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Pepperell is a town in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 11,604 at the 2020 census. It includes the village of East Pepperell. Pepperell is home to the Pepperell Center Historic District, a covered bridge, and the 1901 Lawrence Library. The library has a collection of Sidney M. Shattuck's (1876–1917) stuffed birds.
History
Pepperell was first settled in 1720 as a part of Groton, and was officially incorporated as its own town in 1775. The founders named it after Sir William Pepperrell, a Massachusetts colonial soldier who led the Siege of Louisbourg during the French and Indian War. The town was noted for its good soil and orchards.
Since its formation, the town was active in the American independence movement. Being located northwest of Concord, Pepperell never saw British attack during the American Revolutionary War, though several Pepperell men fought at the Old North Bridge during the Battle of Concord, and a British spy was captured by women on guard at the site of the Pepperell covered bridge (see Prudence Wright).[citation needed] Town resident William Prescott served as the commander at the Battle of Bunker Hill in what is now the Charlestown neighborhood of Boston.
By 1837, when the population was 1,586, Pepperell had three paper mills, one of which was managed by Warren F. Daniell. It also produced palm leaf hats, boots and shoes.
Cemeteries
Notable people
- Joseph Breck, horticulturist
- Henry Adams Bullard, U.S. Congressman from Louisiana
- Mary Catherine Chase, nun, writer
- Barbara Cooney, writer and illustrator of children's books, awarded Caldecott Medal
- John Wesley Emerson, founder of Emerson Electric Company
- Herbert W. Levi, Professor of Zoology Harvard University, international expert on spiders, Jan. 3rd 1921 – Nov. 3rd, 2014
- Barzillai Lew, African-American Revolutionary War soldier
- William Prescott, American Revolution Colonel, led forces at the Battle of Bunker Hill
- William Prescott, Jr., representative from Massachusetts for the Hartford Convention
- Katherine Hancock Ragsdale, president and dean of the Episcopal Divinity School
- Edward Parmelee Smith, co-founder of Fisk University and other historically black colleges
- Herman Osman Stickney, U.S. Navy Admiral, recipient of the Medal of Honor
- Hermon F. Titus, radical newspaper publisher and Socialist Party factional leader
- Wayne Winterrowd, gardening expert and designer
- Prudence Wright, patriot, detained a British spy at Jewetts bridge
Location in Middlesex County in Massachusetts