MASSACHUSETTS, one of the 13 original States of the Union, and the most populous of the New England States; between lat. 41° 14' and 42° 53' N., and between long. 69° 55' and 73° 32' W. from Greenwich. Its greatest length is 184 miles and greatest breadth 114/4 miles, the average breadth being 474 miles. Capital. Boston. Population State census, 1915, 3,693,310, as compared with 3,666,416 shown in the National census of 1910. Its familiar name °The Old Bay State° is due to its location upon Massachusetts Bay, an inlet of the Atlantic Ocean which forms the eastern boundary of the State. It is bounded on the north by the States of New Hampshire and Vermont; on the west by the State of New York; on the south by the States of Rhode Island and Connecticut, to gether with the Atlantic which, skirting the southeastern coast, forms between the outlying islands of Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket, belonging to the State, a broad waterway known as Nantucket Sound and an inlet called Buz zard's Bay, beyond the eastern extremity of Long Island Sound. The name "Massachusetts" is compounded from Indian words meaning "Great Hills Place," alluding probably to heights of land near the coast in the vicinity of Bos ton. The present State seal, adopted in 1780 in place of other devices previously in use, shows an Indian holding in his right hand a bow and in his left an arrow pointing down ward, all of gold, displayed upon a blue shield, and in the upper corner, above the right arm of the Indian, a silver star having five points. The motto, adopted for Massachusetts by the Provincial Congress in 1775, is, in Latin, "Ense petit Placidain sub liberate quietem,* or in English, "With the sword she seeks quiet peace under liberty." The area of the State com prises 8,315 square miles, 8,040 square miles be ing land surface, and 275 water. A portion of the Appalachian Mountain system forms two distinct ranges crossing • the western part of the State from north to south. Of these, the Ta conic range on the extreme western border has as its highest elevation Mount Greylock (3,535 feet) in the northwestern corner of the State, which is also the highest elevation found within Massachusetts. Thence the range falls to an elevation of 2,624 feet near the southwestern corner. The other or Hoosac range farther east has, as its highest peak, Spruce Hill (2,588 feet), its general height ranging, however, from 1,200 to 1,600 feet. Mount Tom (1,214 feet)
and Mount Holyoke (955 feet) are conspicuous elevations rising above the valley of the Con necticut River. Mount Wachusett (2,108 feet)) and Mount Watatic (1,847 feet) in the north central part of the State are also noteworthy. An elevated plateau, 1,100 feet high at its great est elevation, forms the central portion of the State and slopes gradually toward the east, the highest point near the coast being the Great Blue Hill of Milton (620 feet). The sandy peninsula or arm of land known as Cape Cod is a distinguishing feature of the topography of the State, enclosing between the bend and the main coast the considerable body of water known as Cape Cod Bay. The arm of the cape is now penetrated by a ship canal shortening the route between the port of Boston and southern waters. The main coast line of the State, some 300 miles in extent, affords excel lent harbors, especially at Boston, New Bed ford, Gloucester and Salem. See BOUNDARIES OF THE UNITED STATES.
Rivers and Lakes.— The principal rivers are the Connecticut, crossing the State from north to south, approximately 40 miles east from the western boundary; the Housatonic, flowing south, and the Hoosac, north, between the Ta conic and Hoosac ranges; and the Merrimac, in the northeastern part of the State, having its source in New Hampshire and flowing into the Atlantic on the eastern coast. These rivers, ex cept the Merrimac for some 15 miles from its mouth, are not navigable for shipping; but to gether with the Deerfield, Westfield, Chicopee and Miller's River, branches of the Connecticut, the Nashua and Concord, branches of the Mer rimac, the Blackstone flowing from the centre of the State southerly across the Rhode Island boundary, and numerous other small streams, afford water power of the highest efficiency which has been fully utilized in the industrial development of the State and contributed largely to the extension and growth of manu facturing, the chief source of the wealth of its people. The Mystic and Charles rivers, flow ing into Boston Harbor, and the Taunton, en tering the bay at Fall River, are tidal streams each navigable for a short distance There are numerous small lakes or ponds throughout the State, adding much to the beauty of the landscape, and, in many cases, utilized as sources of water supply for the in habitants.