About Buckland
The Town
The Town of Buckland, Massachusetts is a small, rural, predominately agricultural community with a population of approximately 2,000 people. There is some light manufacturing in town, with Mayhew Steel and the Lamson & Goodnow Cutlery Manufacturing Company as the largest employers. The main employer in Buckland is the Mohawk Trail Regional School. Buckland shares a downtown business district, known as Shelburne Falls, with the Town of Shelburne. The Route 112 corridor bisects the town and is a scenic highway consisting of a number of small farms and open space. Originally part of the towns of Charlemont and Ashfield, Buckland’s first settlers arrived in 1742. By 1779, the residents of what is now Buckland found it inconvenient and sometimes dangerous to cross the Deerfield River to attend church, school and town functions in Charlemont and surrounding towns, so they petitioned the General Court for incorporation. The Town of Buckland was incorporated April 14, 1779.
Location
Located in northwestern Massachusetts, Buckland is 10 miles west of Greenfield, 42 miles northeast of Pittsfield and 105 miles west northwest of Boston. It is bordered on the north by Charlemont, the south by Ashfield and Conway, the west by Hawley and the east by Shelburne.
Quick Facts about Buckland
Annual Town Meeting Date: First Wednesday after the first Monday in MayAnnual Town Election Date: First Monday in May
First Settled 1742
Incorporated April 14, 1779
Location In Franklin County off Route 2 and Route 112
Area 19.86 Square Miles
Population 2010 1906
Registered Voters 2012 1236
Tax Rate 2011 $14.11
Budget FY'12 $4,087,697
Form of Government Open Town Meeting
Public Schools Buckland-Shelburne Elementary
Mohawk Trail Regional High School
Town Highways 50.5 Miles
Public Library Buckland Public Library
Parks Buckland Recreation Area
Museums Buckland Historic Society
Photo Credits
The banner image photograph showing the Bridge of Flowers is copyright by photographer Matthew Paulson , who has given the town permission to use the photograph. The Bridge of Flowers crosses from Buckland to Shelburne across the Deerfield River. There is no town of Shelburne Falls, but there is a Zipcode (01370) for the village of Shelburne Falls in Shelburne as well as one (01338) for the post office on Upper Street in Buckland.
The banner image painting of Upper Street is a 19th century painting by an unidentified painter, and the painting is at the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston. The photograph is from Wikipedia' Buckland web page.