Natick, Massachusetts

Natick /ˈneɪtᵻk/ is a town in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. Natick is located near the center of the MetroWest region of Massachusetts, with a population of 45,796 at the 2010 census. Only 10 miles (16 km) west from Boston, Natick is considered part of the Greater Boston area. The center of population of Massachusetts in 2000 was located in Natick.

Name

The name Natick comes from the language of the Massachusett Native American tribe and is commonly considered to mean place of hills. However, a more accurate translation may be place of (our) searching, named to celebrate John Eliot's successful search for a location for his Praying Indian settlement.

History

Natick was first settled in 1651 by John Eliot, a Puritan missionary born in Widford, Hertfordshire, England who received a commission and funds from England's Long Parliament to settle the Massachusett Indians on both sides of the Charles River, on land deeded from the settlement at Dedham. They were called Praying Indians – Natick was the first and for a long time served as the center of Eliot's network of praying towns. While the towns were largely self-governing under Indian leaders, the praying Indians were subject to rules governing conformity to English Puritan culture (in practice Natick, like the other praying towns, evidenced a combination of traditional and English culture and practices). Eliot and Praying Indian translators printed America's first written Bible in the Algonquian language.

Natick Center (MBTA station)

Natick Center is a passenger rail station in downtown Natick, Massachusetts, with service on the MBTA Commuter Rail Framingham/Worcester Line. The station, located below grade in a wide cut adjacent to North Main Street (MA-27), has two low-level side platforms serving the line's two tracks. Natick Center station is not handicapped accessible; the low platforms do not support level boarding, and passage to street level is via staircases only. The busiest non-accessible station on the system, it is planned to receive a major renovation and modernization.

Natick Center station is primarily used by those walking from nearby neighborhoods. A small lot with 71 spaces, owned by the town, is adjacent to the station; a town permit is needed to park. West Natick station, with a larger lot and daily pay spaces, opened two miles to the west in 1982 to serve park and ride commuters. All inbound trains except for a handful of express trains stop at both stations, as well as most outbound non-express trains.

Natick (YTB-760)

Natick (YTB-760) was the lead ship of United States Navy Natick class large district harbor tugs. The second U.S. Navy ship to carry that name, she is named for Natick, Massachusetts.

Construction

The contract for Natick was awarded 29 June 1960. She was laid down on 1 September 1960 at Slidell, Louisiana, by Southern Shipbuilding Corp and launched 19 June 1961.

Operational history

From 1961 to 1964 Natick served the 5th Naval District, Norfolk, Virginia. From 1964 into 1970 the tug was assigned to SUBRON 14 at Holy Loch, Scotland. Natick supported U.S. Navy ships at La Maddalena, Italy from 1970 to 1973. In the late 1990s, YTB-760 was stationed with Port Services supporting USS Simon Lake (AS-33) at La Maddelena, Sardinia, Italy.

Stricken from the Navy list on 28 March 2003, Natick was sold at Boston, Massachusetts, on 26 April 2005.

Notes

^a According to a list of vessels built by Jakobson Shipyard, Natick and her sister ship, Ottumwa (YTB-761), were built by Jakobson, not Southern Shipbuilding. Research needed.