commercial area of town, consisting of several commercial developments centered along Route 111. South Acton used to be the most industrialized area of the town of Acton and includes the oldest home still standing in Acton (the Faulkner House, dating back to 1707). East Acton has become a largely residential area with a commercial base that is situated along the Route 2A corridor. North Acton has developed many commercial complexes and condominium buildings. The town’s current Master Plan encourages development in the village centers, to prevent sprawl and preserve open space in the rest of the town.