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The Commemorative
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The Commemorative Quarter for Massachusetts





Welcome to Petersham ...

Petersham is located in Worcester County<1>.

Petersham was settled in 1733 and was incorporated in 1754.

From the  Census Estimates for 2019, Petersham has a population of 1,246 people<2> (see below for details).

Petersham is 1,080 feet [329 m] above sea level.<3>.

Time Zone: Petersham lies in the Eastern Time Zone (EST/EDT) and observes daylight saving time

Area Codes for Petersham: 978 & 351<4>

The ZIP code for Petersham: 01366<5>

Population Details ...

Taken from the 2019 Census Estimates, Petersham had an population of 1,246 people. This is an increase of 0.97% since the 2010 Census (or an increase of 5.59% since the 2000 Census).

At the time of the 2010 Census, Petersham had a population of 1,234 people. This makes Petersham the county's 59th most populous community.

The population of Petersham represents 0.02% of the population of Massachusetts (which has 6,547,629 people), making it the state's 318th most populous community.

With a 2010 count of 1,234 people, the population of Petersham increased 4.58% from the 2000 Census (with a count of 1,180 people).

More information can be found on the Census Page for Petersham.

Communities near Petersham ...

We have created a list of 10 communities that are near Petersham.

  • Amherst
    (18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
  • Gardner
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
  • Holden
    (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
  • Belchertown
    (18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Belchertown. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<6>
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Belchertown
    • Belchertown is located in Hampshire County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 15,103 people
    • Google driving directions:
    • From your current location to Belchertown
    • From Petersham to Belchertown
  • Spencer
    (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
  • Athol
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
  • Winchendon
    (15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
  • Ware
    (16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
  • Rutland
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
  • Montague
    (17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)

To Help With Your Genealogy Research ...

We have a couple of sections for those tracing their genealogy.

We created a list of cemeteries that are in the area around Petersham. Our list includes the location of those cemeteries and we provide an overhead view. See our Cemetery List for Petersham.

Using the information from an 1895 Atlas, we've created a list of communities that were in the area of Petersham. Our list includes information such as whether the 1895 community had a post office or railroad service. See our List of 1890's Communities around Petersham.

We also have a detailed list of newspapers that have been published in the area around Petersham. See our Newspapers Page for Petersham.

TripAdvisor Tourism Pages for Petersham ...

Looking for more information about Petersham? A wonderful source is the TripAdvisor website. We always start with the TripAdvisor Tourism page, where you can read an overview with links that will help you find lodging, restaurants and attractions.

While we are unaware of a Tourism page that is specific to Petersham, there are neighboring communities that do have Tourism pages. A map of those communities can be found with our TripAdvisor Page for Petersham.

Adding Petersham to Our Gazetteer ...

We originally found mention of Petersham in both the FIPS-55 and the GNIS. For more information, see the FIPS and GNIS Codes sections on our Miscellaneous Page.

From our notes, the earliest published mention we've found for Petersham was in the document titled List of Post Offices from Cameron Blevins and Richard Helbock.<7>

X2X - From that list, the Petersham post office opened in 1797.

We also found Petersham in the book titled U.S. Post Offices (1803).

For more details, see References and Mentions for Petersham.

Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for Petersham. If you can help, please contact us through our Feedback Page.

The official website for State of Massachusetts: https://www.mass.gov/

Footnotes ...

<1>If you're interested in how the shape of Massachusetts' counties, including Worcester, have changed over time, we recommend the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries.
<2>Population counts have been provided by the U.S. Census Bureau. For more detail, please visit our Census Page for Petersham.
<3>The elevation is an estimate for the area around Petersham - it will be higher in some places and lower in others.
<4>When there's a risk of an area code running out of phone numbers, an 'Overlay Area Code' is created that has the same geographic boundaries as the existing area code. In this case, the 978 code has been Overlayed with the 351 area code. New phone numbers in the Petersham area will be assigned with one of these codes: 978 or 351. As a result, placing a call in the Petersham area will require 10-digit dialing (where you enter both the area code and then the phone number).
<5>ZIP Codes have been created by the United States Postal Service (USPS) as a way of grouping addresses to make delivery more efficient. The boundaries of the ZIP Code can be changed, re-assigned, eliminated or overlapped with other ZIP Codes. So keep in mind that any given ZIP Code is only 'loosely' associated with a community (such as Petersham). When looking for a ZIP Code, whether Petersham or elsewhere, it's always best to check the website of the United States Postal Service (USPS).
<6>An 'estimated' location is one where we have been given GPS coordinates, but are unable to verify the accuracy of those coordinates. That said, we have some confidence that we have placed the marker near the actual location. A typical reason for being unable to verify a location is that it might be on private property or maybe historic and gone without an obvious trace.
<7>A copy of their list with background information can be found at:

      https://cblevins.github.io/us-post-offices/data-biography/




 

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This page was last modified/updated: 28 Apr 2025