Northfield

Northfield may refer to:

Places

Education

See also

Northfield, Massachusetts

Northfield is a town in Franklin County, Massachusetts, United States. Northfield was first settled in 1673. The population was 3,032 at the 2010 census. It is part of the Springfield, Massachusetts Metropolitan Statistical Area. The Connecticut River runs through the town, dividing West Northfield from East Northfield and the village of Northfield, where the town hall is located.

Part of the town is included in the census-designated place of Northfield.

History

Originally settled and inhabited by the Sokoki tribe, the area was the site of the village of Squawkeag. Northfield was first colonized in 1673 by the English and was officially incorporated in 1723.

The territory was successfully defended a number of times by Native Americans. As a result, the English colonists were occasionally taken north to Quebec, held as hostages by the French, causing the town to revert to American Indian control a few times. Eventually, conflicts with the Native American population ceased after most of the native population was displaced and/or sold into slavery as a result of King Philip's War and after a series of massacres of local Indian villages.

Northfield, Minnesota

Northfield is a city in Dakota and Rice counties in the State of Minnesota. The city is mostly in Rice County, with a small portion in Dakota County. The population was 20,007 during the 2010 census.

History

Northfield was platted in 1855 by John W. North. Northfield was founded by immigrants from New England known as "Yankees" as part of a New England colonization of what was then the far west. Northfield was an early agricultural center with many wheat and corn farms. The town also supported lumber and flour mills powered by the Cannon River. As the "wheat frontier" moved west, dairy operations and diversified farms replaced the wheat-based agriculture. The region has since moved away from dairy and beef operations. Today it produces substantial crops of corn, and soybeans, as well as producing hogs. The local cereal producer Malt-O-Meal is one of the few remnants of Northfield's historic wheat boom. The city's motto, "Cows, Colleges, and Contentment", reflects the influence of the dairy farms.