Located along the Charles River, Watertown was one of the first settlements in Massachusetts Bay Colony. After a brief stay by Roger Clapp and others who then went on to settle Dorchester. In late July 1630, Sir Richard Saltonstall led a group of about 115 households to settle at Watertown, which at the time included parts of present-day Cambridge and much of the surrounding area; the population approached Boston's in the mid 17th century. In 1632 the residents of Watertown protested against being compelled to pay a tax for the erection of a stockade fort at Cambridge; leading to the establishment of representative government in the colony.
