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Littleton is a town in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 8,184 at the 2000 census. For geographic and demographic information on the neighborhood of Littleton Common, please see the article Littleton Common, Massachusetts. History
Originally supposed to be called "Lyttleton," the town's name gained its current spelling due to a misspelling in the newspaper. Littleton was first settled in 1686 and was officially incorporated in 1715. The town was also the location of a Praying Indian village, one of many throughout the Massachusetts colony, called Nashoba Plantation, on the shores of Nagog Pond and Fort Pond, and settled mostly by the local Nipmuc tribe. During King Phillip's War the Indians were rounded up and sent to Deer Island, where most subsequently perished. Local legend suggests that the town was to be named for a Lord Lyttleton, who was to provide the town with a town bell. When he learned of the misspelling of the town name, he refused to provide the bell. Author John Hanson Mitchell wrote a book titled Ceremonial Time which details a history of fifteen thousand years over one square mile located within the town. The arrival of Digital Equipment Corp. (now part of Hewlett-Packard) in the 1970s made the town part of the Boston-area high-tech corridor. Research Tips
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