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Springfield, Massachusetts

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Springfield is a city in, and the county seat of, Hampden County, Massachusetts, United States.

In the 2000 census, the city population was 154,082. It is the third largest city in Massachusetts and fourth largest in New England (behind Boston, Providence, and Worcester). Springfield holds two nicknames — The City of Homes and The City of Firsts.

Historically the first Springfield in the United States, it is also the largest city with the name of Springfield. It is also the largest city on the Connecticut River (and the largest city in Western Massachusetts and the Pioneer Valley).

Springfield has a notable history as the home to Theodore Geisel, better known as Dr. Seuss, and as the birthplace of basketball, invented by James Naismith at Springfield College. It is home to the Basketball Hall of Fame and the Springfield Falcons AHL hockey team. It also holds the western world's largest collection of Chinese cloisonné at the G.W. Vincent Smith Art Museum.

Springfield is part of a larger northeastern metropolitan area known as the Megalopolis.

In an economic and cultural partnership with Hartford, Connecticut, the Springfield-Hartford region constitutes New England's Knowledge Corridor - the second-largest concentration of institutions of higher learning in New England, after Greater Boston.

History

Colonial settlement

Town Date of separation
Westfield 1669
Wilbraham 1763
West Springfield 1774
Ludlow 1775
Southwick 1775 (from Westfield)
Montgomery 1780 (from Westfield)
Longmeadow 1783
Russell 1792 (from Westfield)
Holyoke (southern part) 1850 (from W. Springfield)
Agawam 1855 (from W. Springfield)
Chicopee 1848
Hampden 1878
East Longmeadow 1894 (from Longmeadow)

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Contact with European explorers, conquerors, and colonists from the 1500s onward brought diseases (possibly smallpox and measles) which decimated the native population of North America. By 1635, the still-active epidemics had left an estimated 5,000 Indians in all of New England.

In 1635, William Pynchon, then the assistant treasurer of the Massachusetts Bay Colony, led an expedition with John Cable and John Woodcock, either up the Connecticut River or west across land from the Boston settlement, to the site of the Native American village of Agawam (which was associated with either the Pocomtuc or Nipmuck tribe) on the western bank. The lands nearest the river were both clear of trees due to occasional burns by the Indians, and covered in nutrient-rich river silt from occasional floods. They constructed a pre-fabricated house south of the Westfield River in what is now Agawam, Massachusetts. Cable and Woodcock were supplied with food and goods to trade over the winter.

In 1636, Pynchon led a settlement expedition with at least seven other men. The English settlers and their livestock travelled over land from the existing settlements in eastern Massachusetts, while some supplies were transported by boat. Pynchon's party purchased (by barter) land on both sides of river from the 18 inhabitants of the village, representing the inner tracts of what is now Agawam, West Springfield, Longmeadow, Springfield, and Chicopee. The Indians retained foraging and hunting rights, the rights to their existing farmlands, and were granted the right to compensation if the English cattle ruined their corn crops.

The settlement was originally named Agawam Plantation, but in 1640 it was renamed Springfield after the village near Chelmsford, Essex in England where Pynchon was born.

After warnings about the west side being prone to flooding, and to "avoid trespassing" on the reserved Indian lands, the settlement moved to the less favorable farmland on the east side of the river, and the initial land grants to English families were made there. Long, narrow plots of farmland were created, extending out from the river, in addition to more distant forested "wood lots". A warehouse was also constructed at Warehouse Point in Connecticut, to facilitate the main profit-generating industry for the settlement - trade with the Indians for beaver skins.

Purchases of large swaths of land from the Indians continued throughout the 1600s, enlarging Springfield's territory and forming other colonial towns elsewhere in the Pioneer Valley. Westfield was the westernmost settlement of Massachusetts Bay Colony until 1725, making Springfield a "frontier town" for a number of decades. Over decades and centuries, portions of Springfield were sectioned off to form neighboring towns (see table for dates and links to individual town histories).

Due to imprecision in surveying the colonial borders, Springfield was soon embroiled in a boundary dispute between the Massachusetts Bay Colony and the Connecticut Colony which was not resolved until 1803-4. (See the article on the History of Massachusetts.) As a result, some lands originally administered by Springfield are now in Connecticut.

Springfield remained a small working town when its security was threatened in 1675, during King Philip's War. The leader of the Wampanoag Indian tribe, Wamsutta, died shortly after being questioned at gunpoint by Plymouth colonists. Soon thereafter, the war began. Wamsutta's brother and successor, Metacomet, known as Philip to the colonists, started war with the colony to avenge his brother's death; the Pocomtuc tribe attacked Springfield and destroyed more than half the town on October 5, 1675.

Springfield Armory

During the 1770s, George Washington selected Springfield as the site of the National Armory. By the 1780s the Arsenal was a major ammunition and weapons depot. In 1787 poor farmers from western Massachusetts, led by Daniel Shays, tried to seize the arms at Springfield. This came to be known as Shays's Rebellion, and was a key event leading to the Federal Constitutional Convention. Those involved in the rebellion planned to use the weapons to force the closure of the Commonwealth and county courts, which were seizing their lands for debt.

The term Springfield Rifle may refer to any sort of arms produced by the Springfield Armory for the United States armed forces.

Industrialization

Springfield is known as the City of Homes, a nickname given to it in the late 19th century due to its many Victorian mansions, as well as multitudes of single-family houses inhabited by workers.

Wason Manufacturing Company, one of the earliest makers of railway passenger coach equipment in the United States, was established in Springfield in 1845.

In 1856, Horace Smith and Daniel B. Wesson formed Smith & Wesson to manufacture revolvers. The company headquarters are still located in Springield.

Charles Gilbert and John Barker formed the Gilbert and Barker Manufacturing Company in 1865. The company produced gasoline pumps in Springfield until moving to West Springfield, Massachusetts in 1912. The company became Gilbarco and moved to Greensboro, North Carolina in 1965.

Two Springfielders, Charles and Frank Duryea, built a gasoline powered automobile in Springfield in 1893. The Duryea Motor Wagon was put on the streets (in what is now Chicopee, home of Stevens Arms) on September 20 1893 and soon became to be the first ever offered for sale. The Duryeas were joined in the automobile industry in 1900 by Skene (which disappeared the next year).

Indian Motorcycles were manufactured in Springfield from 1901 to 1953. Chief and Scout models were the best sellers from the 1920s to the 1950s. The Hendee Manufacturing Company, Indian's parent company, also manufactured other products such as aircraft engines, bicycles, boat motors, and air conditioners.

From 1921 to 1931 a Rolls-Royce factory in Springfield assembled nearly 3000 Silver Ghosts and Phantoms before production was halted by the Great Depression.

Granville Brothers Aircraft manufactured aircraft at Springfield Airport from 1929 until their bankruptcy in 1934. They are best known for the trophy and speed record holding Senior Sportster series of racing aircraft.

Floods

In 1936, Springfield suffered its most devastating natural disaster. The Connecticut River flooded, reaching record heights, inundating the South End and the North End (before the flood, some of Springfield's finest houses stood where Interstate 91 now runs). Damages were estimated at $200,000,000 in 1936. This flood occurred at the height of the Great Depression; Western Massachusetts and Springfield had already suffered greatly. The water damage was repaired after WPA money was made available to Springfield. However, large riverfront portions of the North and South Ends no longer exist.

Two years later, water hit Springfield again. The New England Hurricane of 1938 came up the east coast of the United States on September 21, 1938, flooding the Connecticut River Valley once again.

Birthplace of basketball

The city of Springfield is most commonly known as the birthplace of basketball. In 1891, James Naismith, a physical education teacher in Springfield, invented the sport at the Springfield YMCA, now Springfield College, to fill the gap between the football and baseball seasons. The sport quickly became popular worldwide. On February 17, 1968, The Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame was opened on the Springfield College campus, which was replaced by a larger facility on the east bank of the Connecticut river in 1985. In 2002, a newer facility for the Hall of Fame opened next to the existing site. Shaped like a basketball and illuminated at night, it has become an interesting landmark to the cityscape. The first building to serve as an indoor basketball court resides at Wilbraham and Monson Academy and has since been converted into a dormitory (Smith Hall).

State takeover

After an ongoing fiscal crisis, the Massachusetts General Court granted control of the city (especially finance, personnel, and real estate matters) to the Springfield Finance Control Board on June 30, 2004. The Board is composed of three appointees of the State Secretary of Administration and Finance, the Mayor, and the President of the City Council, and is expected to be in charge of the city until June 30, 2009.

The fiscal problems had already resulted in wage freezes, cuts in city services, fee increases, and layoffs.

The FCB operates under the overall direction of Massachusetts Secretary of Finance and Administration Leslie Kirwan. The FCB legislation included a state loan of $52 million to be paid back with future city tax receipts. A $20 million grant was originally included, but then-House Speaker Thomas Finneran killed that section, fearing it would invite fiscal irresponsibility among other municipalities. Initial estimates placed the city's operating deficit at over $40 million annually.

The original FCB bill filed by Governor Romney included a suspension of Chapter 150E, the state law that defines the collective bargaining process for public employees (state employees are not covered by federal labor laws). Opposition from the unions killed that section.

City and state officials disagree over the causes. The State blamed overspending relative to income by the city. Municipal officials blame dwindling local aid during the statewide financial crisis in 2003. Other observers noted a weak economy and years of mismanagement and corruption in city government.

As of 2006, the Control Board has balanced the City's budget. The City, prior to the FCB, had frozen all wage increases for employees for several years, resulting in substantial litigation with employee unions. Their suits claim that the wage freeze violated their contracts and the collective bargaining law itself and was done without proper legal authority. The City claimed that Chapter 656 of the Acts of 1989 authorized and directed the City to do so. As of June 30, 2007 all 27 union contracts have been resolved. Teachers scored a victory in court when Judge Constance Sweeney ruled the wage freeze implemented by former Mayor Michael Albano to be illegal. (The control board's freezes were ruled to be not at issue, but the judge suggested they have less legal footing). A sum of $2.1 million was awarded to them. The city appealed, however the contract was resolved and the rulings and issue made moot.

Until the FY2007 budget, city residents had not experienced any direct impacts by the control board's actions. In the '07 budget, the FCB approved a $90 trash fee. Controversy and outrage erupted city-wide over the fee, however it is projected to bring in $4.5 million and balance the city's budget. Despite protests from residents, and other city and state elected officials, the FCB directed that it be implemented in October 2006. That year city residents filed a law suit, claiming the fee was illegal. A temporary injuction was placed against the city. The city was barred from collecting the fee until the issue was resolved. In the end, the fee was allowed to go into effect as long as the city made clear municipal garbage pickup was voluntary as long as other services were secured. Recycling collection remains free.

In early 2007, Gov. Deval Patrick announced the board will be extended for at least another year instead of expiring in June as planned, and later that spring announced that he would be replacing the appointed members. At the June 28, 2007 meeting Governor Patrick's new appointees, Chris Gabrieli, Robert Nunes, and Springfield resident James O'S. Morton held their first meeting along with Mayor Charles Ryan and City Council President Kateri Walsh. Chris Gabrelli was appointed chairman at this meeting and the Board voted to extend its term until June 30, 2009.

With the recent 2007 mayor election, mayor Domenic Sarno joins the Control Board joined by newly-named City Council President Bud Williams.

As of 2008, the FCB has a staff of five: Executive Director Stephen Lisauskas, Chief Development Officer David B. Panagore, Deputy Executive Director, Patricia Vinchesi, Executive Assistant Ann-Marie Mahnken and Receptionist Candace McKenna.

Geography

Springfield is located at (42.112411, -72.547455). According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 33.2 square miles (86.0 km²), of which, 32.1 square miles (83.1 km²) of it is land and 1.1 square miles (2.8 km²) of it (3.31%) is water.

Springfield sits on the bank of the Connecticut River, just a few miles north of the border between Massachusetts and Connecticut. Along the river, the city is fairly low and flat. Moving outward from the river, the terrain becomes more hilly, most prominently along State Street and Belmont Avenue.

Springfield is typically divided up into eighteen distinct neighborhoods. They are, as defined by the city Election commission: Bay, Boston Road, Brightwood, East Forest Park, East Springfield, Forest Park, Indian Orchard, Liberty Heights, McKnight, Memorial Square, Metro Center, North End, Old Hill, Pine Point, Six Corners, Sixteen Acres, South End, and Upper Hill. Their exact boundaries are disputed by Census data, civic wards, precinct borders, zip codes, and the opinions of the city's citizens. Many of the neighborhoods are subdivided again according to landmarks or voting precincts. Some names are unofficial, but are used by area residents nonetheless. For example, the Hollywood section in the South End actually refers to a housing complex, and Mason Square is the central intersection in the McKnight neighborhood.

Forest Park lies in the southwestern part of the city, along the border with affluent Longmeadow. The park is one of the largest municipal parks in the United States. The city shares borders with the towns of Longmeadow, East Longmeadow, Wilbraham, and Ludlow and the city of Chicopee. The cities of Agawam and West Springfield are across the Connecticut River. The city also owns Cobble Mountain Reservoir, its water supply, located in the towns of Blandford, Granville, and Russell, at the western edge of Hampden County. It also owns Franconia Golf Course, located mostly in East Longmeadow.

Climate

Bands and Artists from Springfield

Notes

References

External links



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Last updated on Monday March 10, 2008 at 00:54:59 PDT (GMT -0700)
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