In 1634, English settlers first arrived in the territory that is now Attleboro. At the time, it included the towns of Cumberland, Rhode Island, and North Attleborough, MA, which separated from Attleboro in 1747 and 1887 respectively.

The city became known for jewelry manufacturing in 1913, particularly because of the L.G. Balfour Company. That company has since moved out of the city, and the site of the former plant has been converted into a riverfront park. Attleboro was once known as "The Jewelry Capital of the World," and jewelry manufacturers continue to operate there. In keeping with this long-time tradition, Attleboro began hosting the annual Jewelry City Steampunk Festival in 2017. Sitting on the border of the states of Massachusetts and Rhode Island, Attleboro is part of the Providence metropolitan area and is also a short distance from Boston. The city has two commuter rail stations, facilitating access to both cities. 

There was no legal parish in Easton until 1722, when the East Precinct of Norton was recognized. In 1725, the area was incorporated as the Town of Easton; it was so named because it was formerly called the "East End" of the Taunton North Purchase and was shortened Easton. During the Revolutionary War, General George Washington stayed at the Benjamin Williams Tavern on Bay Road, the second oldest existing house in Easton, while on his way to negotiate for cannonballs at the old Perry Foundry in Taunton.

In 1803, the Ames Shovel Works was established and became nationally known as having provided the shovels which laid the Union Pacific Railroad and opened the west. The most notable of the Ames family, who shaped the town economy, was Oliver Ames(R), governor of Massachusetts from 1887-1890. Easton is home to Stonehill College, a private, nonprofit, coeducational, Roman Catholic, Liberal Arts college. Their mascot is "Ace" the Skyhawk.

The town of Foxborough (later shortened to Foxboro) was named for Charles James Fox, a Whig member of Parliament and a staunch supporter of the Colonies in the years leading up to the American Revolution. It was originally part of Stoughton before it incorporated 1778.

More than a century before Foxboro became known as the home of the New England Patriots, Foxboro was recognized for having the world’s largest straw hat factory. The town’s straw hat industry started 1798 when 12-year-old Betsy Metcalf admired a straw bonnet in a store window in Providence. Since she could not afford the hat, she gathered rye from her father’s field, split the straw with her thumbnail, and fashioned the first straw hat made in America. The commercial value of the hats was obvious, and quickly small manufacturing shops sprouted up around town. The hats were sold locally, to Boston, and then around the world.

In 1908, Bennett and Edgar Bristol formed the company which became known as the Foxboro Company. At one point, at least one person in every family in town worked at the Company. During World War II, the Company made control mechanisms for British torpedoes and since the town’s men were at war, the factory employed women, which was a new phenomenon. Still a major force in the town, the company was purchased by Invensys and most recently by Schneider-Electric. 

And now, of course, Foxboro is best known as the proud home of the New England Patriots. 

Franklin was first settled by Europeans in 1660 and officially incorporated during the American Revolution. Formed from the western part of the town of Wrentham, its designated name at incorporation was to be Exeter. However, the town's citizens opted to call it Franklin, in honor of the statesman Benjamin Franklin, the first municipality in the United States to be so named. The town is the birthplace of America's father of public education, Horace Mann. It is home to what is considered the nation's oldest continuously operational one-room school house, the Red Brick School. The town is home to Dean College, founded in 1865, a private residential college with over 1,100 students. 

MANSFIELD
The area to become Mansfield was first scouted in 1640 by Captain Miles Standish. The town was named for William Murray, First Earl of Mansfield, a pro-colonial member of the House of Lords.

Not very far south of Boston, Mansfield offers residents a dense suburban feel. In Mansfield, there are several restaurants and parks, including Mansfield Memorial Park. Many young professionals live in the town and it has a high-traffic commuter rail station.

Mansfield is the home of the Xfinity Center (formerly known as Great Woods, Tweeter Center, and Comcast Center) concert venue, one of the most popular in New England, as well as the Mass Music and Arts Society (MMAS), which is located directly across the street from the Xfinity Center. It is the birthplace of Honey Dew Donuts, a regional New England chain of donut shops. Mansfield is also known for its outstanding high school sports and music programs. Football, soccer, baseball, boys' and girls' basketball, lacrosse, track and field (Men's), and Women's Indoor and Outdoor Track and Field teams have won multiple league, division, and all-state titles. The Mansfield music program has also won many awards over the years. 

Formerly known as North Wrentham, and officially part of Dedham, Norfolk broke away to become an independent town in 1870. 

Norfolk was abandoned during King Philip's War, and when it was re-established, settlers relied on agriculture and cattle grazing with considerable lumbering and planting of orchards. After 1812, three cotton manufacturing companies were established at Stony Brook, and later in the 19th century, George Campbell's paper mill was opened at Highland Lake making heavy wrapping and building papers. The town saw a rapid increase in population after 1925 when a hospital and a state prison were built in Norfolk on the Walpole line. Major residential development took place before 1940, and suburban residential building has continued since. It remains a quiet, suburban town to this day. 

North Attleborough (also shortened to North Attleboro) was settled in the 17th century, and was first incorporated as part of Attleboro. It separated from Attleboro in 1887. 

 

By the late 1700s, clusters of industrial development were located at the Old Town and Attleborough Falls area. Capitalists from Pawtucket and Providence, Rhode Island, seeking to expand their businesses, made extensive purchases of mill privileges. Between 1809 and 1813, five major cotton mills were built along the Ten Mile River and, by 1858, jewelry was a booming industry. North Attleborough and Attleboro boasted 23 jewelry manufactories that supplied wares to both domestic and foreign markets. 

People are drawn to North Attleborough as they are to Attleboro because of the proximity to Boston and Providence.

 

Norton was first settled in 1669 and was called North Taunton due to its location on the northern border of Taunton, MA. The town was renamed Norton— after Norton, Oxfordshire, England, where many early settlers had originated when the town was officially established in 1710. Parts of Norton were originally established as Easton in 1725 and as Mansfield in 1770. 

Metacomet, the Wampanoag Indian sachem also known as "King Phillip," is said to have hidden in a cave here near the end of King Philip's War before meeting his death in Hockomock Swamp. According to one source, "every Norton school child has been entertained with the legend of King Phillip's Cave." 

Every 26 years, the officials at the town’s Joseph C. Solmonese Elementary School unearth a time capsule, the last of which was buried in 1999. The time capsule will again be opened in 2026.  

Norton is also a location in the claimed paranormal Bridgewater Triangle.

Once part of the Massachusetts Bay Colony in 1637, Sharon was established as the district of Stoughtonham in 1765, incorporated as the Town of Stoughtonham in 1775, and was named Sharon in 1783, after Israel's Sharon plain, due to its high level of forestation. Several towns in New England were also given this name.

Many town residents have second- and third-generation family roots in Sharon, but the town is also notable for its diversity and openness to newcomers. An Interfaith Clergy Council and an "Affirming Diversity" group foster cooperative understanding among several varieties of Christian and Jewish congregations, an Islamic mosque, and a Unitarian church as well as adherents of Eastern religions, and the group sponsors an annual Martin Luther King Day Celebration. 

Almost midway between Boston and Providence, Sharon has access to Boston and Providence with MBTA commuter trains stopping at the Sharon station, and to New York City and Washington, D.C., with Amtrak trains at the nearby Route 128 station.

Walpole was considered part of Dedham until it officially incorporated in 1724. The town was named after Sir Robert Walpole, de facto first Prime Minister of Great Britain.

After the Revolutionary War, several mills were built, largely on the Neponset River which allowed them to harness the power of falls. Over the years, these mills grew and manufactured cotton, lumber, and paper. The most notable of these was the Bird Company, which occupied a large complex on the river in East Walpole. The Neponset River, which facilitated transport between the nearby towns of Sharon, Foxborough, and Medfield, was also used as a water supply and for water power.

Commuter rail service from Boston's South Station is provided by the MBTA with the Walpole and Plimptonville stops on its Franklin Line.

Wrentham was first settled by the English in 1661 and officially incorporated in 1673. It was burned down during King Philip's War 1675-1676. In the 19th century, Wrentham was the site of Day's Academy. For a short time, Wrentham was the residence of the educational reformer Horace Mann. It is also known to be one of Helen Keller’s residences.

Today's traffic jams in Wrentham town center are minor compared to those of the 1920s. When Rt. 1 became a major tourist highway, connecting Maine to Florida. Wrentham's quickly became dotted with restaurants, gas stations, hot dog stands, and tourist cabins. By the 1950s, the majority of farms closed, and Wrentham morphed into a suburban bedroom community serving the needs of urban workers. With the advent of Routes 95 and 495, major commerce and industry are now only a short drive away. 

Wrentham is home of Wrentham Village Premium Outlets, New England’s largest outdoor outlet shopping center, featuring more than 160 brand-named stores in one location.