Burlington Marks 224th Birthday, Big Celebrations Planned For 225th

BURLINGTON, MA — Many Burlington residents may have missed the fact that Tuesday was the town's 224th birthday.

However, the town's next birthday is unlikely to go unnoticed.

At Monday's Select Board meeting, officials discussed a proclamation to be issued by the town declaring Feb. 28, 2024, as a town-wide celebration of Burlington's 225th birthday.

Of course, Burlington's early history, before it was incorporated, is intertwined with the history of its neighbor to the east.

"Much of Burlington history in the early days was written into the history of Woburn," Mary Nohelty, of the Burlington Historical Commission and the Historical Society, told Patch.

Actually, Woburn was called Charlestown Village until it was incorporated as "Wooburne" in 1642, according to Woburnma.gov.

Burlington initially was part of Charlestown Village/Woburn, as were Wilmington and Winchester.

In 1730, today's Burlington became Woburn Second Parish, according to the Town of Burlington website. Then, in 1732, the United Church of Christ was built for the parish on a parcel of donated land called Forest Field Hill. The church still stands today at 6 Lexington St.

According to the Town of Burlington website, the church served as the meeting house for the second parish, and it was the social and spiritual center of the community.

Woburn, according to the story, became worried that the Second Parish Meeting House might foreshadow Burlington's split into another town. After all, Wilmington had split in 1730. Winchester later went off on its own in 1850.

Then, as Woburn had feared, on February 28, 1799, Burlington was incorporated as a town.