Place Information
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Foxborough (or Foxboro) is a town in Norfolk County, Massachusetts, 20 miles (32 kilometers) southwest of Boston. The population was 16,246 at the 2000 census. The town is best known as the site of Gillette Stadium, home of the New England Patriots of the National Football League and the New England Revolution of Major League Soccer. Note: Foxborough is the official spelling of the town name, although the alternative spelling Foxboro is also frequently used. For geographic and demographic information on the census-designated place Foxborough, please see the article Foxborough (CDP), Massachusetts. History
Foxborough was first settled in 1704 and was officially incorporated in 1778. Foxborough was named in honor of Charles James Fox, Whig Member of the British Parliament, who was a staunch supporter of the Colonies in the years leading up to the American Revolution. Foxborough was once home to the world's largest straw hat making factory, known as the Union Straw Works. Founded by local businessman E.P. Carpenter, the building burned to the ground in the early 20th Century. Foxborough was also once composed of small neighborhood communities up until the early 1900s. These included Foxvale/Paineburgh, which remained semi-independent until the mid-twentieth century, Quaker Hill in South Foxborough, and Lakeview/Donkeyville, in West Foxborough. There are several memorable historic sites within Foxborough. Memorial Hall is a stone building and monument in the center of town dedicated to those who served in the armed forces, and contains many town archives. The Historic Homes Plaque Program designates important historical homes in town. Area schoolhouses, such as the Quaker Hill School and the Paine School, now being made into a small museum, are also of interest. Town graveyards, such as Rockhill Cemetery, and the Centre Burial Ground, can also be seen as important to town history. Research Tips
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